Ohio State coach Ryan Day said Tuesday that true freshman Luke Fahey will remain the Buckeyes' starting quarterback Saturday against Oregon.
"There's things to build on there for sure," Day said. "But we've got to do a better job around him, helping him out as a young player."
Fahey made his first career start last Saturday against USC. He completed 21 of 38 passes for 260 yards and a touchdown without an interception, but the Trojans won, 30-18.
"I thought he had the right approach," Day said. "It was not all perfect. There were certainly things that happened operationally that for a young quarterback it was a lot on him, and he was working through it. There were some misthrows, but we expected all that to happen. He also made a lot of plays. He also had command of the huddle. He also showed some grit out there and toughness."
Fahey replaced Julian Sayin in the fourth quarter at Indiana on Oct. 17 after Sayin suffered an injury to his throwing arm. Day has said that Sayin, a Heisman finalist last season, remains sidelined indefinitely.
Fahey beat out sophomore Tavien St. Clair for the backup job during the preseason. After giving both quarterbacks first-team snaps during the bye week, Day named Fahey the starter against USC.
The Buckeyes (6-2, 4-1 Big Ten) fell to No. 11 in the AP Top 25 poll after the loss to the Trojans. Day admitted the margin for error is "tiny" with two losses but added that Ohio State's goals remain the same.
"When we lost Julian, the expectations here didn't change," Day said. "We feel like we have enough here to win these games."