An anonymous Big Ten coach took a shot at Julian Sayin, but the Ohio State quarterback’s résumé says a lot more than that comment does.
In an ESPN piece by Adam Rittenberg, the coach brushed off Sayin’s 2025 season, saying, "In the games that we played, there wasn't much that I saw from [Sayin], other than he just ran the offense very well."
That’s a tough sell when you look at what Sayin actually put on tape. In his first season as a starter, he set a Big Ten record by completing 77 percent of his passes and finished as a Heisman Finalist. He also threw for 3,610 yards and 32 touchdowns while guiding Ohio State through a season in which the Buckeyes were the favorites to win the national championship for most of the year.
The back half of the season didn’t end the way Ohio State wanted. The Buckeyes dropped the Big Ten Championship and the Cotton Bowl, and those were the two worst games of the year.
In those losses, Sayin was sacked 10 times. Some of that came down to shaky offensive line play, and some of it came from a reluctance to scramble.
Even so, there are signs Sayin is in a better spot heading into year two. He improved his scrambling in the spring and added muscle, making him sturdier than he was last season. Ohio State also expects him to take on more responsibility as a second-year starter, including a bigger role pushing the ball downfield.
That part matters, especially with the roster around him changing. Carnell Tate was the fourth overall pick in the 2026 NFL Draft, so Sayin will be working without one of the top receivers he had a year ago. Jeremiah Smith is still there, but the Buckeyes won’t have two elite targets available the way they did last season.
There is also a new offensive setup in place. Under Arthur Smith’s system, Ohio State should have plenty of motion from the wide receivers, which could help create more advantages for the passing game.
Sayin was eased into things early last season, especially in Week 1 against Texas, but the coaching staff trusts him more now. That should mean more freedom to let it rip from the opening snap.
Ohio State is still expecting to be right in the middle of the national title hunt with Sayin at quarterback. And if he delivers a big season, the reward could be enormous: a first-round selection in next year’s draft. That would put him in line to become the third quarterback since Ryan Day became head coach to go in the first round.
For all the noise around him, Sayin still has the same challenge in front of him. He has to show NFL scouts he’s more than a clean operator. He has to prove he can be the engine of the offense, too.
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