VIDEO: Ryan Day Explains Why He Didn't Pull Justin Fields Early vs Rutgers Despite Tua Injury News

Nick Saban is taking heat for not pulling starting quarterback Tua Tagovailoa while holding a 35-7 lead near halftime against Mississippi State in an SEC matchup that was very much in hand. Sadly, the superstar is now out for the season with a hip injury. In a similar situation on the road at Rutgers, Ohio State coach Ryan Day temped fate by leaving Heisman candidate Justin Fields in the game late. Thankfully, Fields did not suffer a similar ailment, instead leading OSU to an even bigger advantage. Day's explanation for his actions may come off as coach-speak, but you have to admire how he sticks to his guns in this case.

Day noted that he doesn't feel a 28-point lead qualifies as "enough". Should the Buckeyes offense stall and then Rutgers scores on the very-next drive, Ohio State would lose the momentum they'd worked so hard to build, even against the lowly Scarlet Knights.

For Fields' sake, staying in the game didn't hurt his Heisman campaign. The Georgia transfer threw for 305 yards on just 15 completions, an average of 16.1 yards per connection, to go along with four scores through the air. Fields also added 30 yards on the ground.

Day made sure to note that he pulled JK Dobbins after one half of action, and that's likely due to Ohio State's deep backfield. The dropoff from RB1 to RB2 is nowhere near the crater OSU's offense is at the risk of dropping off of going from Fields to Jersey native Chris Chugunov.

While Chugunov did eventually get his homecoming -- and a successful one at that -- giving Fields more playing time, and the ability to put the game away in the second half, isn't a bad thing. For some Buckeye fans, it was an unnecessary risk.