The Ohio State football team has suffered quite a few injuries over the past few weeks, especially to the running back position. TreVeyon Henderson missed the past two games, and against Purdue, Chip Trayanum suffered an injury. With all the injuries to the RB room, sophomore Dallan Hayden saw a lot of work, rushing for 76 carries and a touchdown on 11 carries. On Tuesday ahead of the Penn State showdown, Ryan Day gave an honest outlook on potentially using Hayden's redshirt, per Chase Brown.

‘Ryan Day has been noncommital when addressing Dallan Hayden's future in Ohio State's RB room in 2023. Still, his most recent comment on Hayden was this: “The more opportunities he gets, the better he is gonna be. We will see how this week shakes out.”‘

On top of that, the Buckeyes also used Xavier Johnson at running back even though he is listed as a wide receiver, and Day was thrilled with the way both of them played, per Chase Brown: “When we lost Chip (Trayanum), we didn't panic, but it was concerning. The great news is Dallan was able to step up in a big way. Xavier was able to step up in a big way.”

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Hayden had just one touch this season, a catch against Indiana in the opener, so this is the second game he has played this season. If he plays more than four games, he won't be allowed to redshirt, so Day and the Ohio State football coaching staff are going to think hard over these next few weeks.

Still, with all of the injuries piling up and a massive game against Penn State, the Buckeyes might. not have a choice but to use Hayden more.