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UPDATE: Halftime
The injury appeared not to affect Fields at all, as he’s now 16-18 for 223 yards and four touchdowns in just 30 minutes of football against the No. 2 team in America. It’s a virtuoso performance, especially considering he still must be hurting.
With 5:57 left in the first half, Ohio State Buckeyes quarterback Justin Fields took this hit from safety James Skalski of the Clemson Tigers:
This is targeting by the definition of the rule.
— Yahoo Sports College Football (@YahooSportsCFB) January 2, 2021
And, at the very least, not a recommended way to safely tackle a player. pic.twitter.com/oDJWax6WrK
Skalski was ejected for targeting after the hit, and Fields sat out one play before returning to play. On his first snap after returning to the field, Fields threw a nine-yard touchdown pass to Chris Olave to give the Buckeyes a 28-14 lead with 5:12 remaining in the second quarter.
Fields has been terrific for Ohio State so far tonight, completing 12 of 13 passes for 172 yards and three touchdowns in under 25 minutes of game time. He’s also added six carries for 53 yards thus far.
We’ll see if the hit has any long-term effects for the quarterback, who has been projected as high as No. 2 in the 2021 NFL Draft. He’s certainly making his case for the Jets to take him in that spot with his performance so far this evening.