Will Justin Fields transfer? Ryan Day offers some optimism for Ohio State fans

Following the Big Ten decision to postpone college football until the spring, rumors about Justin Fields transferring out of Ohio State are heating up like a volcano ready to erupt.

Ohio State football won’t take the field this fall for the first time in more than a century after the Big Ten announced there would be no fall football season with the hopes they can play in the spring.

While there are several looming questions about the logistics of pulling off a spring football season, but one of the foremost questions about the Big Ten’s decision revolves around Heisman favorite and Ohio State quarterback Justin Fields.

After already transferring from Georgia to Ohio State, now rumors are heating up that the Buckeyes quarterback and top NFL Draft prospect could look to leave Ohio State and play at a school at the Big 12, ACC or SEC who all remain hopeful of playing this fall.

Fields has yet to address his future other than tweeting ‘smh’ after learning of the Big Ten news, but if Fields wanted to transfer, he’d be an immediate starter at just about every school other than Clemson where Trevor Lawrence, his top competition for the Heisman, is entrenched as the starter.

However, when speaking to the media through Zoom on Wednesday, Ohio State football coach Ryan Day provided an update on where Fields stands and what he may be thinking in regard to his immediate future.

Will Justin Fields transfer? Ryan Day keeps the door open for the Ohio State quarterback and Heisman favorite to return this spring

“I think Justin wants to see what this schedule is,” Day said when asked about if Fields will be transferring or declaring for the NFL Draft before a spring season would be played.

Fields could declare for the NFL Draft and begin preparing for the Combine in February, which will be one of the wildest and most important in the history of the event.

Fields could transfer and hope to get acclimated to a new program, new school, new teammates, new playbook, new everything in a few weeks and play out his junior season elsewhere.

Or Fields could hold steady and see what the Big Ten decides with the spring season. Day said he’d like to see a season began just after the new year and play eight-nine games, which could entice Fields to stick around and polish off his development before presumably declaring for the NFL Draft afterward.

Depending on how quickly the Big Ten comes up with this contingency plan, however, shouldn’t be expected very soon. Considering the Big Ten only just began thinking about backup plans if the fall season was postponed and the nature of playing a football season in the spring and all the entanglements that presents, means this will be a decision that requires some time to effectively put together.

This puts Fields in a state of limbo. He doesn’t really have enough time to leave Ohio State and find a spot elsewhere that has a scholarship open and is a good enough team that can protect him and not adversely affect his draft projection. The year of development is needed to be sure, but wherever he goes if he decides to leave, will be vastly inferior to the talent and coaching he’d receive if he stays at Ohio State.

I don’t think there’s any chance of Fields playing in the spring, which in reality, is playing in the winter, and I don’t think he’s looking to transfer. Unfortunately, I think we’ve seen the last of Fields in college football and the next time we see him play, it’ll be with the NFL team that spends a top-five pick on him in April’s draft.

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