Ohio State Football: JT Barrett has guts, and hopefully a little glory

Will Ohio State quarterback JT Barrett be appreciated before future players can’t match the high standards he set?

Ohio State quarterback JT Barrett has accomplished more than most college football players who have ever played the position. However, until Saturday he had never played in a Big Ten Championship Game. He finally got his opportunity and came away with the ring.

Barrett certainly showed guts in leading Ohio State to the win over Wisconsin. He had surgery six days prior to the game and you could tell he was still in pain from it. Will JT get any of the glory for doing so? That’s hard to say but I hope so.

Barrett’s critics will say his two interceptions, including a pick six, kept the Badgers in the game. And missing downfield throws against Wisconsin to open receivers is proof his inaccuracy has been a big problem that impeded the Ohio State offense from reaching its potential.

In their minds those things will override Barrett’s 211 yards passing for two touchdowns and 60 yards rushing and another score, on a bad leg.

In a half-century of watching college football, I have never saw a player set as many records as JT has, and win so many games, while some of the fanbase has wanted him replaced.

To those fans who did, what if you were told a quarterback in the 2013 class would accomplish the things Barrett has. I am sure you would be excited to hear it, but also think the person telling you those things had probably been smoking an illegal substance.

The list of what that QB recruit would go on to accomplish would have been unimaginable. I won’t list them all, just a few to prove the point.

Ohio State record for passing yards (9,309)
Most rushing yards by an Ohio State quarterback (3,208)
Ohio State total yards leader (10,508)
Total touchdowns (145), 39 more than Drew Brees the previous record holder.
First Big Ten quarterback to throw 100 touchdown passes (104)
Most wins by an Ohio State quarterback (37)
3 time Big Ten quarterback of the year
4-0 record vs. Michigan

Not too bad for the young guy from Wichita Falls, Texas.

I could go on because Barrett has set more than 30 Ohio State and Big Ten records, but I think you get the point.

More from Scarlet and Game

And don’t forget, as an emergency starter for Braxton Miller his redshirt freshman year, Barrett led the Buckeyes to the brink of the Big Ten Championship before getting injured in the last game versus Michigan. The 59-0 win over Wisconsin put Ohio State in the playoff, but if not for Barrett’s performance that season the Buckeyes wouldn’t have played in the championship game.

He then led Ohio State to consecutive 11-1 regular seasons, even though in 2015 Barrett only started about half the games. This season the Buckeyes are now 11-2 and conference champions.

Now, does Barrett have flaws in his game? Certainly he does, just like every college quarterback I have ever watched. But he has played to his strengths as well as any player I have seen during that time as well.

JT would never want someone to carry his water for him because he has never looked for personal accolades. He just strived to be the best player and teammate he could be. And he succeeded there didn’t he?

But now that he only has one more game to don the Scarlet and Gray, I hope fans will appreciate what he has meant to the Buckeyes the last four seasons.

Next: No. 1 class even better with another 4 star commit

He has certainly showed he has guts during his time at Ohio State, and has performed at an exceptionally high level. I hope he will now get at least a little glory for doing so before he takes off the uniform for the last time. It would be a shame if fans only appreciate what he meant to the Ohio State football program years from now when other quarterbacks can’t live up to the high standards he has set.

Home/Ohio State Football