Ohio State fans are living through a maddening conundrum about who’s going to be their next quarterback. The successor to Will Howard’s short but extremely successful reign under center. An admittedly cheesy anime reference helps explain this conundrum. Know Dragon Ball Z? The one with the Kamehameha and the yellow hair? Of course, you do. The Saiyan Saga in DBZ shares parallels with the “Sayin” saga down in Columbus. Both represent a line in the sand between two different eras. Marking the start of a sequel after a happy ending for the heroes. Both have the main characters confused, not knowing what their future entails. Learning things on the go about where they stand in the hierarchy of power. But there’s a point of divergence between the Saiyan Saga and the Julian Sayin Saga (obviously, there is). One’s villains are maniacal, racist aliens. The others? Very grounded human traits—like inexperience.
After a decade of longing, the Natty is finally back in Columbus. For this blueblood program to go a drought without a championship only made the triumph sweeter and the hardware shinier. OSU’s stellar receiving corps takes the lion’s share of the credit- rightly so. But HC Ryan Day acknowledges the contributions of those who facilitated those receivers. Will Howard coming through the transfer portal as a stop-gap work perfectly? But as he ascends to the NFL, Coach Day has to find a signal caller all over again. He’s not in an envious position, either. As he loses a senior statesman with a wealth of experience, his 3 options now have a grand total of 15 completions between them. But experience entails more than just knowing when and where to throw the football. It earns you the respect of your peers. Respect breeds leadership skills.
Ryan Day and Co. won’t miss Howard’s ability to throw it on a dime for Jeremiah Smith to chase down. They’ll also miss his leadership. Something Julian Sayin acknowledges will be difficult to duplicate. Although it’s far from certain, Julian Sayin is primed to eventually win the job and be the Buckeyes’ next QB1 ahead of Lincoln Kienholz and Tavien St. Clair. With spring camp finally underway, the answer shall become clearer soon.
It was a post-spring practice where Sayin spoke to the media about Will Howard’s leadership. A void that he will have to fill if he’s indeed the starter. Sayin was asked, “How do you think you’ve come along vocally, as a leader, over the last year? Especially getting the chance to watch Will and how he operated last year.” He spoke glowingly about the guy he just sat behind for a year, learning the ropes.
Julian Sayin replied, “Will was a really great leader for this team, and it was fun to watch. He was someone who everyone kind of could relate to and liked by everyone. I think if you went around and asked about Will Howard, everyone would have good things to say about him…I’m trying to take that approach.” Likeability is key when playing a position where one mistake can lose you the game. The baby-faced Will Howard being a popular guy around OSU doesn’t come as a surprise. “It’s definitely not easy [to be liked]. But it’s a matter of working on, continued Sayin. This spurred on a follow-up question from one of the reporters. “Are you liked by everyone?” Julian Sayin gave his sincere take.
“I hope so! When you’re in the building, you try to leave a good impression or impact on everyone,” he said. Well, Sayin will have plenty of time to make friends through fall and beyond. For now, he’ll be laser-focused on putting a good account of himself in practice in winning the QB1 shirt. Something he’s been doing. At least according to a national analyst, who reckons Ryan Day’s dilemma of whom to start at quarterback is approaching finality.
Julian Sayin tipped as the answer to Ryan Day’s nagging problem
As aforementioned, neither Julian Sayin, Tavien St. Clair, nor Lincoln Kienholz boasts any playing experience in college. But what they do boast is a ton of raw talent. Arguably, more than Will Howard did. Sayin and St. Clair are consensus 5-star recruits, ranked Top-3 in the nation for their respective classes. Lincoln Kienholz is no slouch either as a 4-star and 13th-rated QB in the class of ‘23. On the surface level, 2024 recruit Sayin has the upper hand over his contemporaries. Why? Sayin is perceived to have more to his game than Kienholz and has been in the program longer than St. Clair. Developing in the system, building chemistry with the receivers, and getting reps as the backup to Howard. With this baked in, On3’s JD PicKell has had his say on this QB battle.
Over the On3 YouTube channel, PicKell discussed what is the biggest predicament and loose end for Ryan Day heading into the fall. He relayed that post-spring practice #1, On3’s Ohio State wing “Letterman Row” took away that “You watch Julian Sayin drop back, and there’s something different to him.” PicKell’s own takeaway lined up with Letterman Row. “The football jumps out of [Sayin’s] hand, quick release, all those things. I truly believe that he will win the job,” he remarked.
Coach Day and his new OC, Brian Hartline, will be praying they land on the correct guy come August. Will Howard’s intrinsic connection with Jeremiah Smith on those deep passes shall live in memory. With the Buckeyes hosting the Texas Longhorns opening week, there’s not much room for growing pains. The choice has to be the right one straightaway, with little margin for error. It’ll be fascinating to see whether it indeed is Julian Sayin vs Arch Manning at the Shoe on August 30.
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