The Elite 11 Finals have finally announced its lineup for this year’s competition. Each year, the Elite 11 Finals select a handful of rising seniors in high school to compete, develop, and etch their name in the prestigious history of the event. This year, 20 seniors have earned the right to compete, highlighted by Ohio State’s four-star commit in the 2027 class, Brady Edmunds
Ohio State Quarterback of the Future Earns Elite 11 Finals Spot
Coming out of Huntington Beach, California, Edmunds is a commanding six-foot-five, 235-pound quarterback. He’s been committed to Ohio State since December 2024, sticking with his commitment even though the Buckeyes will have their third offensive coordinator in as many years this fall.
Last year, Edmunds led Huntington Beach to an 8-3 record, passing for 2,724 yards and 32 touchdowns. Impressively, he only threw two interceptions. Through three seasons as the starting quarterback, Edmunds has 8,637 yards and 92 touchdowns.
His accuracy and arm strength will be on display in this competition, his two best traits.
Past Ohio State Commits Who Competed
With Edmunds’ inclusion, it marks the 11th time a quarterback who signed (or will sign) with the Buckeyes out of high school has competed. In addition, two former Elite 11 quarterbacks transferred to Ohio State.
The 2001 competition featured both Troy Smith and Justin Zwick. Smith was the starter for the Buckeyes in 2005 and 2006, ultimately winning the Heisman Trophy and Walter Camp Award. He still stands as the player with the third-most first-place votes in Heisman Trophy history. Zwick led the Buckeyes in 2004, before losing the job to Smith. In 2004, Rob Schoenhoft was picked. He only appeared in nine games for Ohio State, spanning the 2006 and 2007 seasons. He later transferred to Delaware.
Then, there was a drought of Buckeye commits until Dwayne Haskins‘ inclusion in 2015. Haskins is a one-year legend at Ohio State. His career got jump-started after coming in to lead the Buckeyes to victory over Michigan in 2017. Then, he beat out Joe Burrow to set the Ohio State single-season marks in passing yards and touchdowns in 2018.
Tate Martell was picked in 2016 out of Bishop Gorman. As a high schooler, he never lost. Then, he came to Ohio State, never started in seven appearances, totaled 269 yards and one touchdown, and transferred out. He spent the 2019 and 2020 seasons at Miami (FL) before heading to UNLV for his final season.
In 2019, C.J. Stroud got the call after D.J. Uiagalelei had to drop out. Stroud ended up winning the Elite 11 MVP, marking the first future Buckeye to do so. At Ohio State, Stroud threw for 8,123 yards and 85 touchdowns in two seasons, resulting in top-four Heisman Trophy finishes each year.
Buckeye Quarterbacks Since COVID
In 2020, Kyle McCord was selected. McCord spent three seasons with the Buckeyes and was the starter in 2023. After a disappointing year, he transferred out to Syracuse and led the country in completions, attempts, and yards.
The next year, two future Buckeye quarterbacks took part. Devin Brown and Quinn Ewers competed against one another and had two very different paths through Columbus. Ewers stuck around for one year in 2021 after reclassifying, only appearing in one game. He transferred to Texas, where he was the Longhorns’ starting quarterback for three seasons. Brown was at OSU for three seasons and only started the 2023 Cotton Bowl. He transferred to Cal before the 2025 season and then transferred again to Weber State for 2026.
Air Noland took part in 2022. He never attempted a pass for the Buckeyes and transferred to South Carolina in 2025. After LaNorris Sellers returned, Noland transferred to Memphis for the 2026 season. Tavien St. Clair nearly won the Elite 11 MVP in 2024 after an incredibly strong performance. He hasn’t attempted a pass for the Buckeyes yet, but he could be the guy in 2027.
Those two incoming transfers were Justin Fields (2017) and Julian Sayin (2023). Fields spent a year at Georgia before coming to OSU, where he led the Buckeyes to two CFP appearances with a National Championship appearance. Sayin is currently QB1 for the Buckeyes and is looking to return to the CFP after falling in last year’s Cotton Bowl. Both Fields and Sayin took home the Elite 11 MVP.
The Field
In total, there are 20 quarterbacks set to compete in this year’s Elite 11 Finals. Alongside Edmunds, 15 quarterbacks selected have picked out their college, and Alabama is the only program with more than one. In total, the SEC leads the way with eight, the Big Ten boasts five, the ACC adds two, the Big 12 has one, and four are uncommitted.
- Israel Adams (Miami FL))
- Peter Bourque (Uncommitted)
- Kavian Bryant (Texas Tech)
- Keegan Croucher (Ole Miss)
- Davin Davidson (Florida)
- Elijah Haven (Alabama)
- Kharim Hughley (Clemson)
- Payton Houston (LSU)
- Ty Knutson (Texas)
- Kamden Lopati (Michigan)
- Will Mencl (Oregon)
- Jake Nawrot (Kentucky)
- Colton Nussmeier (Uncommitted)
- Jameson Purcell (Indiana)
- Ryan Rakowski (Uncommitted)
- Trent Seaborn (Alabama)
- Trae Taylor (Nebraska)
- Braylen Warren (Missouri)
- Dane Weber (Uncommitted)
