Ohio State's 2017 football slate starts on a non-traditional day of the week. The Buckeyes open at Indiana on Aug. 31, a Thursday.
It is odd enough the Buckeyes open the season with a Big Ten opponent and the schedule holds some other quirks — Urban Meyer's team is set to travel to both the Westernmost and Easternmost part of the conference for example. The marquee non-conference matchup is Week 2 against Oklahoma in Columbus, the back half of a home-and-home with the Sooners. Ohio State won 45-24 in Norman last season.
Other intriguing home games: Army (triple option cometh), Penn State (reigning Big Ten champs, beat Ohio State in 2016) and Michigan State (won its last time in Columbus).
Are any of these games worthy of being identified as a trap? Thus, lying in the weeds, cognizant of its surroundings, readying to strike at any moment and then poof; a heavily favored Ohio State team is left to explain an inexplicable loss. Traps also love it when they can feel their opponent looking ahead to next week.
Here are three Meyer's team must take seriously before heading to the locker room with the weight of a "What just happened?" feeling sinking on its shoulders.
Trap No. 1: UNLV
Date: Sept. 23
Location: Ohio Stadium
Why it's a trap: All right, look: We know UNLV didn't really do much last season to warrant fear from Ohio State fans in 2017. The fact the Rebels allowed more than 430 yards and almost 37 points per game makes it clear it would take a heroic effort to upend Ohio State in Columbus.
The reason UNLV makes this list is because of who Ohio State plays before it. The Buckeyes host Army on Sept. 16. The Black Knights run the triple option and you know the cadets are going to play their tails off at Ohio Stadium. Ohio State will be more talented than both Army and UNLV but it is too soon to forget what happened the week after the Buckeyes last played a service academy.
Virginia Tech shocked the world with a 35-21 victory in Columbus and under the lights in Week 2 of the 2014 season. Ohio State beat Navy 31-14 a week earlier in Baltimore but because preparing to face the option is unlike anything in college football, didn't have an answer for the Bear defense the Hokies unleashed that night.
Is UNLV on the same level as Virginia Tech? Certainly not. But it is a fool's errand to at least not recognize this as a potential trap game. The Rebels return their two leading rushers (sophomore Charles Williams and junior Lexington Thomas) and best receiver Devonte Boyd (746 yards in 10 games last year) though the latter broke his arm late last year.
UNLV can score. How Ohio State's three new faces in the secondary come into their own in the first trio of games will help determine the outcome of this one.
Trap No. 2: at Iowa
Date: Nov. 4
Location: Kinnick Stadium
Why it's a trap: You're probably thinking there is no way a matchup with the always more than game fighting Kirk Ferentzs should be considered a trap. After all, they went 12-0 and made the Rose Bowl just two years ago.
BUT: Iowa finished 8-5 last year and got wrecked by Florida 30-3 in the Outback Bowl in a game where its senior quarterback completed only seven passes for 55 yards on 23 (!) attempts. Florida speed is one thing, but mercy, C.J. Beathard.
An early thought on this matchup is its possibility of being a night game. Iowa gets Penn State and Minnesota at home before it hosts the Buckeyes. So the Hawkeyes could get those games flexed to primetime. Even so, Ohio State coming to town doesn't happen very often. The last time it did was in 2010, a victory by the Buckeyes the NCAA no longer recognizes.
Playing at Kinnick under the lights isn't easy regardless of Iowa's record. Michigan lost to the then-5-4 Hawkeyes by a score of 14-13 on a last-second field goal in early November. Ohio State will be up for its game the week before when it hosts Penn State. A letdown on the road (and potentially at night) is certainly a possibility.
Trap No. 3: Michigan State
Date: Nov. 11
Location: Ohio Stadium
Why it's a trap: Depending on when kickoff for the Iowa game is a week before, Ohio State might essentially lose an entire day of preparation for the Spartans. That isn't easy regardless who a team faces after a road night game but especially if and when it is against Michigan State.
Mark Dantonio's club had an incredibly down year in 2016, finishing 3-9. Yet Ohio State narrowly escaped East Lansing with a 17-16 win and as is always noted, Dantonio is responsible for a third of Meyer's losses since his arrival in Columbus.
If the Iowa game is an emotionally charged affair, Ohio State might need some time to get going against the Spartans. Dantonio's program has faced some turmoil this winter with suspensions to three players and one staffer. But he always has his players ready to take on the Buckeyes.
Plus, the last time Michigan State played in Ohio Stadium, it dashed the home team's chance at back-to-back Big Ten Championship Game and College Football Playoff berths.
