Ryan Day raves about 2024 quarterback signee Air Noland

Ohio State‘s 2024 signing class is headlined by three five-star high school recruits who have the potential to be big-time, impact players for the Buckeyes in the future. But there’s also a ton of excitement surrounding the lone quarterback of Ryan Day‘s latest signing class, Air Noland.

Day made an appearance on Big Ten Network on National Signing Day and was asked about the latest quarterback addition to the program, but first had to talk about the unique name behind the man.

“Yeah, Air Noland. It’s funny how it comes up, air and no land. It’s really a cool name for a lot of reasons,” Day admitted.

Noland is the fourth-highest ranked recruit in Ohio State’s signing class behind the Buckeye’s three five-star prospects, ranked the No. 5 quarterback in the nation and the No. 41 overall player in the 2024 recruiting class according to On3’s Industry Ranking, a weighted average that utilizes all four major recruiting media companies.

“But Air is a special young man, it has nothing to do with his name. He’s just got a great maturity about him, he’s a guy who really is a great leader. He’s a guy who you can tell right off the bat, he’s got a great maturity about him, doesn’t take long for you to meet him to realize how special he is,” Day said.

Nolan played three years of varsity football at Langston Hughes in Fairburn, Georgia, where he threw for an impressive 8,024 yards and 104 touchdowns. He helped lead an offense that broke Georgia’s state record for most points in a single season with 792 on their way to a 6A state championship, as Day continued to rave about Nolan’s skills and intangibles.

“He’s got great athleticism, he’s smart, and he’s gonna be a very very good leader. He can do a lot of things, I think he’s a baller, and I’m excited to get to work with him,” Day said.

Nolan is a 6-foot-2, 195-pound quarterback who has drawn comparisons to Teddy Bridgewater. But he does happen to be a southpaw, which did not impact his recruitment at all according to Day.

“No, it’s just different,” Day said. “It looks different for whatever reason. Take a snap a little bit different, maybe roll out a little bit more to his left than the right, the ball spins a little bit different, but other than that no.”

The lefty could be the future of the quarterback position in Columbus, and could surely join some rarified air with a successful career with the Buckeyes.