Ohio State’s offense rolled up 460 yards, but red-zone failures and defensive breakdowns left them on the wrong side of a shocking loss at USC. Head coach Ryan Day pointed straight to three costly plays and a slew of mistakes for the collapse.

The unranked USC Trojans made the most of those mistakes, handing the No. 2 Buckeyes a 30-18 defeat in their Week 9 matchup. It was Ohio State’s second loss of the season, and the result raised fresh questions about the team’s ability to handle pressure with freshman quarterback Luke Fahey making his first career start. Fahey, a true freshman backup, was forced into action after starter Julian Sayin suffered a season-ending injury.

It marked the Buckeyes’ first loss to an unranked opponent since 2024, catching oddsmakers and fans completely off guard. After the game, head coach Ryan Day met with reporters to discuss Fahey’s performance, the defensive struggles, Jay Timmons’ absence, and the decisions behind Ohio State’s fourth-quarter approach.

Here’s everything Ryan Day said after unranked USC pulled off the Week 9 upset.

Reporter: How did you think Luke Fahey performed in his first start?

Ryan Day: “I think for Luke, he competed, and it wasn’t perfect, but he had some big, huge drops.”

Day acknowledged that Fahey had an imperfect outing but also pointed to the missed catches that made life harder for the freshman. The quarterback completed 21 of 38 passes for 260 yards and a touchdown. However, Ohio State struggled to turn its offensive production into points, particularly when drives reached the red zone.

The Buckeyes finished with more than 460 total yards but scored only 18 points. Day felt the team needed to do a better job around Fahey rather than putting too much on the young quarterback during his first road start.

Reporter: What went wrong defensively, especially with the big plays USC managed to create?

Ryan Day: “So, I think when you look back on it, it’s going to be probably, what, three or four plays overall.”

Day believed a few explosive plays made a major difference in the game. He pointed to USC’s long touchdown early in the contest, which covered 69 yards, as well as another big connection to the tight end. Those plays gave the Trojans opportunities to make Ohio State pay for its mistakes.

The coach also explained that the Buckeyes needed to finish tackles instead of trying to force a turnover.

“We’re going for the punch out there. We just got to get him on the ground, around the 40-yard line,” Day said.

He added that USC had not needed a particularly high number of plays to create those big moments. For Day, the explosive plays, a costly turnover and special teams situations that changed field position were the biggest parts of the story.

“So, when you look at the game, you recognize that the turnover was huge. There was a couple of special teams plays that flipped the field. And then the explosive plays that they had on offense. That’s really the story,” he said.

Reporter: How did you feel about the team’s preparation and effort coming off the bye week?

Ryan Day: “I mean, coming off of a bye week, I’m always concerned. But the attitude was good. The effort was good. The guys were fighting all the way to the end. They were into it. But there’s just way too many mistakes.”

Day said he was pleased with the team’s attitude during preparation, but the mistakes on game night were too costly to overcome. He specifically mentioned penalties, turnovers and dropped passes as areas that needed attention.

“When you look at penalties, when you look at turnovers, when you look at drops, to me, that really is what it comes down to,” Day said.

Ohio State finished with 11 penalties for 71 yards. The Buckeyes also struggled to finish offensive drives, leaving points on the field despite moving the ball. Day said the team needed to understand why those mistakes kept happening and make the necessary corrections.

Reporter: When did you realize Jay Timmons would not be available, and how confident are you that he can return?

Ryan Day: Day explained that the team had been careful with Timmons’ injury and had previously held him out to give him more time to recover. However, the player aggravated the injury again during the Indiana game, making his return against USC difficult.

“He was trying like heck to get back,” Day said.

The coach added that Timmons had made some progress late in the week, but the doctors and trainers did not feel he was ready to play. Day was concerned that bringing him back too soon could cause another setback and force him to begin the recovery process again.

“There’s no question that he’s dying to get back on the field. He’s just one of those guys that wants to play every game,” Day said.

Reporter: Did having a new quarterback affect the communication and penalties?

Ryan Day: Day acknowledged that having a different quarterback affected some of the communication before the snap. He explained that Ohio State used both silent signals and claps, which may have contributed to some of the issues.

“I think having a new quarterback in there did affect some of it,” he said.

However, Day was quick to point out that the quarterback change could not explain every penalty. Some of the mistakes had nothing to do with the communication adjustments, and he did not want the team to use the situation as an excuse.

Reporter: Why did Ohio State wait to increase its offensive pace in the fourth quarter?

Ryan Day: Day said the Buckeyes did not want to panic and immediately speed things up while playing with a young quarterback. The approach changed once Ohio State fell behind by two scores and realized it needed to move quickly.

“The game just turned upside down really fast,” he said.

Day also mentioned a three-and-out possession that frustrated him because the offense could not pick up the first downs it needed. The coaching staff had hoped to build the pace gradually, but the missed opportunity forced the team to rethink its approach.

Once the deficit reached two scores with around seven minutes remaining, Ohio State began moving faster. The Buckeyes eventually put together a touchdown drive, which Day viewed as a positive.

“We were able to make that happen with a young quarterback, so that part was a positive. But in the end, it wasn’t good enough,” he said.

Reporter: Did you feel the defense played with the urgency you wanted? How do you explain the big plays?

Ryan Day: “I thought the guys played hard. I thought the look in their eye was good.”

Day said he did not feel the defense had stopped competing simply because the offense was struggling to score touchdowns. From his perspective, the players continued to work and tried to get off the field.

However, USC had skilled players who found space, and Ohio State struggled to bring them down.

“They got some real skilled guys in space. We couldn’t get it on the ground,” Day said.

He also acknowledged that Timmons’ absence affected the defense, but felt the team’s overall performance was not good enough to support Fahey in his first road start.

“Not having Jay had an impact, there’s no question. But at the end of the day, as a team, we weren’t able to, to me, play well enough to support a young freshman quarterback who’s had his first start on the road like this,” Day said.

Ohio State now has little room for another setback if it wants to stay in the College Football Playoff conversation. The Buckeyes return home to face Oregon before closing the regular season against Northwestern, Nebraska and Michigan. Day and his staff will have to address the mistakes from Los Angeles quickly, especially with another major test coming up next week.

The Week 9 upset was a tough result for the Buckeyes, but the season is not over. Their response against Oregon will offer a clearer picture of how they handle the pressure after a second loss.