Sayin is poised to be the Buckeyes starting quarterback when the season starts against Texas.
From now until preseason camp starts in August, Land-Grant Holy Land will be writing articles around a different theme every week. This week is all about our Unreasonable Expectations. You can catch up on all of the Theme Week content here and all of our Unreasonable Expectations here.
Ever since the 2014 season, when the Buckeyes won the first national championship in the College Football Playoff era, there’s one thing they have been really good at: transitioning at quarterback.
From J.T. Barrett to Dwayne Haskins to Justin Fields to C.J. Stroud to Kyle McCord to Will Howard, the Buckeyes have featured one of the most prolific quarterbacks in the country over the last decade-plus.
Now, it’s Julian Sayin’s turn. Given his pedigree and the talent the Buckeyes return around him, including All-American Jeremiah Smith, Sayin is poised to have a statically impressive season despite his minimal experience coming into 2025. This is an unreasonable expectation, but Sayin could be a finalist for the Heisman Trophy if he reaches his ceiling this season.
Sayin is in a great position quarterbacking this Ohio State offense. Even after losing running backs TreVeyon Henderson and Quinshon Judkins as well as wide receiver Emeka Egbuka, the Buckeyes offense is loaded with talent at the skill positions.
Having Smith back is paramount to Sayin’s and the team’s success. The previous six Buckeyes quarterbacks all immediately established a stellar connection with an elite wide receiver. Sayin now has the opportunity to do that with Smith, and he can also take advantage of an emerging Carnell Tate.
In addition, Max Klare is going to be a big part of this Buckeyes offense. A tight end can be a quarterback’s security blanket, the same way Cade Stover was for C.J. Stroud and Jeremy Ruckert was for Justin Fields. Klare is coming off a great season at Purdue, and he should fit in well in the Buckeyes offense.
Plus, the Buckeyes are still going to run the ball this season. That will help Sayin settle into his first season as the Buckeyes full-time starting quarterback.
Stroud, Fields and Haskins were all Heisman Trophy finalists in their first seasons as the Buckeyes quarterback. They all had incredible talent surrounding each of them on offense, which resulted in all three of them producing dominant seasons.
The last time a Buckeyes quarterback won the Heisman Trophy was Troy Smith in 2006. The talent surrounding him included Chris “Beanie” Wells, Ted Ginn Jr. and Anthony Gonzalez.
Compare that talent to the talent that Sayin will have surrounding him in 2025. I’ll take the 2025 skill player group over 2006 because they’re deeper and more versatile. Part of that is due to Klare bringing a formidable presence at tight end. In addiiton, the Buckeyes will run the ball. There is a long history of great running backs in Columbus, and James Peoples and C.J. Donaldson should fill the void left by Henderson and Judkins’s departures.
Sayin has the talent to help him put up big numbers. That could be enough to earn him a trip to New York in mid-December, and while it may be an unreasonable expectation, it is more than possible.