Ohio State’s last two weeks have been a mess, and Saturday night only added to the damage. The Buckeyes got blown out again, this time in front of a home crowd that watched the defense give up 71 points across the two losses and saw fans heading for the exits early.
That was the backdrop for a big recruiting weekend, too. Ohio State had plenty of prospects on hand for the game against Oregon, and one of them left with a message that mattered for the Buckeyes: Caden Moss is still in.
Moss, a four-star offensive lineman, has been the subject of some flip chatter, with Ole Miss rumored to be in contact. But after seeing the rough night in person, he took to social media to make it clear he remains committed to Ohio State.
He’s one of five offensive line recruits in Ohio State’s 2027 class, and he was being recruited by offensive line coach Tyler Bowen. Bowen’s future is uncertain given how the season has gone, but Moss appears to be staying put even if changes come on the coaching staff.
That kind of loyalty matters right now. If assistants are moved on, other recruits could start looking around. The same goes for Ryan Day, though a departure there still seems unlikely unless the season completely falls apart.
For now, Ohio State is just trying to steady the ship. The Buckeyes no longer have a path to the College Football Playoff or the Big Ten title, but they can still beat TTUN, and that remains the one thing the fan base is clinging to.
Day is under plenty of pressure, and after he meets with reporters at his weekly press conference, Arthur Smith and Matt Patricia will be the ones answering for their mistakes. There were plenty of them, and that’s why neither coach appears likely to be fired just yet.
Any major staff changes may have to wait until after the season. For Ohio State, though, the need for them is obvious. And in the middle of all that uncertainty, Moss is still holding firm with the Buckeyes.
In Other News...
Ohio State Just Exposed A Problem Bigger Than One Loss
Ohio State came out sharp against Oregon, jumping ahead 14-0 in the first quarter and still holding a 14-3 edge late in the first half. Then the game tilted hard, with Oregon scoring 38 straight points and flipping the matchup with a fake punt, turnovers and a surge that left the Buckeyes chasing the rest of the way.
The loss does not close the door on Ohio States bigger goals, since the Buckeyes still control a path to the Big Ten Championship and the College Football Playoff if they take care of the games left on their schedule. But the way this one unraveled raised the kind of questions that linger beyond a single defeat, especially around quarterback play and whether the teams effort can stay steady when the game turns against it. [Read more 🡒]
Ohio State Just Saw Why This Freshman Could Change Everything
Anthony Thompson gave Ohio State a glimpse of what its freshman class might become in the first half against Marshall, scoring 10 points and helping steady the Buckeyes in an 84-74 win. With the schedule about to stiffen, that kind of early contribution matters even more for a team still trying to sort out its rotation and build the kind of chemistry that can hold up against better competition.
LJ Smiths scoreless night showed the other side of the freshman learning curve, and Ohio States defensive issues were also hard to ignore. The Buckeyes now turn to a much tougher test against fourth-ranked UConn, where the margin for growth will shrink quickly and the need for both freshmen to keep developing will be impossible to miss. [Read more 🡒]
Ohio State Is Running Out Of Time To Fix A Costly Problem
Ohio State has made a clear move to address one of the seasons most frustrating issues, parting ways with special teams coordinator Robby Discher after nine games in 2026. The Buckeyes turned to Rob Keys as the interim coordinator for the rest of the year, while Matt Guerrieri and James Laurinaitis will help steer the punt and kickoff units, giving Ryan Day a reshuffled staff as the team tries to steady a phase that has repeatedly hurt it.
Day said there will not be any more coaching changes before the next game, but the evaluation process is still ongoing. That leaves Ohio State in a familiar late-season spot: trying to clean up a costly problem quickly, with limited time to see whether the new arrangement can bring order to a unit that has already given away too many damaging moments. [Read more 🡒]