INDIANAPOLIS – All of Ohio State’s 2025 NFL Scouting Combine-high 15 invitees all have one thing in common: They never beat Michigan during their college careers. This season was a prime opportunity to snap a three-game losing streak in the rivalry and earn their first win since a 2019 thrashing of the Wolverines in Ann Arbor. OSU entered the Nov. 30 matchup in Columbus as a three-touchdown favorite but left with its fourth straight loss to Michigan. A high-octane Buckeyes offense replete with playmakers wilted against a defensive unit starting to hit its stride under first-year coordinator Wink Martindale, while their defense allowed Michigan to bully it on the ground on its final drive after bottling up Kirk Campbell’s unit through the first 50 minutes. Ohio State defensive tackle JT Tuimoloau called the loss “rock bottom,” but the team didn’t allow it to be the tombstone on its season. A players-only meeting three days after the loss helped set the stage for a dominant run through the College Football Playoff, knocking off No. 9 Tennessee, No. 1 Oregon, No. 5 Texas and No. 7 Notre Dame by a combined score of 145-75 to win the program’s first national championship since 2014. “We really had to lean on our faith, on our brotherhood and what we stand for,” Tuimoloau said Wednesday at the combine. “It could have been so easy for us to just spiral and separate. I think once we come together, we regrouped and understood what was still ahead of us. It was all gas (from) right there.” Several Buckeyes decided to stay in college for the 2024 season instead of declaring for the draft after losing a nailbiter in Ann Arbor in 2023. Defensive end Jack Sawyer, who ripped away a block “M” flag from a Michigan player near midfield during last November’s postgame scuffle, was among that group. “We got punched in the mouth at the end of the year, and it was a great opportunity for us to go one of two ways,” he said Wednesday. “We chose the way that was winning the national championship. Really, it was just all about regrouping after that game, and we did that and were able to put our best foot forward and win a national championship.” The tide has shifted in the rivalry after OSU won eight straight from 2012-19 and 15 of the previous 16. Michigan has concocted the winning potion to beating OSU, and Ryan Day hasn’t discovered the antidote. It’s a rivalry, linebacker Cody Simon said, that truly runs 365 days a year. “You put every single day of your year into one game and you don’t get that done, you don’t know what to do with yourself,” Simon said. “It’s like dejecting. You just feel like nothing. I know those guys right now (the 2025 team), they’re working hard, they’re doing the same exact thing that we’ve been doing. It’s just finding that edge. They need to find that edge to get a win.” This year’s OSU draft class might have gone winless against Michigan, but the group is still proud to go out as national champions. This year’s rivalry loss was the most pivotal point of the Buckeyes’ season, Simon said. “After we lost – that was something we all (senior class) came back for,” he said. “After that loss, it really hit us deep. It was like a dagger. But we had to understand, like, ‘Hey, we can come back, regroup, and still go have a chance to win a national championship. Or we just go in and lay an egg against Tennessee.’ So we regrouped and stayed together, stayed as one and stayed trusted in the Lord and just came out and did what we had to do.”