Spring practice is under way in Columbus, Ohio and the 2024 Ohio State Buckeyes have begun the quest for a ninth national title and 40th Big Ten title. Expectations are sky-high for Ryan Day and company for good reason. As usual, the Ohio State spring practices will be under the microscope.
In addition to the returning veterans, the Buckeyes begin practice with six incoming transfers and 15 true freshman early enrollments. There will be battles up and down the depth chart because it’s a dog-eat-dog world and there are only so many spots open. This spring will set the tone for the Buckeyes and will separate those who will be with the team in the fall and those who will hop into the spring Transfer Portal window.
The Ohio State Spring Game will cap off the spring practices on April 13. There is plenty of football to be played between now and then and some players are going to make names for themselves.
Keys to the Ohio State Spring Practices
So Many Quarterbacks
Is there really any other place to start than the quarterback room? In terms of recruiting acumen, this is the most loaded quarterback room in what feels like ever. Remember, this is the current room:
- Will Howard, four-star transfer redshirt senior
- Devin Brown, four-star redshirt sophomore
- Lincoln Kienholz, four-star redshirt freshman
- Julian Sayin, five-star true freshman transfer (third-best quarterback recruit)
- Air Noland, four-star true freshman (seventh-best quarterback recruit)
Are stars everything? Of course not! By all accounts, Day out-recruited Jim Harbaugh by a mile and still lost three straight (cheating scandal or not). It’s about coaching. Kyle McCord was the first non-NFL-worthy quarterback Day had to start, so Ohio State took a step back in 2023.
While Howard is the odds-on favorite to be the starter for the Buckeyes in the fall, this is still a competition. Brown has repeatedly said he’s there to compete. Kienholz, despite being handed a near-impossible hand to play in the Cotton Bowl, has a high ceiling. Sayin has “generational talent” hype from recruiting experts. Noland has gotten off to a strong start and has been turning heads in early spring practices.
Day isn’t the type to name a starter more than a few weeks prior to the first game. He’s not going to change this year. Howard may have the advantage, keep an eye on all five of these quarterbacks.
Trench Warfare
It’s going to be strength versus glaring weakness during the Ohio State Spring practices. In terms of clichés, the OSU defensive line vs. offensive line is less iron sharpening iron and more diamond plowing through talc.
Despite not being among the elites in terms of counting stats, the Buckeyes’ defensive line was great in 2023. Now, three starters are back and that fourth player logged 343 snaps last year. Jack Sawyer, Tyleik Williams, Ty Hamilton, and Jaylahn Tuimoloau are headed to the NFL after next year. It’s not unrealistic to expect a big year from the unit. Sawyer, for example, was expected to leave after his ridiculous three-sack performance in the Cotton Bowl. Tuimoloau, despite his lack of production, was considered a first-round talent.
In the spring, the defense usually dominates the offense. Aside from the 25-yard touchdown allowed to Archie Griffin or the 65-yard touchdown allowed to Chip Trayanum, last year’s Spring Game was dominated by the defenses. It’s likely going to be more of the same due to the offensive line woes.
In terms of starters, Ohio State lost one offensive lineman and gained one in the Transfer Portal. For most years, continuity is great. However, this unit needs to be shaken up. McCord’s struggles were amplified due to the offensive line play and the Cotton Bowl was an abject disaster for the same reason.
Seth McLaughlin, the incoming transfer from Alabama, is expected to step up and start at center. The attention will be on the tackles, however. Josh Simmons will be under the microscope because there is a talented sophomore in Luke Montgomery behind him.
With as many weapons as the Buckeyes have, they cannot be let down by the offensive line again. Realistically, this unit is the only question mark on the roster.
A True Freshman Starting Receiver?
Fans often forget about the whole room when projecting depth charts for Ohio State, especially in the receiver room. Often, the incoming five-star freshman has ridiculously high expectations who will supplant a veteran. In most cases, fans are wrong because a Xavier Johnson type wows in camp or they forget how good Jayden Ballard could be. Demario McCall is a prime example of this, for better or for worse. In the case of Jeremiah Smith, it’s warranted.
Smith is an early enrollee and has already started to take over the Ohio State spring practices. He showed up to practice looking like a grown man and has already started making plays. The Buckeyes have an embarrassment of riches at the wide receiver position. And, despite being highly-touted receivers in their own right, Julian Fleming and Noah Rogers elected to hop in the Transfer Portal. The former is coming off of a year in which he played the second-most snaps among the receivers.
Smith is the “he’s him” type of player that Ohio State needs. There will be an acclimation period, naturally. However, look for Smith to generate some serious WR2 hype through the Spring Game. He’s the type of player that Day has to make sure to get the most out of for as long as he’s on campus.
First Black Stripe Removal
One of the best traditions within the Ohio State program is the Urban Meyer-era tradition of the black stripe. In 2012, Meyer started the tradition of putting a black stripe down the center of new players’ helmets and made it known that players had to earn their way onto the team.
When a player is found to have earned their way onto the team, their big brother-type upperclassman removes the black stripe in front of the team, thus initiating the player.
Each and every new player, whether they are an incoming freshman or a redshirt senior transfer, gets their black stripe. So, the race is on.
Who will be the first player to get his black stripe removed? Smith? Howard? Caleb Downs? The Buckeyes have a plethora of talent and players with competitive fire. Last year, Carnell Tate got his black stripe removed on March 25th, just three weeks into spring practices. Justin Fields lost his stripe just as fast back in 2019.
That record is in serious jeopardy this spring.
Spring Transfers
Finally, perhaps the most intriguing aspect of the Ohio State spring practices will be what players elect to transfer out and when/if Ohio State goes after any other transfers.
When a team has as much talent as Ohio State has, players get left behind. Sure, some players are afraid of competition — which this is not accusing any player of being — while other players are just fazed out. There are only 85 scholarships and the free 2020 COVID year is still out there. It’s an unfortunate aspect of the business of college football, but it’s an aspect every program has to deal with.
There are no rumors or rumblings at this point, as usual. However, Day will have difficult conversations with players as he did after the Cotton Bowl and Michigan games.
What most Ohio State fans are looking toward is the likelihood the Buckeyes go after Spring Transfer Portal entrants. The offensive line is a glaring witness, as covered above. If the unit goes through spring practices and struggles, there could be some movement.
The Buckeyes are picky when it comes to college football free agency. If a player enters the portal when it reopens and Day has his eyes on him, there will be dominoes falling.
