Ohio State’s path back into the playoff picture may run through a few freshmen who were not supposed to be this central, this soon.
After the sloppy loss to USC, the Buckeyes are left with four regular-season games and one simple demand: win out. That means the margin for error is gone, and it also means Ryan Day may have to lean harder on young players as the season tightens around them. The obvious name is quarterback Luke Fahey, but he is hardly the only freshman whose role could grow fast.
Fahey was thrown into the fire last week after Heisman candidate Julian Sayin went down, and he handled the situation well enough to keep Ohio State moving. With Sayin expected to miss the rest of the season, Fahey now becomes the stabilizing force under center.
The Mission Viejo, California, native came to Columbus as a three-star recruit, and his rise makes him just the fifth true freshman in Ohio State history to start at quarterback. That changes the entire feel of the Buckeyes’ run.
Ohio State does not need Fahey to be Sayin overnight. It needs him to run the offense cleanly, make smart choices, and give the rest of the roster a chance to do its part. As one on-air assessment put it, “I think Luke Fahey gives you more reason for optimism in November.”
The freshman who may offer the most explosive upside beyond quarterback is Chris Henry Jr. At 6-foot-5, he brings a frame and catch radius that already have him working with first-team reps. With Jeremiah Smith on the field beside him, the Buckeyes are building packages designed to create red-zone mismatches and give Henry chances to win jump balls on the outside against shorter defensive backs.
That kind of usage fits the profile of the No. 1-rated wide receiver in the 2026 class. Through six games, Henry is averaging 31.5 yards per catch, a number that jumps off the page even in a small sample. For context, Jeremiah Smith’s yards per catch this season is 17.2, while the NCAA leader is Nahzae Cox of Kansas at 26.9.
There is also the possibility, however remote, that Smith could sit out later in the year to prepare for the draft if Ohio State’s playoff hopes fade. Rumors about that have been knocked down so far, but the possibility still exists, and if it happens, Henry’s opportunities would only expand.
Then there is Legend Bey, who flashed early with an arcade-like touchdown run against Ball State and seemed poised to become a regular part of the offense. That has not fully happened yet, whether because of off-field issues or a lack of trust from the staff, but his role could still grow if Ohio State keeps searching for a spark beyond Jeremiah Smith.
Bey, a former Tennessee commit and ex-high school quarterback, has been described by Ryan Day as “lightning in a bottle” because of his open-field burst. Even after some early offseason setbacks, the Buckeyes have started using him in slot looks and gadget packages to tap into that speed and give the offense a different kind of weapon.
Ryan Day made clear the message to the younger players: the freshmen who have already seen the field need to become more than just depth pieces. “I think the freshmen who have played now need to become, as you said, key contributors.”
In Other News...
Ohio State Still Has A Path But Two Problems Need Fixing Fast
Cris Carter still sees a route for Ohio State to play its way back into the College Football Playoff picture, but the margin for error has shrunk fast. With recent losses raising the pressure on Ryan Day, the Buckeyes are staring at a stretch where every detail matters, and the conversation around the program has quickly shifted from expectations to repairs.
Two areas stand out most: the defense has to tighten up, and Luke Fahey needs to keep developing at quarterback if Ohio State is going to stabilize its offense. The upcoming games now carry far more than ordinary Big Ten weight, because they will help determine whether the Buckeyes can keep their national championship hopes alive or whether this season turns into a lesson in missed chances. [Read more 🡒]
Ohio States Oregon Collapse Exposed A Problem Buckeyes Fans Feared
Ohio States loss to Oregon at home was the kind of game that left Buckeyes fans replaying the same first-half promise and second-half unraveling over and over. The start was encouraging enough to suggest the day could go differently, but the collapse that followed only sharpened the sense that this team still has issues it cannot afford to ignore, especially when a marquee opponent forces it out of its comfort zone.
Jeremiah Smith was not used nearly enough, Luke Faheys performance came under scrutiny, and the defense looked like it had slipped from the standard Ohio State expects. The bigger concern, though, was how little changed as the game tilted away from the Buckeyes, with coaching decisions and the lack of in-game adjustments adding to the feeling that the problems were as much about direction as execution. [Read more 🡒]
Urban Meyer Just Added Fuel To Indianas CFP Debate
Urban Meyer added another layer to the College Football Playoff debate by questioning how the committee is handling Ohio State and Indiana in the latest rankings. His concern centered on the gap between No. 12 Ohio State and No. 4 Indiana, especially with the Buckeyes owning the head-to-head win. Meyer said the placement did not seem to match what the teams have shown on the field, and he took aim at the committees approach to nonconference scheduling as part of the broader evaluation.
Indianas rsum has been strong enough to keep it firmly in the conversation, with an 8-1 record and wins over Michigan and Nebraska. Still, Meyer pointed out that the Hoosiers do not have a victory over a ranked opponent, which only sharpened the debate over how much weight the committee is giving different parts of the schedule. For Ohio State, the issue is less about needing outside validation and more about whether the rankings are reflecting what happened when the two teams actually met. [Read more 🡒]