Vice President JD Vance jokes about Ohio State, tying recent struggles to election results

Vance, an Ohio State alum, dove into the Buckeyes' issues at quarterback during a recent speaking engagement Nov 9, 2026 at 3:50 pm ET • 1 min read When Ohio State struggles, it quickly becomes national news, and it even bleeds into the political realm. Vice President JD Vance even made light of the Buckeyes' loss to Oregon at a speaking engagement on Monday.Vance was the keynote speaker at a Small Business Administration conference in Washington, and he made sure to poke fun at his alma mater during his opening remarks. Vance, who graduated from Ohio State in 2009, did express optimism that the team would get back on track down the stretch."Before I get into the meat of my remarks, I wanted to talk about the devastating loss last week," Vance said. "There are a lot of people unfairly criticizing the leader of the team despite leading us to a great victory two years ago. ... There's a lot of staff infighting and questions about reshuffling. There's a conversation about whether the No. 2 has what it takes to ultimately lead the team."I'm talking, of course, about the Ohio State Buckeyes. Let me just assure you that I really believe in Luke Fahey, our backup QB, and I think our team is gonna make an amazing turnaround." Vance was also making a cheeky comparison to last week's midterm election results, in which Republicans lost key races in Vance's home state of Ohio, other battlegrounds and even conservative strongholds like Texas and South Carolina, leading to questions about the leadership and long-term vision of the Republican Party.In Columbus, there has been a shake-up in the wake of the devastating loss. Ryan Day has fired special teams coach Robby Discher, sources told CBS Sports' Matt Zenitz. One of the key turning points on Saturday was Oregon's fake punt, which caught Ohio State off guard and sparked a dramatic rally by the Ducks. If the Buckeyes are going to turn this around down the stretch, the offense has to improve with Fahey at quarterback because Ohio State finishes with three tricky matchups against Northwestern, Nebraska and Michigan.