Oregon Ducks defeat Ohio State Buckeyes, Dylan Raiola and Jeremiah Smith, Digi Mart USA News: Dylan Raiola and the Oregon Ducks picked up an emphatic road victory over Jeremiah Smith and the Ohio State Buckeyes on Saturday afternoon. Raiola led the Ducks to a 41-point performance that keeps their College Football Playoff hopes alive, despite a bleak outlook.
Smith had another 100-yard performance, but there were stretches of the game in which he did not make an impact inside the Buckeyes offense. Raiola led the Ducks to 38 unanswered points between the second and fourth quarters.
The Ducks trailed by 14 points early, but they rallied and held a three-point lead at halftime. Raiola then unleashed a pair of touchdown passes in the third quarter to further open up the advantage in Columbus.
Raiola’s fourth-quarter touchdown pass to Brandon Smith sealed the victory. Jeremiah Smith scored a late touchdown and finished with 133 yards on seven receptions, but he was unable to help the Buckeyes stay in the game.
Ohio State’s offense struggled in long stretches for the second straight week with Luke Fahey at quarterback. That left Smith visibly frustrated in the second half.
The talk surrounding Smith after Saturday’s loss centered on whether he should skip the remainder of the regular season to prepare for the 2027 NFL draft. Smith is still viewed as a potential No. 1 overall pick in April, but with the way Ohio State is playing, he is likely out of the Heisman Trophy discussion.
Oregon is now 6-3 with an outside chance to qualify for the CFB Playoff, but it needs to win out to have a chance. The same is true of the 6-3 Buckeyes, but their outlook is bleaker given what was seen on Saturday.
