Ryan Day is sticking with Luke Fahey.
After Ohio State’s 30-18 loss to USC last week, the Buckeyes were left sorting through a quarterback situation that had become impossible to ignore. Julian Sayin had been dealing with an arm injury to his throwing arm since the week before, when Ohio State beat Indiana, and that opened the door for Fahey against the Trojans.
Fahey, a three-star true freshman, made his first career start and kept the ball out of harm’s way. He didn’t throw an interception, but the offense never really found a rhythm with him under center. He finished 21-of-38 for 260 yards and a touchdown, a line that was respectable without exactly forcing the Buckeyes to slam the door on any other options.
There was at least some thought that Ohio State could turn to Tavien St. Clair, a five-star and a consensus top-five quarterback in the 2025 class. But Day ended the debate on Tuesday, confirming that Fahey will start when the Buckeyes host Oregon on Saturday, according to USA TODAY’s Joey Kaufman.
Fahey did help get the ball to Jeremiah Smith, who caught 10 passes for 83 yards and a touchdown. Still, the bigger issue for Ohio State was finishing drives. The Buckeyes settled for four field goals, including three on possessions that reached the red zone.
Now Day is going with Fahey in a game that carries major weight for Ohio State’s College Football Playoff hopes. The Buckeyes are 6-2 heading into Saturday’s matchup, while Oregon arrives with its own backup quarterback situation. Dylan Raiola is starting for the Ducks with Dante Moore sidelined, and Oregon will try to keep its outside CFP hopes alive on the road.
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Ohio State Faces A New Oregon Twist In This QB Battle
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Uiagaleleis comments also offered a window into how Oregon is sizing up the Buckeyes beyond the quarterback questions. He talked through Ohio States offense, singled out key players and described the mindset the Ducks are bringing into the week. For a team heading into one of the sports toughest road environments, the intrigue is not just who starts at quarterback, but how both sides adjust when the game finally kicks off. [Read more 🡒]
Oregons Injury Problems Make These Transfer Departures Sting Even More
Oregons injury-plagued 2026 season has already forced the Ducks to lean hard on their depth, with quarterback Dante Moore out for the year and a string of offensive players missing games along the way. The defense has held up better on the injury front, but the roster has still felt the impact of departures, especially when the team is trying to patch together answers week to week.
What makes that sting a little more is seeing several former Ducks pop up for their new programs in Week 9. Kamar Mothudi, Keith Brown and others turned in notable performances elsewhere, a reminder that Oregon did not just lose bodies in the portal, it lost players who can still help on Saturdays. For a team already navigating so many health issues, those exits make the margin even thinner. [Read more 🡒]
Oregon Michigan Broadcast Choice Says A Lot About Where Both Teams Stand
Michigans Week 10 meeting with Michigan State is tucked behind a Peacock paywall for a night kickoff, a reminder that the Wolverines are spending this stretch of the season in a very different spotlight than they were a year ago. A week later, they turn around to face Oregon in a more traditional window on FS1, with both teams carrying 5-3 records into a matchup that suddenly feels more like a survival test than a showcase.
For Michigan, the bigger picture is straightforward: bowl eligibility is still the immediate target, and coach Kyle Whittingham has made clear the team knows where it stands and what it still has to chase. Oregon, meanwhile, gets a front-row seat to a program trying to steady itself in November, and the broadcast slot says plenty about how this game fits into the national picture even if the stakes inside the two locker rooms are still very real. [Read more 🡒]