The Buckeyes are riding the high of a national championship, but with it comes an entirely new raft of challenges and a spotlight that never fades. 14 players jumped to the NFL, leaving behind a legacy of greatness but also creating a lot of vacancies to be filled. The wide receiver corps remains the envy of the land, all thanks to the magic of Brian Hartline. Jeremiah Smith, a freshman phenom of last year, is back as the nation’s best receiver—just think how good it is to be a defensive coordinator and have to deal with him facing you.
As the Buckeyes prepare to make another charge for glory, all attention focuses on the most crucial position on the field—quarterback. Hyped-up freshman Julian Sayin is at the vortex of it all. The talent pool is deep, the schedule is grueling, and the expectations are, well, national championship or nothing. Sayin isn’t filling a role; he’s filling a legacy. He’s got skill, he’s got firepower, and he’s got the scrutiny of a whole fanbase on his back.
On3’s J.D. PicKell refers to him as the player in CFB who has a lot riding on him in the June 12th episode of On3. “They’re going to ask more of Julian Sayin at Ohio State than they asked of Will Howard last year because you lose Quinshon Judkins, you lose TreVeyon Henderson, you lose Emeka Egbuka from that offense, and I think you’re going to throw it more than you did last year with Will Howard,” explains PicKell. Sayin isn’t a new starter. He’s coming aboard at a program where the norm isn’t just winning games, it’s winning championships. The fans, boosters, media, and even the men in the locker room expect nothing short of that.
You’re losing reliability, experience, and a whole lot of swagger when you lose these guys. That’s why there’s a ton of pressure on Julian Sayin right now. Will Howard, who started last year, had the luxury of a loaded backfield and a veteran receiver group. He might hand the ball off to Judkins or Henderson and let them chomp up hard yards, or he might toss to Egbuka and other reliable receivers when he needed a big gain. The running back corps is talented, certainly, but it’s inexperienced relative to last year’s crew. Despite having only a few college snaps to his credit, Sayin was a top-rated quarterback recruit.
PicKell says, “For Julian Sayin, being a redshirt freshman being thrown into the fold for a team that just won the national championship last year, expectations are not going down when you go to Ann Arbor, Michigan, this upcoming season; there will be nobody with more pressure on them than Julian Sayin.” At this point, Julian must demonstrate he can handle the spotlight, make quick reads, and perform under pressure—all while being compared to the greats who have preceded him.
“They’re going to ask Julian Sayin to run this entire offense, there’s no sheltering him when it comes to how they do things out there in Columbus, so I have him at a 9.6 out of 10,” PicKell says. When Ohio State travels to Ann Arbor or plays another top-ten opponent, there’s no safety net. If the offense struggles, it’s Sayin’s fault. If it works, he’s the hero. That’s why a 9.6 out of 10 on the pressure scale isn’t only fair—it’s reality.
Nick Saban’s stamp of approval for Julian Sayin
Nick Saban’s renowned talent eye is about as keen as they come in college football, so when he speaks of a young quarterback, you listen. Recently, everyone, including Saban, has their eyes on Julian Sayin, the redshirt freshman who is all but certain to be Ohio State’s 2025 starting QB. Sayin was once Saban’s top recruit at Alabama, a five-star player with the kind of arm and calm coaches love to dream of. But after Saban retired, Sayin was at a fork in the road, and Ohio State, with its title heritage and roster full of playmakers, was his new destination.
At the Memorial Tournament in Dublin, Ohio, last weekend, Saban and Buckeyes head coach Ryan Day played together for one round of golf. The two coaches, old buddies with a common past—Saban coached at Ohio State himself once—began discussing the condition of the program. Of course, the topic turned to Sayin, and Saban couldn’t sing him enough praises. “Julian is a great young man.” That’s the type of endorsement that means something, particularly from a coach who’s witnessed more than his share of elite quarterbacks.
He cited Sayin’s touch, accuracy, and judgment—skills that distinguish great quarterbacks from good ones. But here’s the rub: Ohio State hasn’t formally announced Sayin as the starter, but everybody—fans, prognosticators, and even Saban—knows it’s his to lose. The Buckeyes are riding a national title, and the pressure is ridiculous. With talent such as Jeremiah Smith and Caleb Downs on the roster, Sayin has the arsenal to get it done, but he’ll need to perform early and often.
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