Ohio State quarterback Julian Sayin suffered an injury that exposed major offensive flaws during the team’s struggles over the past two weeks, Land-Grant Holy Land reported.
The Buckeyes recently got run out of their own building by an Oregon team that lost a potential first overall pick in quarterback Dante Moore, according to Land-Grant Holy Land. While the Ducks had a competent backup in Dylan Raiola ready to go, Ohio State turned to true freshman Luke Fahey after Sayin went down.
Land-Grant Holy Land reported that the blame falls on the coaching staff for failing to plan ahead and adapt to the modern era of college football. Other programs lost starting quarterbacks and still fielded competent backups through various methods, such as UCLA going 9-0 after losing Nico Iamaleava and leaning on Ty Dieffenbach.
Ole Miss also lost Austin Simmons in Week 2 last season, leading to Trinidad Chambliss throwing for nearly 4,500 yards and 30 touchdowns on the way to a College Football Playoff Semifinal berth, Land-Grant Holy Land noted.
Flaws in Development and Roster Construction
Land-Grant Holy Land pointed out that the coaching staff failed to provide extra protection for Sayin or add a single player via the transfer portal to an offensive line that struggled last season. Tyler Bowen manages that position group after serving as the Virginia Tech tight ends coach.
Head coach Ryan Day also rarely got backup quarterbacks valuable reps during blowout games. Five-star prospect Tavien St. Clair totaled only two pass attempts in 2025 and remains on the bench while Fahey struggles.
Billy Fessler took over as quarterbacks coach in 2025 following previous stints at Akron and UCLA, where starter Ethan Garbers threw a conference-worst 11 interceptions in 2024. Land-Grant Holy Land said that Fessler did nothing to help develop Sayin from year one to year two, leaving the team with no ready backup on the roster.
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