DaytonDailyNews.com

On Sept. 28, results of the latest Associated Press Top 25 college football poll were released. Ohio State, which had improved to 4-1 with a 34-21 victory against Minnesota the day before, didn't move from its previous rank of No. 14.

The same Saturday, BYU didn't play. It remained 4-0 with Division I-A wins against Washington, UCLA and Wyoming (it also beat Northern Iowa), teams currently with a combined 5-15 record.

As Ohio State stood still, BYU jumped from No. 11 to No. 8.

Much has changed since then, including a BYU blowout loss to TCU and an Ohio State rout of Michigan State. But that single set of votes underlines the perception the Buckeyes face in the polls.

Non-BCS conference schools have been getting more respect than Ohio State.

That makes Saturday's game against Penn State monumentally important in getting OSU into the nation's good graces. If the Nittany Lions win by three touchdowns or more in prime time in Ohio Stadium, the Buckeyes might never get another AP vote.

Everyone knows where Ohio State stands in the national consciousness. It took the Buckeyes five weeks to get back into the top 10 after losing to USC, and only to No. 10 at that.

With momentum from a strong game against MSU, Ohio State has a chance to turn around its assumed fortunes to (gasp!) glimpse an outside chance at the national championship game.

Based on the feelings voters have showed toward Ohio State, that's still a long shot.

Contact this reporter at (937) 225-7389 or knagel@DaytonDailyNews.com.