Ohio State coach Ryan Day said Tuesday that quarterback Julian Sayin is out "indefinitely" with an arm injury, and that the Buckeyes are preparing for the possibility of playing without him for the rest of the season. CBS Sports' John Talty framed it as a blow to Ohio State's playoff and national title hopes. Day made the announcement during the bye week. Yahoo Sports described the injury as an elbow injury in one headline and an arm injury elsewhere. None of the feed summaries gives a more specific diagnosis or a return date.
The injury came late in the 19-15 win at Indiana on Saturday, Oct. 17, per Yahoo. Sayin finished 15 of 29 for 235 yards with two touchdowns and two interceptions. He also lost 26 yards on five carries, many of them presumably sacks, though the box score doesn't say. Ohio State had 316 total yards to Indiana's 369 and won partly because of its fourth-down defense. The Buckeyes went 2-for-2 on fourth down, and Indiana went 0-for-2, including a failed deep throw on the last play.
Until Saturday, Sayin had been steady. Over seven games he has completed 131 of 192 passes for 2,007 yards, with 19 touchdowns and four interceptions. He threw for 367 yards and four touchdowns against Illinois and 324 yards and three touchdowns at Iowa. The Indiana game was his lowest-efficiency day of the season, and two of his four interceptions came in it. Per BenchScout's tables, he has also fumbled four times this year and lost one.
Yahoo reports that Day is turning to true freshman Luke Fahey. Fahey has 203 passing yards this season, with two touchdowns and two interceptions. He was 0 for 2 against Indiana, so those numbers came in earlier appearances. Yahoo says Day teased a potential replacement and suggested one week is enough to settle the question. A separate Yahoo item says former Ohio State coach Urban Meyer is confused by the situation and that "they went backwards." The summaries don't say whom Meyer thinks Day should have chosen, so we can't say what his objection is.
| YDS | TD | INT |
|---|---|---|
| 203 | 2 | 2 |
Ohio State is 6-1 overall and 4-0 in the Big Ten, second in the conference, and has won five straight. Its wins over Iowa and Maryland were by 17 and 29 points. The Indiana game was much closer, and it came with Sayin playing at less than his usual level. Indiana is 6-1, 3-1 in the league and third in the Big Ten. It has lost one game in a row and goes to Michigan on Saturday.
Ohio State's next game is at USC on Oct. 31. The Buckeyes are off this week, so Day has until then to decide who starts. The reporting gives no sign that he has ruled anyone in or out beyond Fahey, and no timeline for Sayin beyond "indefinitely."
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