The Ohio State Buckeyes are working through life without quarterback Julian Sayin for at least the rest of this season due to the injury he suffered against Indiana. True freshman quarterback Luke Fahey took over for Sayin in that game, and has served as the backup all season over former five-star recruit and sophomore Tavien St. Clair.

Following the injury, head coach Ryan Day said both quarterbacks would get a chance to practice during the bye week and compete to be the starter on the road against USC in Week 9. With the Buckeyes now preparing for the Trojans, the starting job still doesn’t appear to be settled.

Ryan Day hasn’t named a starter yet for Week 9

Day was asked Tuesday if he had decided on a starting quarterback. His answer left the door open for either player.

“I think both quarterbacks practiced well last week, which was good,” Day stated. “It was good energy. Guys were rallying around both guys, and you know we’ll keep working this week and keep working on packages for both guys.”

Day then added that the decision will come down to the next few practices for the Buckeyes before they leave for Southern California on Thursday evening. 

“So we’ll kind of see how the next couple days go. But you know, they’ve both been really into it, and practice was good last week. So we need to stack a few more days, and then we’ll kind of go into the game and figure out what gives us the best chance to win.”

This could simply be Day keeping the decision close to the vest. If USC doesn’t know who Ohio State’s starter is going to be, the Trojans can’t build their game plan around one quarterback. That matters on Saturday, when the Buckeyes are in Southern California taking on a two-loss USC team in a must-win situation.

Tavien St. Clair was supposed to be the next man up, but that hasn’t been the case … yet 

The quarterback decision carries extra weight because of how the depth chart came together. Going into the season, St. Clair was the player most expected to be the next man up after Sayin. He ideally would have been the backup, but that wasn’t the case for the 6-foot-4 Ohio product.

Instead, Fahey came in from California and beat him out as a true freshman. Fahey held that backup spot all season and was the one who stepped in when Sayin went down against Indiana.

Now, St. Clair has a real opening, at least that’s how it appears. Starting him over Fahey would be a surprise based on how the depth chart looked all season, but you can’t rule anything out given what Day said on Tuesday.

Both quarterbacks could see the field against USC

Day’s mention of packages for both quarterbacks stands out. There’s a chance both players see the field against the Trojans in specific roles.

Ohio State could lean on one quarterback’s legs more than the other in certain situations. The Buckeyes could also want one quarterback operating in the red zone and the other handling the rest of the offense. Either way, the staff has plenty to sort out over the next few days.

Again, this could just be Ohio State hiding its cards for as long as it can. Whoever takes the first snap on Saturday will tell us a lot about where the Buckeyes stand at quarterback with Sayin sidelined. Time will tell if Fahey keeps the spot he’s held all season or if St. Clair finally gets his shot.