Ohio State Football: Justin Fields’ start similar to great Buckeye QBs
Justin Fields was terrific in his first career start, but that should have been expected as four recent Ohio State quarterbacks were as well.
Prior to kickoff against FAU, Justin Fields had high expectations to live up to in his first start for Ohio State. The past four notable Buckeye quarterbacks made impressive debuts in their first career start.
In 2011, Braxton Miller made his debut against Colorado. The freshman QB Miller tossed two touchdowns to Devin Smith. He completed 5 of 13 passes with 83 yards in the air while rushing for 83 yards in a 37-17 victory over Colorado.
J.T. Barrett threw for 226 yards and 2 touchdowns in his first start as a redshirt freshman. Devin Smith was part of Barrett’s debut as well when he hauled in a 80-yard touchdown pass from the Buckeyes QB. He racked up 50 yards on the ground as well in a 34-17 victory over Navy.
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In one of the most memorable runs in college football history, Cardale Jones, a redshirt sophomore made his first start for the Buckeyes in the 2014 Big Ten Championship Game against 13th ranked Wisconsin. The reliable playmaker, Devin Smith, caught 3 touchdown passes from Jones.
In a 59-0 rout of Wisconsin, Jones threw for 257 yards and 3 touchdowns and he was named MVP after leading the Buckeyes to a Big Ten Championship win.
Last season, QB Dwayne Haskins shattered the Ohio State record books in his debut after recording five total touchdowns in his first game as starter. Haskins completed 22 of 30 pass attempts with 313 yards and 5 touchdowns in a 77-31 week 1 win against Oregon State.
Clearly, Justin Fields didn’t flinch in his first start on Saturday against FAU. Only 6 minutes into the game, he was 4 for 4 passing with 71 yards and 2 touchdowns with a 51-yard rushing touchdown.
The Buckeyes playmaker finished with 229 passing yards on 19 of 26 pass attempts with 5 total touchdowns. He tied his predecessor, Haskins, with an Ohio State record 5 total touchdowns in his first start as a Buckeye.
Big Ten East Week 2 predictions. dark. Next
Justin Fields was as good as advertised vs. FAU. This Saturday will be a good test for the young QB when the Buckeyes take on the Cincinnati Bearcats. Former Buckeye and Bearcats Head Coach, Luke Fickell will look to throw every defensive look in his playbook at Fields to test his decision-making ability.