Buckeyes near top in pair of position group rankings from On3
COLUMBUS — Ohio State has one of the most loaded rosters in all of college football — and national experts can see it clearly.
On3’s Jesse Simonton is rolling out his annual rankings of position groups around the country, and he kicked things off with quarterback and running back rankings. To no surprise, Ohio State is clearly ranked inside the top 10 of each of his first two positional rankings.
Let’s break down why.
Buckeyes check in near top of QB ranking
Ohio State has a four-year starter at Kansas State and Big 12 champion in Will Howard, a former five-star recruit in Devin Brown, a pair of freshmen signal-callers who are jockeying for depth chart positioning and second-year quarterback Lincoln Kienholz. All five decided to stick around at Ohio State despite the transfer portal window being open during the last couple of weeks.
The five-man room leaves Ohio State with one of the best quarterback rooms in the country. Jesse Simonton has the Buckeyes at second, trailing only Texas — which features Quinn Ewers and Arch Manning.
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Here’s what Simonton said about the Buckeyes quarterback room:
Somehow, the Buckeyes exited the second portal window with all five scholarship quarterbacks on the roster. Will Howard and Devin Brown are competing for the starting job, while 5-star freshman transfer Julian Sayin is nipping at their heels for playing time, too.
Lincoln Kienholz remains a developmental option, and 5-star freshman Air Noland could vie for the QB1 role in 2025 if he’s able to push Sayin.
Ryan Day must decide who his guy is going to be in Ohio State’s all-in 2024 season, but flush with options, it’s a problem most every other coach in the country wishes they had.
Jesse Simonton, On3
With all five talented quarterbacks sticking around for the 2024 season, the Buckeyes are in a great position at the most important spot on the field.
Ohio State at top of RB rankings
Simonton really, really likes what he is seeing from the Ohio State tailback room, the room that features two of the best running backs in all of college football. TreVeyon Henderson and Quinshon Judkins make a perfect one-two punch for the Buckeyes; Henderson has the home-run burst, while Judkins is a powerful back capable of running through tackles. Oh, and the youngsters coming through the pipeline are impressing early in their careers.
Here’s what Simonton said about the Buckeyes running back room:
The Buckeyes are all-in on the 2024 season, and no where is that more evident than the team’s decision to pair TreVeyon Henderson with former Ole Miss star Quinshon Judkins. Ohio State has two legitimate 1,000-yard rushers — and if healthy — the duo projects as the best 1-2 punch in the country this fall.
Ohio State’s depth has been sapped a bit with a trio of portal departures (Chip Trayanum, Dallan Hayden and Evan Pryor), but they signed a pair of freshmen (James Peoples, Sam Williams-Dixon) to vie for backup snaps.
Jesse Simonton, On3
With the top two backs on the roster as two of the best in the country, Ohio State has the top spot on the national tailback rankings.
Note: Ohio State did not make the top 10 of Simonton’s tight end rankings.
