The Ohio State football team knows who the starting quarterback will be for them heading into the season. Julian Sayin will have his second year under center after being a Heisman Finalist as a freshman. Now, he's ready to improve on that year of experience and help lead this team to a national title.
If Sayin plays well enough, the Buckeyes could see him depart for the NFL. In fact, a national championship-winning year would probably have him end up being a first-round pick. In that case, Tavien St. Clair would end up being the starting quarterback next season.
No one is expecting this team to play poorly in 2026. They should make the College Football Playoff, even if they lose a couple of games. However, one pundit believes that the Buckeyes would have a quarterback quandary on their hands if Sayin did end up coming back next season.
Pundit believes that Ohio State will have a tough decision to make if Julian Sayin returns
Jeremy Birmingham of 97.1 The Fan put together a perplexing hypothetical for the quarterback situation next year. He thinks that if the Buckeyes have a bad season and Sayin returns, they should likely start St. Clair next year.
"If Ohio State has an opportunity to retain Julian Sayin, and the season doesn't go well, then Ohio State is the one that basically has to answer the question about whether or not year four of Julian Sayin is more valuable for them than year one of Tavien St. Clair as a starter...either way, this is a question that Tavien and his family are going to have to consider."
Not only does Birmingham think that Sayin could have a bad enough season that he wouldn't be able to go to the NFL, but he thinks he would battle with St. Clair. He doesn't even sound confident that St. Clair would definitely win the job in 2027. All of what he's saying is quite strange and, quite frankly, wrong.
Ohio State pundit could not be more wrong on hypothetical QB issue
If Sayin does end up returning next season, he would be the starter. There would be no questions asked. After what he did last season, there's no projection that would see him somehow get worse. He would have to have a catastrophic 2026 season for him not to start if he returned next year.
St. Clair is preparing to be the backup this season, which is the role he will be in. Next year, he is fully expecting to be the favorite to win the job. I'll concede that St. Clair would consider transferring if he doesn't win the starting job next year. The only way that happens is if Sayin comes back or if they bring in a strong transfer next year.
This is certainly not an issue that the Buckeyes need to worry about right now. They are just worried about winning the upcoming season, not the potential quarterback battle that could happen in 2027.
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