Oregon and Ohio State anticipated months ago that their game in Columbus on Saturday afternoon would have College Football Playoff implications as they battled for a high seed.
The Buckeyes sat atop the preseason rankings, with the Ducks landing a spot behind. The bonus matchup of potential Heisman Trophy finalists in Ducks quarterback Dante Moore and Ohio State counterpart Julian Sayin added further luster to the clash.
That was then.
Now, with vibrant fall leaves and crisp coolness in the air in Ohio’s capital city, it will be No. 23 Oregon (5-3, 3-2 Big Ten) and quarterback Dylan Raiola against No. 12 Ohio State (6-2, 4-1) with Luke Fahey making his second start as both try to salvage their teams’ seasons.
“Coach (Ryan) Day was like, ‘The playoffs start now,'” Ohio State linebacker Christian Alliegro said.
Oregon hasn’t been the same since Moore suffered a concussion against Southern California on Sept. 26. He is out for the season.
Raiola, a former Ohio State commit and ex-Nebraska QB, has struggled but showed renewed confidence in last Saturday’s 34-26 win over then-No. 20 Northwestern. It was his first game since head coach Dan Lanning fired offensive coordinator Drew Mehringer on Oct. 25 and assigned play-calling duties to assistant quarterbacks coach Jay Johnson.
“I think the more comfortable he gets, the better he’s going to play,” Lanning said of Raiola on Monday. “Like I said postgame, he builds confidence as the game goes. So I think it’s important for us to be able to start early, but for him to also understand, ‘I don’t have to force anything,’ right?”
For Ohio State, Fahey, a freshman, had an uneven game last week replacing 2025 Heisman finalist Sayin, who injured his throwing arm against Indiana on Oct. 17 and is out indefinitely.
Against Southern California on Saturday, Fahey was 21 of 38 for 260 yards and a 1-yard touchdown pass to Jeremiah Smith, who was limited to 83 yards on 10 catches in the Buckeyes’ 30-18 loss, which put their postseason picture in peril.
The heat is on Day and the players in Columbus to meet the standards expected of one of the highest NIL payrolls in college football — reportedly between $49 million and $54 million.
“I’ve said it before,” Day said Tuesday. “We’re not allowed to lose two games, and when that happens, there’s consequences. That’s just the way it is, and if you don’t like it, then don’t come to Ohio State.”
Day said he is less concerned about outside criticism than he is the 11 penalties for 71 yards — and numerous other mistakes — the Buckeyes committed against the Trojans.
“The penalties are ridiculous and the mistakes are ridiculous,” he said. “So ultimately that leads me to believe that we’re not where we need to be.”
Despite neither Ohio State nor Oregon living up to expectations, Lanning said Saturday’s game won’t be any less important.
“I think that Ohio State speaks for itself. They’re a really good team, and it’s a real challenge this time of year,” he said. “It’s part of what makes it exciting about being at Oregon or being at a place like Ohio State: to get to play in games like this. So this is one that certainly means a lot to both of us.”