Buckeye Nation received tough news on Tuesday night, as Ohio State Buckeyes coach Ryan Day announced that starting quarterback Julian Sayin will likely miss the rest of the regular season and potentially the postseason as well. Sayin suffered some sort of arm injury that left him in a sling postgame following Saturday’s win over Indiana. 

The specifics of Sayin’s arm injury haven’t been made public. It’s clearly a serious one, and it looks like Sayin very well may not play for the Buckeyes again this season.

Luke Fahey is the expected replacement for Julian Sayin … for now 

All signs point toward backup quarterback Luke Fahey taking over as Ohio State’s starter. Fahey has served as the backup this season and has entered multiple games as the second quarterback behind Sayin in the Buckeyes’ offense.

The true freshman has played in four games and completed 9-of-13 passes for 203 yards, two touchdown passes, and two interceptions. Fahey is a mobile 5-foot-11 quarterback, and the general belief was that he would step in as the starter once Sayin went down.

However, Day added a layer to the situation on Tuesday. Both Fahey and Tavien St. Clair will get reps with the starting offense in practice this week, and the door appears to be open for St. Clair to take the job if Fahey can’t hold on to it.

“I think going into the last few games, Luke’s been ahead of Tavien in terms of what we’ve seen,” Day stated. “But now that we have a bye week, these guys are both going to get a lot of reps. We’re going to start to put together a plan on how we’re going to move forward. We’re going to play the guy that gives us the best chance to win. So, we’ll get both these guys some reps and get an idea of how these next couple of days go. Based on what we’ve seen in practice the last month, Luke was ahead of Tavien going into the game. That’s why he went in first.”

Tavien St. Clair might have a window to win the Ohio State job

Fahey beat out St. Clair for the backup job even though St. Clair has an extra year of experience in Columbus. The decision surprised most observers at the time. Now, we’re seeing why the backup quarterback battle matters so much, with Sayin sidelined.

St. Clair arrived as a former five-star recruit in the class of 2025. So far in his career, he has completed 5-of-9 passes for 52 yards and an interception in limited action.

The bye week gives St. Clair a real opportunity. If he can show the coaching staff that he has improved behind the scenes and can operate the offense at a high enough level, he could take the job. A big part of that evaluation will come down to whether he can consistently get the ball to Jeremiah Smith, Ohio State’s top playmaker.

Fahey enters the week with the edge based on what Day described from the last month of practice. Additionally, he already has game experience this season with more production to show for it than St. Clair. The mobility Fahey brings is another factor the Buckeyes’ staff will weigh as it builds a plan around a new starter.

Ohio State’s offense faces a major adjustment

Losing Sayin changes the outlook for the Buckeyes’ offense the rest of the way. Ohio State now has to settle on a quarterback during the bye week and build an approach that fits the strengths of whoever wins the job.

Day made the standard clear: Whoever gives Ohio State the best chance to win is going to be the quarterback, and that’s what matters most for a program with the Buckeyes’ expectations.