Ryan Day started to see the separation he was seeking in Ohio State’s starting quarterback competition early last week.
By the end of the week, Day made the decision that most expected he would ultimately make all offseason: Julian Sayin will be Ohio State’s starting quarterback for the season opener against Texas.
“I just started to see some throws and some anticipation. There was a couple reps where the rush was getting to him; in those moments, you have to make quick decisions … either throw it away or find a way to put it in a spot, even if it's a checkdown or something like that, I saw some of those things going on. Making the routine plays routinely. I also saw command in the huddle,” Day said Monday. “Not that I didn't see some of those things with Lincoln, but you're asking about Julian in particular. Saw those things and started to feel like, ‘OK, we can win with this guy.’”
Sayin has been viewed as Ohio State’s likely starting quarterback for the 2025 season from the moment he transferred to Ohio State following a brief enrollment at Alabama last offseason. The No. 1-ranked quarterback in the 2024 recruiting class, Sayin is an accurate passer with a strong arm and a quick release, making him Ohio State’s next projected first-round NFL draft pick at the position.
But the redshirt freshman, who played in just four games last season, had to show he was ready for the massive spotlight he’ll be stepping into when Ohio State hosts the No. 1 team in the country in the season opener. To do that, Sayin needed to demonstrate a strong command of the offense, sound decision-making and poise under pressure on a daily basis in practice. That’s what Day said he’s seen from Sayin as preseason camp has progressed.
“He’s smart, poised, has good composure. Can see it. Has good timing, and has really built command and confidence as time has gone on,” Day said Monday after Ohio State’s 15th practice of preseason camp. “You see the traits, you see the accuracy, you see the ball getting out of his hand quickly, but the ability to run the offense, get us into the right play, make good decisions, throw it away when we need to and ultimately take care of the football (is what Day needed to see). But he can fit the ball into tight spaces when he needs to. He's got a good feel for the pocket. And so all those things are areas that we recognized that he's taken steps forward here during the preseason.”
Both Day and offensive coordinator Brian Hartline pointed to Sayin’s consistency in taking care of the football and avoiding turnovers as a key factor in why he won the starting job.
“I think he's done a good job of being consistent with taking care of the football. I think he's done a really good job of giving guys the opportunity to make plays. And I think it's just the body of work,” Hartline said. “It’s not one play here, one play there that ultimately decides that really important decision. I think it's just been the work as a whole. And I think that he's just, again, not that anyone wasn't, he’s just been very consistent. Communication was really well done, and I think he really did a good job through camp.”
Ohio State defensive coordinator Matt Patricia is also impressed by what he’s seen from Sayin in preseason camp, particularly in terms of how Sayin has diagnosed the plays he’s dialed up defensively.
“When I’m showing different looks or we’re having different coverages or we’re rolling through practices without scripts, where things are going to be moving at a little bit of a different pace, and being able to handle the tempo of the offense and things like that in the huddle, adjustments at the line of scrimmage, we kind of threw a bunch of different things at them. And I think his poise, his ability to kind of see the defense and also really make quick decisions,” Patricia said when asked what’s stood out about Sayin in camp. “Lincoln’s a great athlete, too. He did a good job against us, obviously. But Julian, I think, just his ability to see the defense, make the decision, get the ball out quick, and I think that's one of the things you want in a quarterback that's going out there in a big stage and a big game here is just to make sure we’re taking care of the ball and doing all those things that you need to help yourself win.”
When asked why he didn’t name a starting quarterback sooner than Monday, Day said that had a lot to do with how Lincoln Kienholz has pushed Sayin all offseason. The redshirt sophomore from South Dakota has also made major strides this offseason, Day said, and the head coach says he’d feel comfortable with either of them leading the offense right now.
“I just think it's been a great competition. You get around both of these guys, they're both competitive and both talented,” Day said. “Lincoln really has done some great things. As you guys know, he's a tremendous athlete. And I just think he's only still scratching the surface on what he can be. And so he's going to continue to grow, and I think he knows that. I think when you get around him, you feel that, where if he was a quarterback that had been around football his entire life, he was kind of tapped out, hit his ceiling, he'd be more frustrated. I think he knows he's still got a lot of runway here for his career. And so he's growing and getting better every day. You can see it.
“Julian has gotten stronger and bigger, which is obviously something he needed to do when he got here. And he's learned the offense and he's playing faster. So, again, the good news is we feel good with both of them in the game. And it was good to see them compete. And, again, I think we’re going to need them both.”
With a matchup against the top-ranked team in the country just 12 days away, however, Day felt it was important to announce a starting quarterback on Monday – when he wasn’t as ready to name starters at other positions – so that the team could coalesce around one signal-caller as it ramps up its preparation for the Longhorns.
Kienholz will continue to take some first-team reps to ensure that he’s ready if the Buckeyes need him to play, and Day responded affirmatively when asked if it was possible that the offense could include a package for Kienholz to take advantage of his running ability. But Sayin – who Day believes can also be a weapon with his feet – will now take the majority of reps with the starters so the offense can build rhythm with Sayin leading the way.
In just 12 days, Sayin will face his first true test of how ready he is to be Ohio State’s quarterback when he faces a Texas defense that features three preseason AP All-Americans. But Day is confident in Sayin’s ability to lead the Buckeyes to victory.
“All he needs to do is just do what he's been doing,” Day said. “We've talked a lot about that whole Roy Hobbs myth: ‘You just need to be you.’ You're going to sink to the level of your training. And so I think that he knows that the team has confidence, the coaches have confidence in him. So go let it rip.”
