The story of Week 9 was, without question, the No. 2-ranked Ohio State Buckeyes losing 30-18 to the USC Trojans.
Ohio State lost star quarterback Julian Sayin two weeks ago to what is believed to be a season-ending injury, paving the way for true freshman Luke Fahey to make his first career start.
While Fahey was responsible for some stalled drives in USC territory, which certainly played a role in the loss, he was far from the main reason the Buckeyes fell.
Ohio State had 10 more first downs, over 100 more total yards offensively and no turnovers.
However, the Buckeyes committed 11 penalties, several of which came at costly points in the game. They also missed some rare tackles for an Ohio State team that prides itself on being the aggressor.
Urban Meyer Doesn’t Hold Back on Ohio State’s Performance
Reacting to the loss on Monday was former Ohio State head coach Urban Meyer, who didn’t hold back when discussing how poorly the Buckeyes looked.
“I’ll tell you if I’m the head coach and I’m on that staff I’m so pissed off at the rest of the team,” Meyer said during the Triple Option podcast. “I mean how do you do that. [11] penalties. That has nothing to do with the quarterback situation. Dropping balls, yes it was raining, yes it was windy, and yes there were all kind of excuses why you dropped the ball but you’ve got a backup quarterback. And the message’s gotta be in that locker room that we all have to play our best version of ourselves.”
Meyer did offer some optimism, though, about the Buckeyes’ remaining outlook. They now sit at No. 11 in the rankings with four games left in the regular season.
“The good news is are they good enough to keep going? Absolutely. Four games left, three at home, if they win out, they’re in Indianapolis.”
Ohio State’s issues DO NOT start with their quarterback, according to Urban Meyer
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Looking at Ohio State
The Buckeyes’ margin for error is now nonexistent. They do control their own destiny by winning their final four games, which would get them into the Big Ten Championship and likely secure a College Football Playoff spot.
They’ll take on Oregon this coming Saturday before facing Northwestern, Nebraska on the road and then their annual regular-season finale against Michigan.
Urban Meyer Doesn’t Hold Back on Ohio State After Upset Loss to USC