Advertise on podcast: The Tim May Show featuring Clay Hall

No matter what happens, life moves on quickly for a college football team in the midst of a season. Ohio State has lost its former Heisman Trophy finalist quarterback Julian Sayin "indefinitely" after the elbow injury suffered during the win at Indiana last week. It's on to freshman Luke Fahey, or will it be sophomore Tavien St. Clair. Ryan Day left the quandary hanging out there this week, though Fahey won the backup job during preseason camp. Will St. Clair assert himself during this off week and prove he deserves consideration for the job when the season resumes at Southern California on Oct.31? Stay tuned. Day and OC Arthur Smith with thoughts on rolling with the punch, plus Day on the frustration of seeing Jeremiah Smith often interfered with but with no calls coming his way for two seasons now. And Tim talks with former Dispatch cohort now Sub Stack fixture Bill Rabinowitz on when they witnessed OSU ride a QB quick change to the 2014 national championship, and Tim has his weekly conversation with Dillon Davis of DelGazette.com on all things OSU football. Adjust those ear buds accordingly.

Julian Sayin is out for at least "several weeks," Ohio State coach Ryan Day confirmed right after his Buckeyes' stirring 19-15 win at Indiana - the victory boosting OSU up to No. 3 in the Associated Press poll and snapping reigning national champion Indiana's 22-game win streak. But the OSU win came with the loss of 2025 Heisman finalist Sayin for the near future with what insiders say is a right elbow injury. That means it's going to be the Luke Fahey show for the time being, and though he struggled somewhat in his relief role at Indiana, the freshman now has some time to settle in before the Buckeyes play at USC on Oct 31. "The bye week being now is such a gift," says Tim's regular early week co-host Matt Wilhelm. They talk about the big win for OSU, some of the adjustments they expect with Fahey at the helm, plus the craziest weekend in the history of ranked teams, what with a record five of the top seven going down, including No. 1 Georgia to unranked Auburn. There's a lot to talk about. Bye-Bye Indiana, Hello Bye Week

Ohio State is gonna win at Indiana, maybe big. That's what Jeff Snook and Bill Bender of The Sporting News say here. Show host Tim agrees. Reigning national champion Indiana is hosting arguably its greatest home game in school history, and this time, maybe for the first time, the vast majority of the red-clad crowd is expected to be Hoosier backers. The Buckeyes are challenged with some injuries and illnesses, so that adds intrigues, while Indiana coming off a come-from-behind win at Nebraska, looks vulnerable. We know, talk is cheap. But that's what we do here. Enjoy.

You have to admit, from individuals to squads to schemes, Ohio State has been on the upswing the past three games. Ryan Day talked about a few of those things, but always with the caveat that the No. 4 Buckeyes need to take another major leap Saturday when they play at No. 5 Indiana. Poo-poo the Hoosiers' schedule to date and throw in a couple of those wins could easily have flipped (Northwestern and Nebraska), but truth is Indiana hasn't lost a Big Ten game since late 2024 at Ohio State. It is the reigning national champion. The Buckeyes meanwhile have found some confidence in their run game, their short-yardage approach - heck, Julian Sayin now runs occasionally as a matter of course. And the defense had gained more cohesion. So kick as Day, Sayin, LB Payton Pierce and DelGazette.com's Dillon Davis help Tim through this. Earbuds turnt UP!!

The college football regular season is just half over, and after the latest weekend of wreckage, there's sure to be more as the second half ensues, as Matt Wilhelm infers. He joins Tim for their weekly confab, during which they talked about Ohio State coming off a dominant with over Maryland, headed toward Indiana and the showdown of the latest two CFP champions at noon Saturday in Bloomington. But that means they talked about the Hoosiers' rally/escape from Nebraska, also. Plus they talk some refereeing snafus in Georgia's win over Alabama, the telling UCLA victory at Oregon, the go-for-2 times two madness Kentucky pulled in the upset over LSU, and much more. Wilhelm has thoughts, man, and Tim does, too.

Former Buckeye great Chris Sanders talks the receiving talent of Heisman & Biletnikoff candidate Jeremiah Smith, who holds the triple crown of receiving records at Ohio State. We also cover Chris' track exploits, where he was a 10-time 1st team All-American. Colorful & entertaining, this won't be Sanders only appearance on the Tim May Show.

At his weekly press conference, Ohio State coach Ryan Day covered a lot of ground. One point that clearly stood out was his dissatisfaction overall with the Buckeyes' special teams play. Missed field goals and a punt game that leaves a lot to be desired, along with sometimes weak return efforts, left him honestly giving an assessment that he wants to see improved as the Buckeyes host Maryland on Saturday. Tougher tests are coming for No.5 Ohio State, including the much-anticipated game at reigning national champion Indiana the following week. One thing that should not be in dispute, says OSU left guard Luke Montgomery, is who is leading the race for the Heisman Trophy — receiver Jeremiah Smith. Plus Dillon Davis joins Tim for his weekly chat. Tear open this gift and enjoy.

There was angst among Ohio State fans headed into the No. 5 Buckeyes game at 14th-ranked and unbeaten Iowa, especially with the Hawkeyes coming off the near-miracle win at Michigan. But as Matt Wilhelm and Tim point out, by the end of the day, a couple of truths had been laid bare ... Iowa is an average team, and the team it beat the week before might struggle to finish .500 after its second straight loss at Minnesota. Matt pointed out more positives for the Buckeyes, who saw Jeremiah Smith become the undisputed all-time all-TIMER OSU wide receiver and grab solidly the top shelf in the Heisman Trophy race. And Julian Sayin had a second straight 300-yard passing day, while the defense showed much of what left fans questioning it the week before. Plus Dillon Davis of DelGazette.com joined Tim from Iowa City to give his take on a road win the Buckeyes needed to sink their spurs into October. Giddyup!!

Ohio State plays at Iowa on Saturday, and coach Ryan Day wants his Buckeyes to make it a hard-swinging-for-4-quarters affair. "Finish" is what he wants, something the Buckeyes did not do in its first trip of the season to Texas, where it blew a 20-point lead and lost 24-23. Playing a complete game on the road and beating a ranked opponent will set the tone, Day said, for the mean of the season to come. OC Arthur Smith is looking forward to his first game at Iowa, and calls it a heavyweight affair. Jeff Snook joins Tim for their weekly visit and speaks of the things which must be better for OSU, not the least of which is the run defense, while they also talk of the national scene. And Tim sits down with former OSU star linebacker Stan White, a key part of the 1968 and 1970 national title teams, a long-time NFL stalwart, and a fixture in the media in Baltimore for decades, who was inducted into the OSU Athletics Hall of Fame last week. Crank up the volume — Rocktober is upon us!

Jeremiah Smith just reminded everyone why he may be the most dangerous player in college football. On this episode of The Tim May Show, Tim May breaks down Smith's monster performance in Ohio State's 42-20 Big Ten win over Illinois — 12 catches, 217 receiving yards and FOUR touchdowns. At this point, forget limiting the conversation to the Biletnikoff Award. Does Jeremiah Smith belong squarely in the Heisman Trophy race? Tim is joined by former Ohio State All-American linebacker Matt Wilhelm and Dillon Davis to break down what went right — and what definitely didn't — for the Buckeyes against Illinois. 🏈 Jeremiah Smith's incredible four-touchdown performance🔥 Is Smith now a legitimate Heisman Trophy contender?🌰 Ohio State's 42-20 win over Illinois⚠️ Why the Buckeyes' defense still raised some concerns🧠 Matt Wilhelm breaks down Ohio State from a former player's perspective👀 What Ryan Day's team still needs to clean up🐤 Ohio State now turns its attention to a tough road trip at Iowa〽️ Iowa enters the matchup after knocking off Michigan Tim has covered Ohio State football for decades, and even he's asking whether he's ever seen a Buckeyes receiver quite like Jeremiah Smith. Sometimes the solution really is that simple: Just throw him the damn ball. Subscribe for more Ohio State Buckeyes football, Big Ten coverage and college football conversation every week on The Tim May Show. Watch and listen at FanStreamSports.com.

Even Tim is convinced now he's never covered a receiver at Ohio State the likes of Jeremiah Smith. Well, what took him so long? Smith is coming off a career-high game of 4 TD catches, 12 catches overall and 217 yards. Forget just the Biletnikoff Award, Smith now is solidly in the running for the Heisman Trophy. He'll have a showcase opportunity again Saturday when the Buckeyes play at Iowa, which (boo hoo - NOT) beat Michigan on the final play. Not everything was rosy for the Buckeyes in the Big Ten opening 42-20 win over Illinois - especially on defense - as Matt Wilhelm and Dillon Davis discuss. But Smith was the headliner. Just throw him the damn ball.

No.7 Ohio State opens Big Ten play hosting Illinois, and it promises to be a memorable afternoon in Ohio Stadium. For starters, linebackers coach James Laurinaitis is poised to ring the victory bell pregame because the school is honoring for his induction into the College Football Hall of Fame this year. And then, the Buckeyes have pledged to finish what they start against the Illini, something they did not do two weeks ago when they blew a 20 point lead at Texas, which like Illinois is a Power 4 opponent. We hear from Ryan Day, defensive coordinator Matt Patricia, cornerback Devin Sanchez and tackle Ian Moore, along with Tim's weekly conversation with his good buddy Jeff Snook. Turn it UP!

Ohio State opens Big Ten play vs. Illinois on Saturday, and coach Ryan Day wants anything but a mild-mannered bunch of players taking the Ohio Stadium field at noon ET. In fact, he wants his running backs to "run angry", to make some big plays that they couldn't seem to make against outmatched Kent State last week, despite the 59-3 OSU win. Tim and 'Double D' Dillon Davis talk about that and more as they cinch up for what promises to be an interesting couple of months of Big Ten play for the No. 7 Buckeyes.

Ohio State knows it's a pretty darn good football team when it can beat any opponent 59-3 (this time it was 52- point underdog Kent State), and there are still some question marks, as Matt Wilhelm and Dillon Davis discuss with Tim, headed toward the Big Ten opener with Illinois. On the other hand, QB Julian Sayin again had a couple of puzzling moments, especially for a second-year starter. There were several injuries, including to DT James Smith, safety Jaylen McClain and freshman RB Legend Bey, the most serious to Smith (right arm or wrist). And the offensive line and running game didn't pop perhaps as well as expected in the physical mismatch. Still, third-year Jeremiah Smith did set the Ohio State record for career receiving yards, and in just his 33rd game, a lot of youngsters played, including massive freshman DT Jamir Perez, who returned a fumble for a TD, much to the delight of teammates. Release the Kracken!

Now, No.6 Ohio State will step back into the ring on Saturday, a week after blowing that 20 point lead a week earlier in the loss at now-No. 1 Texas. Safety Earl Little Jr. says the Buckeyes are eager to reassert themselves, which oddsmakers believe won't be a problem against prohibitive underdog Kent State in Ohio Stadium. But that doesn't keep observers such as Bill Raninowitz, author of Buckeye Brotherhood about the 2024 national championship team, and Tim May Show late-week regular Jeff Snook from looking back with a critical on what could have, perhaps even should have, gone better at Texas. "We'll win the game or know the reason why," is the way one of the school songs goes.