Ryan Day no longer has the cushion that comes with a star quarterback, and that leaves Ohio State with little room to breathe over the final stretch.
Julian Sayin’s season-ending throwing shoulder injury has changed the conversation around the Buckeyes, but not everyone is buying the idea that it should soften expectations. USA Today’s Blake Toppmeyer made it clear he does not see the freshman quarterback situation as a built-in excuse if Ohio State fails to win four of its next five games and reach the College Football Playoff.
Toppmeyer also pointed to the Nov. 29 matchup with TTUN at the “Shoe” as a game Day cannot afford to let slip, especially with how poor he believes Kyle Whittingham’s team has been.
"Michigan’s offense is so bad this year, Day couldn’t excuse a loss in The Game next month, no matter who’s quarterbacking the Buckeyes. He’s armed with enough talent that we can fairly expect Ohio State to make the playoff without Sayin," Toppmeyer wrote.
That is the bind Day is in now. If Ohio State were undefeated and sitting at No. 1, the margin for error would look very different.
Instead, the Texas loss has tightened everything up, and the Buckeyes are now in a spot where they need to win out or at least survive with only one more loss while Luke Fahey and/or Tavien St. Clair run the offense.
The timing makes the situation even more brutal. A win over Indiana has the Buckeyes looking like a team that should roll the rest of the way, but that game was far from spotless. It was one Nick Marsh’s foot being in bounds on the final Indiana offensive play away from becoming a loss.
Day did build a strong running back room and brought back an experienced offensive line, but the receiving group has not provided much beyond Jeremiah Smith. JJ’s connection with Sayin had been carrying the offense for much of the season, and losing that pairing is a major blow.
The injuries have not stopped there. On defense, key players such as EDGE Kenyatta Jackson Jr. and nickelback Jay Timmons have also dealt with setbacks in recent weeks, leaving Day without the kind of clean injury excuse coaches like to lean on. As the report puts it, he is the one expected to build depth and avoid major roster gaps.
That is what makes this such a difficult spot for Day. He entered the season with one of the best jobs in the sport. Now he is trying to steer Ohio State through the most demanding part of the schedule without the quarterback situation that was supposed to anchor everything.
Still, the Buckeyes have enough talent around the position to keep the season on track. The pressure is simply much higher now, and Day does not get a pass just because Sayin is gone.
In Other News...
Ohio State Just Got Troubling News Before USC's Passing Test
Ohio States secondary took a hit this week as Jay Timmons was downgraded from questionable to doubtful ahead of the matchup with USC. The Buckeyes have leaned on Timmons for several critical plays this season, and his status now casts a shadow over a defense that is already bracing for a major passing challenge.
If Timmons cannot go, Ohio State is expected to turn to Jermaine Matthews Jr. and Cam Calhoun to help fill the void. Against a Trojans offense that should test the back end early and often, the Buckeyes may have to adjust on the fly without one of their more reliable defensive backs. [Read more 🡒]
Ohio State Suddenly Has A Tavien St. Clair Question Fans Feared
Tavien St. Clair was supposed to be part of Ohio States long-term answer at quarterback, but the picture has shifted in a hurry. With true freshman Luke Fahey stepping in for the injured Julian Sayin, St. Clair is now working as the backup, a development that has changed the conversation around the room and around his place in the program.
For a player once viewed as the future at the position, the move naturally raises bigger questions about what comes next. Ohio State still has time to sort through the quarterback depth chart, and there are several possible paths ahead, but nothing has been settled yet, leaving St. Clairs status one of the more intriguing storylines to watch. [Read more 🡒]
Ohio State Suddenly Has A Bigger Problem Than One Road Loss
The loss at USC was jarring enough on its own, but the bigger concern for Ohio State may be what it revealed about the Buckeyes offense away from home. With backup quarterback Luke Fahey making the start in Los Angeles, Ohio State managed only one touchdown while USCs defense spent much of the night in the backfield, piling up tackles for loss and sacks and making every drive feel like a grind.
USC also delivered the kind of explosive play that can flip a marquee game in a hurry, with Mark Bowmans 70-yard catch-and-run helping the Trojans pull away in a 30-18 win over the No. 2 Buckeyes. For Lincoln Riley, it was his first top-five victory with USC, and for Ohio State it leaves a far more uncomfortable question than the final score: whether this was just a bad road night or a sign of a deeper issue the Buckeyes have to solve fast. [Read more 🡒]