The most interesting things I heard Monday at Ohio State were all about the quarterback decision.
And I do mean things.
Ryan Day spoke for nearly 40 minutes, and more than 10 of those were devoted to his decision to start Julian Sayin over Lincoln Kienholz when Ohio State players host to Texas in less than two weeks.
You can find all of those minutes at my YouTube channel, where I like to park stuff that sticks out to me from a particular day.
Day started to think Sayin would be the guy about a week ago but waited to see if he could maintain the momentum.
“I just started to see some throws and some anticipation. There was a couple reps where the rush was getting to him. In those moments, you have to make quick decisions, and you just can’t throw it to the other team. Either throw it away or find a way to put it in the spot, even if it's a checkdown or something like that. I saw some of those things go on.
“Making the routine plays routinely. I also saw command in the huddle. Not that I didn't see some of those things with Lincoln, but you're asking about Julian in particular. Saw those things and started to feel like, ‘OK, we can win this guy.’"
The California kid came back bigger and stronger from last year, which is something he needed to do, but Day stressed both Sayin and Kienholz are not finished products.
They are different that way from Will Howard, who had already started more than 20 college games at Kansas State when he was chosen the starter this time a year ago.
Of course, Day has experience with inexperienced starters, having handed the keys to his offense over to C.J. Stroud when Stroud (also from California) was a redshirt freshman in 2021.
Stroud endured some growing pains (and had to overcome a sore arm in the first month of the season), but Day said he knew after he threw for 400 yards in a loss to Oregon in his second start that he had “a special one” even if fans were ready to run him out of town.
“And so that's part of being a coach and counseling these young men. It's like, hey, here's what we know. Here's what we see. You've got to trust the process on this thing. That's what it's all about. And then just keep growing.”
Day expressed confidence in the supporting cast for Sayin, which is a little more experienced than Stroud had (most notably at center), but top-ranked Texas presents a bigger challenge than Minnesota (albeit on the road).
He also channeled Al Davis for a minute, saying “Just win, baby,” when asked how he wants to see Sayin look against the Longhorns…
But what was the most interesting thing?
Maybe that Day identified a no-compromise trait he looks for in a quarterback: “Innate accuracy.”
Obviously I know putting the ball where you want to is important, but I hadn’t heard it described that way before.
Beyond that, the coach pointed out he has had very different skillsets to work with since arriving in Columbus as Urban Meyer’s quarterbacks coach and offensive coordinator in 2017.
“I think when you look at the guys we've had: J.T. (Barrett), Dwayne (Haskins), Joe (Burrow), CJ and Justin (Fields), Kyle (McCord), you had Will, and now we have Julian and Lincoln. They're all kind of different styles, but I think what they all share in common is that they were accurate throwing the ball.
“They were all smart, good leaders. The size, the quickness, the arm strength, the athleticism, I think they're all different, but we can tailor it based on what they can do.”
And just how will they tailor the attack? Well, that is one thing we’re going to have to wait until Aug. 30 to find out.
