How Julian Sayin can thrive in year one at Ohio State

An Ohio State quarterback has led the Big Ten in passing yards every year, except for one, since 2018.

In 2023, Kyle McCord was the only Buckeyes quarterback who didn’t capture the conference’s passing crown. However, a year later at Syracuse, McCord led the country in passing.

Ryan Day knows how to evaluate talent at the quarterback position. Now insert Julian Sayin, who’s widely expected to be Day’s next quarterback project. While there are a lot of first-time starters around the country at major programs (Texas, Georgia, Alabama, and the list goes on), Sayin has the talent, support staff and weapons around him to help the Buckeyes contend for a second consecutive national title.

Here are three things Julian Sayin must do early on to ensure Ohio State remains in the mix to win the Big 10 and contend for the College Football Playoff. 

Don’t make mistakes twice

One thing Ohio State fans and the program must understand heading into the regular season is that Sayin will make mistakes. There’s no doubt Day and his staff understand that as they work to minimize the potential errors in fall camp.

Sayin is likely going to make bad decisions as he gets acclimated to big-time college football; it’s hard enough for veterans not to make mistakes, and he’s playing the toughest position on the field.

The key for Sayin will be how he responds to an interception, or a fumble, or taking a sack when the team couldn’t afford it. The key to success is making the mistake, and then going to the bench to learn from it with the support of Day, quarterbacks coach Billy Fessler and offensive coordinator Brian Hartline.

With Ohio State set to play Texas in its first game, Sayin is bound to make a mistake or two against what may be the best pass rush in the country.

But the key won’t be that he made the poor throw, it’ll be how he responds and how he learns from it moving forward. If Sayin makes his mistakes early, learns from them and minimizes them as the season progresses, Ohio State will be in a good spot come November and December.

Know the offense like the back of his hand

The phrase “system quarterback” gets thrown around a lot, and usually it has a negative connotation around it. But if you’re Sayin, a “game managing” quarterback will suffice, at least at the beginning of his career.

A system quarterback and game manager has a firm understanding of the offense and knows what everyone is doing on every play. Before the season kicks off, no matter how well he performs in fall camp, Sayin will still enter 2025 inexperienced.

What he can do, though, is understand the playbook better than anyone else. By doing so, it’ll help minimize confusion and therefore decrease the likelihood of simple mistakes to start the season.

With an elite knowledge of the playbook, this will allow Sayin to make quick and confident decisions, two things that will be imperative for the 20-year-old quarterback to find early success.

Knowing where receivers, tight ends and running backs will be should help Sayin get acclimated as quickly as possible.

Get the football to the playmakers

This one should go without saying.

No team in the country is surrounded by playmakers the way Sayin is in Columbus.

Jeremiah Smith, Carnell Tate and Brandon Inniss at receiver. Max Klare at tight end. And James Peoples and CJ Donaldson in the backfield.

It’s worth noting that Sayin will be getting the plays from a first-time play-caller in Brian Hartline.

Look at Hartline’s past, he’s a former NFL receiver who’s now one of the best recruiters of the position college football has ever seen. Receivers come to Ohio State for the chance to learn from Hartline and develop into an NFL draft selection.

With Hartline calling plays, it only makes sense that he’s going to want to get the ball out wide often, which will only help Sayin evolve as a quarterback.

Quick, confident decisions from Sayin will allow the ball to get out wide and into his playmakers’ hands. If he can give Jeremiah Smith, Tate, Inniss and Klare opportunities to make defenders miss, it’ll put significant pressure on opposing teams.