Ryan Day hopes to have Ohio State QB battle settled in 'a week, 10 days' into camp

Ryan Day hoped the Ohio State quarterback battle wouldn’t drag out this time compared to last season.

The Buckeyes head coach said he would like to have a starter after a week to 10 days of camp to prepare for the regular season. Pretty much, it was unsettled, mostly, last year.

This time, Day doesn’t want any questions and will work hard to get it done and make the determination.

I has to happen, you can’t force it,” Day said. “But ideally, you know, we’d like to have someone as a starter and then go into the season and get going with that. So, you know, how that shakes out, I’m hoping that happens in the first week to 10 days, but you know it it’s the same thing that happened last year. I’d like for it to happen, it didn’t even after the first couple of games. 

“I didn’t think it felt like it happened and then it obviously got to the point you know, after we won the big game that it was appropriate. We’ll see how it shakes out and I think all the guys are doing a good job. I think we’re gonna need them all, like I said, But you know, you’d like to have that done in the first couple weeks.”

Kansas State transfer Will Howard, sophomore Devin Brown, freshmen Julian Sayin and Air Noland, as well as Lincoln Kienholz, seemingly all have a shot.

Now, Howard is the presumed front-runner after his career with the Wildcats and coming in as a grad transfer. Brown’s been with the program and there’s a lot of hype around Sayin, despite his youth.

Day just wants the best option and it seems like Howard understands the magnitude of this season for Ohio State.

“For us, it’s natty or bust,” Howard said. “I mean, there’s no doubt in my mind. We have all the talent. We have all the intangibles. Now, we’ve just got to go do it. I’m tired of hearing how talented we are and how good our team is. 

“It’s about the work ethic and how we go to work every single day, and I think we’re doing the things that we need to to put ourselves in that position to be there at the end of the year and now we’ve just got to go do it.”

Day’s had quarterbacks like Justin Fields and CJ Stroud that were can’t-miss guys. After last year’s starter Kyle McCord transferred to Syracuse, it opened the floodgates for a competition this summer.