Barttorvik.com calculates a team's adjusted defensive efficiency (adjDE) each game and gives it a number that represents how many points a team would be expected to concede across 100 possessions, taking into account opponent quality and venue. Generally, the best teams in the country have an adjDE in the 90s for the entire season.

Last night Ohio State's adjDE was 130.5. I cannot emphasize enough how bad that is. It's so bad, in fact, that I dug through Ohio State's game by game adjDE rating back to the beginning of Barttovik's records, which start with the 2007-2008 season.

As an example, here were the worst adjusted defensive efficiency performances for Ohio State last season (2024-2025):
- 121.4 vs Nebraska (W in overtime)
- 115.0 vs Michigan (L)
- 113.7 vs Auburn (L)
- 112.7 vs Pittsburgh (L in overtime)

There have been 48 total games from the 2007-2008 to the end of the 2024-2025 season in which Ohio State had an adjDE rating of 110 or worse - 110 would be considered a bad rating. Ohio State's record in those 48 games was 13-35.

Many teams under Holtmann and Matta only had 1-2 games per year over 110. Three seasons under Matta had ZERO games over 110.

Here are all the times during that stretch that Ohio State had a 120 or worse adjDE rating:
- 125.6 vs Penn State in 2017-2018 (L)
- 122.3 vs Louisiana Tech in 2015-2016 (L)
- 122.2 vs Indiana in 2016-2017 (L)
- 121.7 at Minnesota in 2023-2024 (L)
- 121.3 vs Nebraska in 2024-2205 (W in OT)
 - 120.7 vs Penn State in 2022-2023 (L)

To sum up, last night was Ohio State's worst adjDE game since at least 2007-2008 and a full FIVE POINTS WORSE than their 2nd worst adjDE game in that stretch. It was not just bad. It was *historically* bad.