Injury season has a way of arriving all at once in college football, and Week 7 threw a handful of the sport’s biggest names onto the shelf. Some of these situations sound manageable.
Others are already sounding like real problems. And one is done for the year.
Florida State took the hardest hit. Running back Ousmane Kromah was carted off late in the second quarter of the loss to Miami after his leg was placed in an air cast, and the Seminoles’ sideline reacted like it knew the news was bad.
Florida State later announced that Kromah suffered a lower leg injury, stayed in Miami on Saturday for surgery and returned to Tallahassee on Sunday. He is out for the rest of the season.
Kromah had entered the year as the feature back and produced 100 carries for 565 yards and five rushing touchdowns before the injury. As a freshman last season, he ran for 408 yards on 72 carries.
Ohio State’s situation carries a much different kind of weight, because quarterback Julian Sayin’s right throwing arm injury was described by Ryan Day as lasting “several weeks.” That’s enough to put the Buckeyes on alert, especially with freshman backup Luke Fahey now in line to have to handle real responsibility if Sayin can’t get back quickly.
Ohio State does at least have a bye this week, which gives the staff time to shape the offense around Fahey. If the Buckeyes have to lean into the passing game without Sayin, Jeremiah Smith could see even more work.
After the bye, Ohio State heads to USC.
Texas is also sweating a major defensive injury after edge rusher Colin Simmons went down against Florida. Steve Sarkisian said he didn’t know the full extent of the issue, and Simmons was helped off the field without much weight on his leg before later leaving in a cart.
On Texas’ side, there was enough concern in the moment that it looked far worse than a routine exit. Late Saturday, OnTexasFootball.com reported the initial diagnosis as an ankle sprain, though the severity remains unknown.
With Texas’ offense already under plenty of scrutiny, the defense may have to keep carrying the load when the Longhorns face Ole Miss and Trinidad Chambliss.
Alabama’s running game took a hit, too, when EJ Crowell left the Tennessee game with a lower leg injury and didn’t return. Kalen DeBoer didn’t have much to offer afterward, saying, "We'll just work through it here this week.
I don't have much more than that," when asked about Crowell and corner Zabien Brown. Crowell came back to the sideline during the game, but The Tuscaloosa News reported he left Neyland Stadium late in the fourth quarter with a brace on his left knee.
Alabama has already struggled to run the ball conventionally, and the Tide didn’t get much from the backs behind Crowell once Tennessee pushed the game off script.
LSU’s Princewill Umanmielen is dealing with a head injury that kept him out for the final three quarters of the Mississippi State blowout. Kiffin said, "Our doctors held him, which obviously is the right thing to do."
Fellow Tigers defender TJ Dottery said Umanmielen told him he was fine, but Kiffin had nothing to add on Sunday when asked about the edge rusher’s status. That matters because Umanmielen is tied for No. 2 in the nation with eight sacks.
LSU goes to Auburn this weekend and then has a bye.
Indiana quarterback Josh Hoover’s situation looked worse on camera than it apparently felt in reality. He was clearly uncomfortable late in the loss to Ohio State and said he got banged up on a scramble, but described it as "nothing really too bad," then told reporters "I'm feeling good" after the game.
He missed only one play and didn’t seem to have his performance derailed by the issue. Indiana will still want him sharp next week against Michigan, especially with the way the Wolverines can get after the passer.
In Other News...
Ohio State Just Entered A Quarterback Debate Nobody Wanted
Ohio State was already navigating the usual late-season pressure when Julian Sayin went down against Indiana, and now the Buckeyes have an unexpected quarterback conversation on their hands. The injury to the starting quarterback adds a jolt of uncertainty at a position Ohio State had hoped to keep settled, with coach Ryan Day needing to sort through a depth chart that suddenly looks a lot thinner than it did a week ago.
Luke Fahey stepped in after Sayin exited the game, but his performance left enough questions to keep the job open. Tavien St. Clair is waiting in the wings as one of the most highly regarded young quarterbacks on the roster, and the Buckeyes may now have to lean on a pair of freshmen sooner than anyone expected while Sayin works his way back. [Read more 🡒]
Ohio States Recruiting Pipeline Looks Even Stronger Than Fans Realize
Ohio States recruiting machine is already rolling well beyond the usual horizon, with the Buckeyes sitting on 20 verbal commitments in the 2027 class alone. That group includes six national top 100 prospects and the countrys No. 1 overall player, DJ Jacobs, a sign that the programs future roster construction is moving at a pace most schools cannot match.
The pipeline does not stop there, either. The 2028 class already features five commitments, four of them nationally ranked and headlined by quarterback Christopher Vargas, while the 2029 class has a commitment in wide receiver Austin Miller, who is ranked No. 50 nationally. For a staff trying to keep the Buckeyes stocked across multiple cycles, the early breadth is impressive enough, but the next question is how long this momentum can keep building. [Read more 🡒]
Indianas Playoff Picture Just Got More Complicated After AP Chaos
A wild upset weekend around college football has turned the playoff race into a moving target, and Ohio State is right in the middle of the ripple effects. Several top-ranked teams fell, including No. 1 Georgia and No. 2 Notre Dame, creating a fresh scramble near the top of the AP rankings even though USC was idle and did not have to spend the weekend on the field.
The Trojans still picked up a little from the chaos, climbing to No. 17 in the AP Top 25, but the bigger question is whether they can turn that position into a real playoff push. Oddsmakers still view USC as a long shot at +425 to make the College Football Playoff, and the road ahead runs straight through opponents like Ohio State and Indiana, the kind of games that could either validate the buzz or leave the picture just as murky. [Read more 🡒]