The Ohio State Buckeyes are heading towards the upcoming college football season with three quarterbacks competing for the starting gig in Julian Sayin, Lincoln Kienholz, and Tavien St. Clair. The Buckeyes also have star wideout Jeremiah Smith returning one year wiser following his first collegiate season.
Yet, due to the inexperience of most of the roster, the defending champions have fallen from No. 1 in the early rankings of On3’s Andy Staples.
In a surprising shake-up of spring standings, iconic Ohio State slipped to No. 5 in Staples’ post-spring Top 25 rankings. With roots dating back to 1890 and eight claimed national championships, Buckeyes fans expected a loftier spot.
Monday’s On3 release, however, placed the Texas Longhorns, Notre Dame Fighting Irish, Clemson Tigers and Penn State Nittany Lions all ranked ahead of the Buckeyes.
Ohio State Buckeyes head coach Ryan Day
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Ohio State has yet to reveal their starting signal-caller for this fall and this uncertainty has presumably contributed to the drop.
“The Buckeyes have a lot to replace on both lines of scrimmage, and they’ll be breaking in a new quarterback.” Staples wrote on Sunday. “But having the nation’s best returning offensive player (receiver Jeremiah Smith) and the nation’s best returning defensive player (safety Caleb Downs) is incredible foundation on which to build.”
