Ryan Day makes feelings known about the starting QB race after Will Howard’s departure following Ohio State’s natty win

Ohio State Buckeyes coach Ryan Day has made his feelings known about the quarterback race. The Buckeyes won the national title in 2024, with Will Howard as their starting quarterback. However, Howard is out of eligibility and Ohio State will have an open quarterback competition with Julian Sayin, Lincoln Kienholz and Tavion St. Clair.

With spring practices underway, Day says the starting quarterback will be the hardest-working guy in the room.

"The No. 1 job for the quarterback is being the hardest-working guy in the building. There shouldn't be any questions, like if someone says, 'Who's our hardest-working guy?'. It should be the quarterback," Day said. "If it is somebody else, that's a problem. They should be the first one in the building and the last one to leave." [21:49]

"And then they have to be tough. If it's fourth and two against Texas, like we got to find a way to get three yards," Day added. "That's the bottom line. And those guys understand that. They know it. Mick reinforces it in the weight room daily. But those are some of the things that we talk about a quarterback."

Julian Sayin is considered to be the front-runner to win the starting job. He is a redshirt freshman who was with the team last season and learned from Howard.

Meanwhile, Kienholz is a junior and this is likely his last shot to be a starter at Ohio State and is expected to be the backup. St. Clair, meanwhile, is a freshman and will likely be the third-stringer and could redshirt.

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Ryan Day explains what makes a good quarterback at Ohio State

Ryan Day is excited to watch the quarterback competition play out. He said that all three quarterbacks are different, but he knows whoever wins the starting quarterback must know what to do in the huddle.

"To me, it's the process of understanding how to get better and then continually working. And when you make a mistake, you learn from that mistake and you grow quickly. And a lot of it has to do with their preparation," Ryan Day said, via 247Sports.

"When a guy walks into the huddle or walks into that practice, you can tell if he's prepared or not. I mean, if he's up there and I say it all the time, the first level of understanding is what. If you don't know what to do, you have no chance of being quarterback at Ohio State."

Ohio State opens its 2025 college football season against the Texas Longhorns.