Miyan Williams Suffers Apparent Right Leg Injury, Ohio State Running Back Room In Trouble

The Buckeyes are extremely thin at running back right now and can't afford any injuries.

Author:
Brendan Gulick
Nov 12, 2022 1:59 PM EST

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There aren't many things that are capable of slowing down the 2022 Ohio State Buckeyes, but injuries are a concern for every team in the country this time of year - especially those that are chasing a national championship.

The Buckeyes running back room is running on fumes right now.

Miyan Williams, who has emerged as the Scarlet and Gray's best option at tail back this season, is the latest Buckeye to suffer a setback here.

Miyan Williams is helped off the field after hurting his right leg.

With 2:17 left in the first half, Williams took his 15th touch of the game off tackle to the right and struggled to get to his feet. When he finally did, he couldn't put any weight on his right leg. He tried to hop over to the sideline, but the Buckeye athletic training staff came over to his aid. It was clear Miyan wanted to tough it out and try to walk off under his own power, but he ultimately wasn't able to do that.

The Buckeyes don't discuss injuries, so we may not get any clarity on exactly what happened or how serious the injury is. But Williams hasn't been 100 percent healthy in several weeks, yet he's been leaned on heavily as TreVeyon Henderson has been held up by an injured foot.

TreVeyon Henderson walks out of the tunnel in a walking boot.

Evan Pryor is out for the year with a knee injury and Chip Trayanum (who was a running back at Arizona State, came to Ohio State to play linebacker, but has gone back into the RB room out of necessity) is also unavailable today. Walk-on T.C. Caffey is also out with a long term injury.

Dallan Hayden races toward the end zone against Indiana.

That leaves true freshman Dallan Hayden and wide receiver/running back former walk-on-turned-scholarship-player Xavier Johnson as available running backs for the rest of the game against Indiana if Williams can't return to the field. Hayden has shown promise during his first season and Johnson has become one of the feel good stories of the season.