On Saturday Afternoon, the Ohio State Buckeyes will play their biggest game of the season aside from their matchup with Michigan as they'll look to prove they're the Nation's top team and that it's not Texas. Ohio State knocked off Texas on the way to the National Championship to prove that last season but, this season the teams are radically different.
The biggest difference is at quarterback as Will Howard and Quinn Ewers are off to he NFL and Arch Manning and Julian Sayin jump into the starting roles. Manning will draw the most attention in this matchup but, Julian Sayin is a fascinating story as well.
Coming out of High School, Julian Sayin was a unanimous 5-star recruit and a top 3 quarterback in the class. Sayin signed with Alabama but, when Nick Saban retired he quickly transferred to Ohio State. After a year backing up Will Howard, Sayin had to compete with Lincoln Kienholz to win the job. The expectations in Columbus are high for Julian Sayin but, he'll quickly step into the fire against the Longhorns defense.
Urban Meyer appeared on the Joel Klatt Show where his expectation of Julian Sayin couldn't be more blunt.
"I hate to say it like this, because you never want your quarterback to play like this … He can’t screw it up, I’m sure, you know, they got excellent coaches, and Ryan’s an expert quarterback coach, you give them so many easy throws. You don’t need to win this game, Julian, you do not have to do that. You have enough cats around you, so you’re going to see a bunch of screens, I would imagine, to Jeremiah and that crew. "Urban Meyer
In a way, Julian Sayin is set up incredibly as he'll be throwing passes to two of the best wide receivers in the Country in Jeremiah Smith and Carnell Tate with an elite tight end in Max Klare. The question is the offensive line that loses some elite talent to the NFL and will be blocking for a first time starter.
It'll be interesting to see if Julian Sayin is the starter no matter what or if Ryan Day will have a quick leash with him as the quarterback battle was tightly contested. If Julian Sayin can impress against Texas, it'll lock him in as the starter as this is the best defense Ohio State may face. On the other hand, even if Sayin struggles it'll be impossible to judge him until he plays further into the year.
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