It's hard to believe heading into the second month of the season, but the Ohio State Buckeyes might be better than we all expected this fall and have successfully stiff-armed the Urban Meyer distraction many thought could alter this talent-rich team's path to the College Football Playoff.

Ohio State, like Alabama, is elite.

No. 3 in this week's AP Poll with their first No. 1 vote of the season after Saturday's win at Penn State, the Buckeyes have passed the eye-test with dominance on offense and opportunistic play from their defensive front, which hasn't missed a beat during All-American Nick Bosa's time on the sideline.

It certainly looks like Ohio State is now an overwhelming frontrunner in terms of getting back to the final four with few potential roadblocks over the second half of the schedule.

Here's 10 reasons why we think the Buckeyes will enter the postseason unbeaten as Big Ten Conference champions: