BLOOMINGTON, Ind. – It appeared Ohio State had punched its ticket to the 12-team playoff. Then Julian Sayin got hurt. How badly? Not sure, but he returned from the locker room late in the game with his right arm in a sling.
The Buckeyes defeated previously unbeaten/defending national champion Indiana 19-15 at Memorial Stadium to break IU’s 22-game winning streak, which made it seem the Buckeyes got out from behind the 8-ball and now face a more predictable path to the postseason.
But Sayin's injury may change that.
Entering the season, reasonable fans – you know who you are – probably were like me in thinking OSU would lose two regular-season games, which if true would almost certainly assure a playoff berth. But after losing to Texas, a three-loss
season entered the equation, because there was a decent chance the Buckeyes would lose at Indiana.
Didn’t happen. And before Sayin's injury it was hard to see how the Buckeyes lose two more before December.
Julian Sayin struggles before exiting with injury
Sayin came out swinging and made a few nice throws, then quickly went down swinging. He eventually left with an injury with 7:38 to play, returning from the locker room with his right arm in a sling.
Fortunately for Sayin, he had Jeremiah Smith to save the day.
After completing his first four throws for 67 yards, Sayin cooled to a frosty 1 for his next 11 attempts for 13 yards, with an interception. He finished 15 of 29 with two touchdowns and two interceptions and got bailed out on a low-level performance by Smith and Chris Henry Jr.
Smith – who else? – put the Buckeyes ahead 19-7 on a 38-yard heave on fourth-and-1 with 12:46 to play. Sayin’s pass was slightly underthrown, but that does not seem to matter to Smith, who snatched the throw in the end zone for six points.
Despite facing limited pressure, Sayin often looked uncomfortable in the pocket. He missed receivers on underthrows and overthrows and generally was off his game. Fortunately for OSU, Indiana quarterback Josh Hoover wasn’t much better, completing 20 of 40 passes for 296 yards and a touchdown.
Why was Jeremiah Smith not on the field?
The Buckeyes got it to first-and-goal from the 1-yard line with 22 seconds left in the half, trailing 7-3, when OSU inexplicably took Smith off the field.
WHAT? The best player in college football is on the sideline with Ohio State trailing? WHAT?
What followed had everyone from Joe in Pataskala to Joel Klatt at Fox wondering what in the world OSU was thinking.
First down (without Smith): Bo Jackson loses a yard.
Second down (without Smith): Sayin, under pressure, runs right and throws an off-balance pass to tight end Max LeBlanc. Incomplete.
Third down (without Smith): Bo Jackson runs for no gain.
What was Smith thinking? Not good thoughts. The Heisman Trophy contender, helmet in hand, was animated on the sideline, clearly frustrated that he was not in the game.
Finally, fourth down. Guess who was back in the game? Smith entered and drew quadruple coverage, leaving Jackson open in the left flat, where he scored untouched to make it 10-7 with seven seconds remaining.
And that’s why Smith needs to be on the field.
Did Ryan Day work the refs to his advantage?
After Sayin underthrew Smith on a deep ball, Day rewatched the play on a video tablet and immediately approached the officials to protest something he saw, perhaps his quarterback getting drilled late? Sayin got hammered after the throw, and Day motioned toward where his quarterback got leveled as the official listened to the complaint. Nothing came of it, but on OSU’s next series Hoosiers defensive tackle Kellan Wyatt tackled Sayin after a 30-yard completion to Chris Henry Jr.
Flags flew. Wyatt was called for a personal foul for putting all his weight on Sayin during the tackle – a dumb rule, in my opinion, but a rule nonetheless – and the penalty moved the ball to IU’s 11-yard line. After a head-scratching personnel decision involving Smith (see above), the Buckeyes scored to make it 10-7.
The Hoosiers, known for not beating themselves with stupid mistakes, hurt themselves not only with the Wyatt penalty but also late in the game when linebacker Isaiah Jones was flagged for a late hit on fill-in quarterback Luke Fahey.
Sports columnist Rob Oller can be reached at roller@dispatch.com and on X.com at @rollerCD.
This article originally appeared on The Columbus Dispatch: Ohio State football instant opinions: A bad day for Julian Sayin from start to end
