The Ohio State football team is still trying to figure out who the starting quarterback is, just a couple of weeks ahead of a massive showdown with the Texas Longhorns. That is the battle that is getting the most attention nationwide, just one season after the Buckeyes won the national title.
That's not the only critical battle that the Ohio State Buckeyes are dealing with on the offensive end of the ball. In fact, it might be a more critical battle than who eventually wins the quarterback battle because these players are charged with protecting him.
Surprisingly, the offensive line has not been set in stone yet. Austin Siereveld has surprisingly seemed to take the left tackle job after playing at both guard spots last year. That means that the right tackle spot is still up for grabs between two players.
The Ohio State football team has a battle at the right tackle spot
Ethan Onianwa was brought in from Rice, expecting to be the starting left tackle. With Siereveld exclusively taking reps at that position, it seems that Onianwa is now fighting Minnesota transfer Phillip Daniels for the starting right tackle spot.
Sounds like final starting spot on Ohio State's OL will come down to transfers Ethan Onianwa (Rice) and Phillip Daniels (Minnesota).
— Dave Biddle (@davebiddle) August 11, 2025
Daniels has had a very strong push in recent weeks with some fantastic performances in practice. The Buckeyes brought Daniels in to help with the depth up front, but they likely didn't expect him to fight for a starting job. They certainly didn't expect to move Onianwa to the right side.
It still seems likely that Onianwa ends up as the starting right tackle over Daniels, but the fact that there is still a battle shows that Ohio State has some strong depth up front. That's good to hear, especially after everything that happened last season in terms of injuries.
Day has to make a decision that will be the best for the offense, especially with the offense being led by a new signal-caller. If they genuinely believe that Daniels has improved enough in one offseason to fight for a starting spot, then they have to give him a true shot to earn it. They are a great team that can't afford to have a weak link up front.