Ohio State held its ninth practice and first scrimmage of preseason camp away from prying eyes Saturday.

While the scrimmage was off limits to reporters, coach Ryan Day spoke about how things have progressed since Ohio State closed its practice after the third day of preseason camp.

Here are a few thoughts after Ohio State’s second week, beginning with a major development at running back:

Running back Bo Jackson making major strides

When Ohio State opened its practices to the public, running back Isaiah West looked the best of RB coach Carlos Locklyn’s group. He took the majority of the starting reps, moved well in the hole and, though Ohio State wasn’t tackling yet, got to the second level repeatedly.

The thing about preseason camp, though, is that nearly everything changes after those first three practices. The pads go on, tackling begins and roster evaluations change. With that in mind, I went into Saturday’s news conference most interested in the running backs, considering the day’s scrimmage could be the best look at the group.

Asked what he saw from his running backs, Day raved about Bo Jackson, who didn’t take many first-team reps when reporters were present earlier in camp.

“So far, Bo has certainly stood out,” Day said.

Jackson entered the summer as one of college football’s most intriguing returning running backs after rushing for 1,090 yards as a true freshman, but he was missing a gear in the second level.

Ohio State has been hard on Jackson this offseason, challenging the Cleveland native to take that next step, and it seems to be paying off.

“He’s done a much better job at the second level,” Day said. “We talked about it; you either run over or run around them, making them miss, and you’re seeing that. It’s showing up on film, and it did not show up on film last year.”

That’s a great sign for Locklyn’s room. If Jackson is making strides, West continues to move like he did earlier in camp and Ja’Kobi Jackson provides depth, this is a room that should be better than it was a year ago.

Day also praised Legend Bey — again. Asked which freshman he thinks could make an impact this year, Bey was the only running back Day mentioned.

“Legend is learning how to play the position, but you certainly see the talent. He had some big, explosive plays today. You can see what a weapon he’ll become for us,” Day said. “I’m excited about the room. Not where we need to be — we still have a couple weeks to get there — but it’s good to have a group that has experience.”

Ohio State is far away from having the two-headed monster that Quinshon Judkins and TreVeyon Henderson were, but if the reviews about Jackson hold up during the season, this is a room that should make a big impact. And ease concerns many had from early camp reports of Jackson struggling.

Ohio State coach Ryan Day speaks to his players during the third day of training camp at the Woody Hayes Athletic Center earlier this month. (USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect)

No decision made on offensive line

Day said before camp that he wanted to find his starting offensive line about 10 practices in, but an injury to offensive tackle Austin Siereveld has delayed that process.

The fourth-year player is a major part of Ohio State’s plans along the offensive line, but it isn’t clear whether he’ll play left tackle or right guard. With Siereveld not expected to return to practice until next week, the Buckeyes are still evaluating the rotation.

Even though Phillip Daniels took every starter rep at right tackle during the sessions open to media, it appears everything is on the table at left tackle, right guard and right tackle. Four players — Daniels, Siereveld, Ian Moore and Joshua Padilla — are competing for three spots, so somebody will be left out.

“Those guys are battling right now,” Day said. “We’ll get Austin back and continue to work. There’s multiple guys we will feel good about putting in the game, but we’re still not exactly where we need to be in terms of where everybody’s going to be at.”

Is Luke Fahey in the mix at backup QB?

Entering camp, the thought was that Tavien St. Clair would take over the backup role, but be pushed by Maryland transfer Justyn Martin. After the first three days, Martin wasn’t where Ohio State needed him to be, and St. Clair, while he has the physical tools, continued to be inconsistent.

Enter true freshman Luke Fahey, who appears to have stepped up. The California native lost his black stripe Saturday, a sign that he’s been impressing the coaching staff with his improvement since the spring.

He’s not a big guy, just 5-foot-11, but he’s putting pressure on both Martin and St. Clair for the backup spot.

“He’s been competing and making plays,” Day said. “We’ll see how he grades out, so you know it’s been exciting to see him come in with a certain work ethic, run the offense at a pretty high level. We’ll see how the rest of camp plays out, but good to see him step up.”

While St. Clair might be the favorite to back up Julian Sayin, Day’s comments suggest he won’t let the five-star prospect coast into that role. The coaches want to see more growth from St. Clair. If they don’t, Fahey could complicate things in the quarterback room.

From left, Ohio State quarterbacks Julian Sayin, Tavien St. Clair, Luke Fahey and Justyn Martin throw during a training camp session inside the Woody Hayes Athletic Center earlier this month. (USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect)

Why we may actually see more rotations on defense

Defensive coordinator Matt Patricia has long been praised for his ability to adapt his defense to his roster.

The Buckeyes played a lot of 4-2-5 defense last season because they had two star linebackers and a deep secondary that could play the pass and run with the same personnel.

Losing linebackers Sonny Styles and Arvell Reese, safety Caleb Downs and corners Davison Igbinosun and Lorenzo Styles Jr. left some holes.

With the additions of upperclassmen safeties Earl Little Jr. and Terry Moore, the feeling throughout much of the offseason was that the Buckeyes would play three safeties — Moore and Jaylen McClain up top, and Little in the slot.

That appears to have changed after the first two weeks of camp. In the first three days, Ohio State displayed a preference for freshman Jay Timmons at nickel. And when he wasn’t on the field, the coaches appeared to favor a third linebacker. Whether that will be Riley Pettijohn or TJ Alford is still to be decided.

Why the shift? On the one hand, Ohio State is trying to make sure it can match personnel when teams go heavy with multiple tight ends. But Patricia also has a lot of faith in the group that linebackers coach James Laurinaitis has developed.

“I feel like we have a good depth group that is all learning and growing at the same time,” Patricia said. “I feel like we’re good, communication is good, front is good, we can play the run game. When you have those waves of players, I think it gives you a little bit of an advantage as you go through the game.”

Replacing two top-10 picks like Styles and Reese is an almost impossible task, even at Ohio State. But is there a world where there’s a combination of Payton Pierce, Pettijohn, Alford and Christian Alliegro on the field with the starters during a game? Yes, there is.

Alliegro and Pettijohn can play inside and outside linebacker. Pierce will likely be the leader of the group. And Alford can move around, too.

They’ve even impressed Day.

“I think you’ll see us rotating guys and try to figure out how all those pieces work,” Day said.

Will Ohio State revert to playing strictly three-linebacker sets? No, but it is a sign of Patricia’s flexibility with this roster.

The talent level of last year’s group, which finished No. 1 in total defense, is unmatched. But there’s an argument to be made that the 2026 unit is deeper, and it’s opening Patricia up to more rotational ideas.

“I think we have a lot of good depth players this year,” Patricia said. “I want to make sure I’m putting them in the right position.”

One of those depth players could be Alabama edge rusher Qua Russaw. For much of the offseason, I’ve been interested in seeing just how Ohio State plans to deploy Russaw, who has so much flexibility. Putting his hand in the ground and making him rush as a traditional edge rusher didn’t make sense. To Patricia and Larry Johnson’s credit, it doesn’t sound like they’ll do that.

Speaking to the media Thursday, Russaw said he expects to play a variety of roles, including on the edge during passing downs and in the five-man penny fronts Patricia introduced last year.

This role should allow Russaw to rush the passer and make plays in space, specifically in the flat area, similar to what Reese did at times last season. Alliegro could be another player to watch in that position.

This is not to say that Russaw or Alliegro will turn into Reese this year, but we’ve seen some things drastically change with the defensive plan through nine practices.

We thought Ohio State would play three safeties nearly all game, but it’s looking like the defense will rotate across the board.

Asked if he could play more people this year, Patricia responded, “That’s probably a good way to look at it.”

Patricia was not afraid to adapt last year, and he seems ready to do it again this year.