Ohio State had Oregon backed up near its own 30-yard line. The Buckeyes had forced a fourth down, and the Ducks appeared ready to punt. Then Oregon pulled out a play Ohio State never saw coming.
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Teitum Tuioti took the snap, drew the coverage towards him, and tossed the ball to Matayo Uiagalelei, who had slipped downfield completely uncovered. The 30-yard gain put Oregon in Ohio State territory and changed the afternoon.
The Ducks scored a touchdown on that drive. They added another before halftime. Suddenly, a 14-0 OSU lead disappeared, and Oregon eventually walked out of the Horseshoe with a 41-28 win. Two days later, Ryan Day made a dire change to the coaching staff.
Ohio State is moving on from special teams coordinator Robby Discher, with CBS Sports reporter Matt Zenitz reporting that he is out and will be looking for a new opportunity.
Discher’s departure did not come after one bad afternoon alone. Ohio State had been dealing with special teams problems throughout the season, and Day had already spoken publicly about the need to improve.
The most obvious earlier example came against USC on October 31. Ohio State allowed a 44-yard punt return that helped set up a Trojans touchdown. After the game, Ryan Day did not hide his frustration with the coverage.
“That was a disaster, that whole play, to put it kindly,” he said. “That really cost us. They were doubling the gunners there, so we need to get more hang time … And we didn’t cover it well enough.”
There had been other issues, too. Against Texas, kicker Connor Hawkins missed a 45-yard field goal in the fourth quarter that would have given the Buckeyes a two-score lead.
Moreover, in the game against Iowa, a short punt gave the Hawkeyes favourable field position, while another punt that Phillip Bell did not field rolled all the way to the Ohio State 2-yard line.
Day had addressed the broader problem in October, saying he could not claim the unit had improved. He also made clear that responsibility did not stop with Discher.
“It’s not just Rob,” Ryan Day said. “Rob is the coordinator, so he’s in charge, but I’m in every meeting.” The latest change, though, suggests he has decided that a new voice is needed in that role.
Ohio State brought Discher to Columbus in February 2026 after three seasons at Illinois, where he served as special teams coordinator and tight ends coach. That experience earned him the Buckeyes’ attention, but the expectations in Columbus are far greater. At a program where championships define success, Discher now has to prove he can deliver beyond his coaching résumé.
Illinois ranked 16th nationally in ESPN’s special teams efficiency metric in 2024 and 30th in 2025 under his direction. On top of that, his appointment was also significant for Ohio State.
Discher became the program’s first dedicated special teams coordinator since 2023, following two seasons in which responsibilities had been divided among position coaches. Less than a year later, Ryan Day has moved on from him.
The timing is difficult to separate from the Oregon game, though. Ohio State had two weeks to prepare for USC and still struggled in coverage. It returned home against Oregon and was caught by a fake punt at a moment when a defensive stop could have helped preserve its lead.
Those mistakes have become harder to overlook as the season has slipped away. Discher was not responsible for the entire defeat. For starters, Ohio State’s defense allowed 38 unanswered points, and the offense struggled to regain control after the Ducks’ comeback began.
But the special teams gave Oregon a significant opening, and it was not the first time this season the unit had put the Buckeyes in trouble.
The defeat dropped Ohio State to 6-3, with three regular-season games remaining. The Buckeyes had entered the season with ambitions of competing for the Big Ten title and the College Football Playoff.
Those hopes have taken a serious hit after losses to Texas, USC, and Oregon. Ohio State was already outside the playoff field in the committee’s first rankings. Losing to Oregon has left the Buckeyes with even less room to recover.
No three-loss team has ever made the CFP, though Ohio State still has a chance to reach the Big Ten Championship Game. That route remains open, but the loss has made the margin for error much smaller.
Day has not suggested that Discher’s departure will be the only staff change. After the USC loss, he said everything was being evaluated. So, following Oregon, he was left dealing with a third defeat and a team that had failed to respond when the game turned against it.
“I’m not going to sit here and point fingers at one group of guys that are coming up short,” Ryan Day said after the Oregon game. “Because we’re all coming up short.”
That is a wider admission than a coach blaming one unit for a loss. Discher is the first assistant to go, but the issues that have dragged Ohio State down are not confined to punt coverage or field-goal protection.