Ohio State got the kind of injury update no team chasing a national title wants to hear.
Julian Sayin left the Buckeyes’ win over Indiana in the fourth quarter and did not return. He later came out of the locker room with a sling on his throwing arm, and Luke Fahey had to finish the game.
Ryan Day didn’t have answers immediately after the final whistle, saying he needed to get more information from inside the locker room. The next update made things clearer - and uglier for Ohio State.
In his postgame press conference, Day said Sayin will be out for “several weeks.” That lands as the worst-case scenario for the Buckeyes, especially with the toughest stretch of their schedule sitting right ahead. Ohio State does get a bye week next week, but then comes USC followed by Oregon the week after.
“He'll probably be out for several weeks.”
Ryan Day discusses QB Julian Sayin's status after leaving the game with a right arm injury. pic.twitter.com/lqV7iY6ZK3
- Big Ten Network (@BigTenNetwork) October 17, 2026
With Sayin sidelined, Fahey now appears positioned to take over as the starter. He has been ahead of Tavien St.
Clair on the depth chart all season, so the true freshman is the one who now has to keep Ohio State’s championship hopes moving forward. The job is simple to say and hard to do: move the ball, make enough plays, and keep the offense afloat.
That’s where the challenge gets real. Sayin had his worst game as a Buckeye against Indiana, but he was still the best quarterback option Ohio State had. The Buckeyes don’t get that comfort now, and the offense could struggle to find the same rhythm.
The run game also has to improve in a hurry. Against Indiana, Ohio State managed only 78 rushing yards on 37 carries, a shaky 2.1 yards per attempt. That kind of production won’t hold up with a backup quarterback steering the offense.
So the Buckeyes are looking at a different version of themselves for the rest of the season. They won’t be able to lean on a wide-open passing attack as often, even with Jeremiah Smith on the roster. Smith remains the best player in college football, but getting him the ball now becomes a tougher assignment.
That shift could also affect Smith’s Heisman chances, since fewer touches and fewer big numbers make that path harder. Still, the broader goal hasn’t changed for him or for Ohio State. Smith wants a national championship more than anything, and the Buckeyes still have one in reach.
Day’s defense has given Ohio State a chance to survive this. The Buckeyes have shown enough improvement on that side of the ball to lean on it more heavily, and that’s exactly what they may need to do while Fahey is under center. What they won’t have is the same explosive offense they had with Sayin available.
In Other News...
Indiana Was At The Center Of A Costly Officiating Controversy
The latest officiating debate in college football has put Indiana back in the middle of the conversation, this time because of a roughing the passer call in its game against Ohio State that kept a drive alive longer than it otherwise would have. Even though the Buckeyes still won, the penalty added to a familiar frustration for fans who watch these games closely, where one decision can ripple through the rest of the night and change the feel of everything that follows.
It comes on the heels of another end-of-game controversy in the Notre Dame-BYU matchup, where a clock error helped bring the game to an end with one second still available for another play. The Big 12 has already acknowledged that mistake and said it will review its end-of-game officiating process, which only adds to the broader scrutiny now facing the officials and the system that is supposed to get these moments right. [Read more 🡒]
Ohio State's Huge Win May Have Come With A Serious Cost
Ohio States 19-15 win over Indiana carried all the weight youd expect from a top-tier road result, snapping the Hoosiers 22-game winning streak and handing them their first home loss in 19 games. Julian Sayin supplied the defining play with a 38-yard touchdown strike, and the Buckeyes did just enough in a tight, physical game where every possession felt magnified.
The concern afterward centered on Sayin, who appeared to injure his right arm during the game, leaving an already significant victory with a lingering question for Ohio States offense. Indiana also had a chance to flip the afternoon when Nick Marsh appeared to score a go-ahead touchdown, only for the play to be wiped away because he stepped out of bounds, a sequence that only added to the drama of a game decided by thin margins. [Read more 🡒]
Ohio State Just Got A USC Problem It Didn't Want
Ohio State left Indiana with a hard-fought 19-15 win, but the postgame mood was quickly tempered by a more troubling development. Quarterback Julian Sayin suffered a shoulder injury in the comeback victory and is expected to miss several weeks, forcing the Buckeyes to turn to freshman Luke Fahey at a position where continuity matters plenty as the season moves deeper into the grind.
Kenyatta Jackson Jr. also exited limping with an ankle injury, adding to a growing list of bodies the Buckeyes may have to manage in the coming stretch. For a team still sorting through other absences, the timing is less than ideal, and it puts extra pressure on the supporting cast to steady things while Ohio State waits to learn how much it can get back and when. [Read more 🡒]