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Jeremiah Smith Makes Feelings Clear About Julian Sayin Amid Ohio State’s Ongoing Quarterback Battle

Originally posted on Athlon Sports | By Dean Koutouratsas | Last updated Jul 1, 2025 4:49 PM ET

The Ryan Day-led Ohio State Buckeyes have organized a quarterback battle to determine who will be next season’s day one starter.

Rising sophomore Julian Sayin and redshirt sophomore Lincoln Kienholz are battling for the starting job. As of Tuesday, Sayin is considered the frontrunner and Ohio State’s presumed starter because of his comfortability with the roster.

Last season as a freshman, Sayin made four brief appearances in Buckeyes wins, completing 5-of-12 passes for 84 yards and a touchdown. Sayin also impressed the coaching staff during the Buckeyes’ spring game, completing 17-of-24 passes for 175 yards and one touchdown, lifting the Scarlet team to a 50-31 triumph over the Gray team.

Furthermore, Sayin’s performances throughout the early summer have even impressed rising sophomore wide receiver Jeremiah Smith.

“That arm is different,” Smith said during an interview with The Athletic reporter Bruce Feldman. “He can make any and every throw. Just a smart quarterback.”

Smith took the college football world by storm last season as a freshman, recording 76 catches for 1,315 yards and 15 touchdowns en route to being named an All-American. He played a crucial role in helping Ohio State win the national championship last season, recording five catches for 88 yards and a touchdown against Notre Dame.

Ohio State lost quarterback Will Howard, halfback TreVeyon Henderson and wide receiver Emeka Egbuka to either graduation or the NFL. But Smith doesn’t seem worried about them leaving if he’s playing alongside Sayin.

“Like me, he’s a little quiet,” Smith concluded. “But he’s starting to come out of [his] shell. It’s going to be scary for opponents.”

This article first appeared on Athlon Sports and was syndicated with permission.

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