By JIM NAVEAU

jnanveau@limanews.com

COLUMBUS – Ryan Day isn’t going to name a starting quarterback until much closer to Ohio State’s Aug. 30 season opener against Texas, but Julian Sayin appeared to take a significant step toward claiming that position with a strong showing in the Buckeyes’ spring football game Saturday at Ohio Stadium.

Sayin, a redshirt freshman who transferred to OSU from Alabama in January 2024, completed 17 of 24 passes for 175 yards and two touchdowns and led scoring drives the first three times he was on the field.

But maybe most of all, he just looked the part of the future No. 1 quarterback for the Buckeyes once the games count in the fall in head-to-head competition with Lincoln Kienholz, who was 12 of 18 for 158 yards and two touchdowns.

Sayin, who was the No. 1 ranked quarterback in the 2024 recruiting class, caused some nervousness among Ohio State fans with an inconsistent performance in a scrimmage open to students and the media last Saturday.

But that version of Sayin was nowhere to be found on Saturday.

No players were made available for interviews after the spring game and Day did not go into great detail in his assessment of OSU’s top two quarterbacks.

“I felt like Lincoln settled down after the first drive and made some nice throws but I thought for the most part early on Julian was in rhythm and took the team down the field for a couple of touchdowns early. He made some nice throws,” he said.

Freshman Tavien St. Clair was 11 of 15 for 116 yards, a touchdown and two interceptions on a day when pass plays outnumbered rushing plays 57-39 in a 50-31 win for the offense over the defense.

“You could see there was a fairly significant emphasis on throwing the ball to see how the quarterbacks were going to respond,” Day said. “We’ll use this as another evaluation tool. I’m glad we did the spring game. I wasn’t sure but it was definitely the right thing to do. I wish we could have stayed out there another four hours.”

In the weeks immediately after OSU’s national championship run, Day considered not having a spring game this year but changed his mind.

“We lost talent but more importantly we lost experience. Even the guys who are going to be starters haven’t played a lot of football as starters. It’s a whole different deal. We have a whole lot of guys who are learning right now. We have to accelerate that learning process and figure out what the plan is this summer.

“I wish we had 15 more practices this spring so we could get out there and learn and grow,” he said.

Notes:

… BO KNOWS SPRING GAMES: Freshman Bo Jackson was the leading rusher in the game with 88 yards on 13 carries and scored a touchdown. Sam Williams-Dixon had 64 yards on 11 carries and West Virginia transfer C.J. Donaldson gained 35 yards on 4 carries and scored a touchdown.

But second-year running back James Peoples (6 yards on 2 carries) might be the No. 1 back for the Buckeyes.

“I feel like James has a chance to be a special back but still he just has not played a lot of football. He has great energy. He’s mature. He’s very coachable. He knows what the standard is. I feel like we have what we need there (at running back) but we need to continue to build,” Day said.

… GRAHAM LEADS RECEIVERS: Redshirt freshman wide receiver Mylan Graham had 4 catches for a team-high 104 yards and caught a 51-yard touchdown pass from Sayin.

“He’s another guy who just needs to play football,” Day said. “His route running is excellent, his athleticism is excellent. His attention to detail is excellent. The biggest thing with Mylan has been just finishing the catches. That’s been his emphasis – finishing contested catches clean and then put the ball away.

“I think he has a bright future here. He has all the tools to be the next great one.”

… DEFENSIVE LINE CONCERNS?: With four new starters this season the defensive line might be one of OSU’s big concerns.

Day said there were “too many knock backs” of the defensive line by the offensive line on Saturday.

“I think we have to take a hard look at it. I don’t think I have an answer right now but we’ve got to take a look at it. But I don’t want to make any judgments until I look at the film,” he said.

… PORTAL POSSIBILITIES: Day’s concise version of the possibility of Ohio State adding a player or players when the spring transfer portal opens Wednesday.