Tag: Jack Miller

Handicapping the Ohio State quarterback race for 2021

Ohio State will be choosing a quarterback among three talented guys to replace Justin Fields this fall. Here’s how all three stack up.

Ohio State lost one of its all-time best quarterbacks when Justin Fields announced his intentions to enter the 2021 NFL draft after the national championship game. It came as no surprise, but now it’s time to turn the page and find out who will replace one of the most dynamic players in all of college football.

For the Buckeyes, it looks like a three-ring QB competition, and what the group lacks in experience, it hopefully makes up for in talent. OSU has two highly-rated four-star guys coming back in C.J. Stroud and Jack Miller, and it also has five-star gunslinger Kyle McCord who will insert into the derby to push for that Cadillac position of the offense.

Head coach Ryan Day has said all along it will be an open competition this fall, so we’re taking him at his word. And with that, we’re handicapping the pros and cons of what we see from each as we try to figure out who might be the next face of the Ohio State offense. We start with a profile of each and then look in the crystal ball to determine who we believe starts in 2021.

NEXT … The dual-threat ability of C.J. Stroud

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ESPN ranks the best college football quarterback situations for next three years. Where is Ohio State?

ESPN’s Adam Rittenberg ranked the best quarterback situations in college football for the next three years. Where does he have Ohio State?

It’s the Cadillac position at almost every school now. If you don’t have a supremely talented quarterback in today’s college game, it’s hard to win at the highest of levels. Just ask Michigan (too soon?).

As the game has evolved over the last fifteen years or so, the Buckeye program has too, and has now become a destination for some of the top-rated quarterback prospects in the nation. Just look at the signal-callers on the banks of the Olentangy, almost in progression. Troy Smith, Terrelle Pryor, Braxton Miller, J.T. Barrett, Dwayne Haskins, and Justin Fields.

Not bad eh?

But it’s not just the past. Ohio State is set up pretty good for the future as well under head coach Ryan Day. By the time next fall rolls around, Ohio State will have three high four or five-star quarterback caliber quarterbacks competing against each other to take over for the departed Justin Fields. That doesn’t even account for the nation’s top 2022 prospect, QB Quinn Ewers coming in the year after.

So yeah, the program is in pretty good shape over the next few years.

Adam Rittenberg of ESPN took a look (subscription required) at college football programs and how they are set up for the next three years under center and ranked them all. With what is in the cupboard or on the way, before even looking at the rankings, you have to feel pretty good about where Ohio State stands.

Let’s look at how Rittenberg thinks OSU stacks up with the rest of the country.

NEXT… Ohio State’s ranking at QB for the next three years according to ESPN

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Ohio State football’s most intriguing offseason question is this according to ESPN

ESPN identified the most intriguing offseason question for each of its 2021 preseason top 25 teams. Here’s what it said about Ohio State.

Ohio State came up just shy of its ultimate goal of winning a national championship. The Buckeyes put a muzzle on Dabo Swinney and Clemson, but then got taken behind the woodshed by Alabama down in Miami.

So now, things progress to the offseason with several question marks in Columbus and other places. The world of college football always has significant turnover and competition for new spots because of the nature of the yearly cycle of players leaving and entering programs.

But at a place like Ohio State, it’s often a matter of reloading as opposed to rebuilding. There’s no doubt that’ll be the expectation in 2021 with goals of winning every game, taking home a fifth straight Big Ten title, and making a run for the national championship once again.

But what’s the most intriguing offseason question the Buckeyes face? ESPN tried to answer that question for all of the top 25 teams it ranked in the way-too-early preseason, and of course, OSU was a part of all of that. So what did ESPN’s Tom VanHaaren say was the most intriguing question?

NEXT … Ohio State’s most intriguing offseason question per ESPN

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Freshman QB Jack Miller loses his black stripe

Ohio State freshman quarterback Jack Miller was the latest Buckeye newcomer to shed his black stripe Wednesday.

As we get closer to the season, more and more Ohio State football newcomers continue the right of passage into the Buckeye brotherhood as they shed their black stripes.

On Tuesday, freshman quarterback Jack Miller joined the ever-growing list of those that have received the honor.

A high four-star prospect out of Scottsdale, Arizona, Miller is in the thick of competition with C.J. Stroud and last year’s back up, Gunnar Hoak, for the No. 2 spot behind Fields. Miller committed to Ohio State over programs like Alabama, Michigan, Michigan State, and more, and now he’s “officially” a Buckeye for life.

“I want to thank my teammates, my unit, coach (Corey) Dennis. Go Bucks!” said Miller.

You can watch the brief recognition in the tweet below shared by the Ohio State Football Twitter account.

 

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What quarterbacks will battle it out after Justin Fields moves on from the program?

We’ve either seen last days of Justin Fields, or the upcoming season will be it. What quarterback will take the reigns for Ohio State?

With Justin Fields still deciding on whether he will play if there is a spring season for the Buckeyes, and Gunnar Hoak a graduate transfer, there needs to be some clarity for the quarterback depth beyond this year. There are some interesting names, headlined by C.J. Stroud. While Stroud may have the inside track after Fields and Hoak, there will be a competition.

Of course, when you look at the Buckeyes depth chart and roster the first name that jumps out behind Fields and Hoak is Stroud. Stroud was the second-ranked pro-style quarterback coming out of high school. He was well known for his ability to protect the ball and his high completion percentage, and most think he is the future of the quarterback position after Fields.

The next name that stands out is Jack Miller. Miller was the fourteenth ranked pro-style quarterback coming out of high school. He holds most passing records for the state of Arizona, and his high school QBR was over 110. Miller will give Stroud a run for his money, and whoever loses out on the starting gig could easily look for a starting job elsewhere if he wanted.

Oh, the transfer portal — the gift that keeps on giving.

Also, don’t sleep on incoming freshman Kyle McCord. He has risen up the prep rankings and now has a five-star ranking according to several recruiting services. He shined at the Elite 11 Camp earlier this year and has shown poise, and an ability to fit balls into tight windows.

And more or less, your next quarterback in Columbus will come from that group of names.

While Stroud, Miller, and McCord will have the limelight, the rest of the crew including Jagger LaRoe, Danny Vanatsky, and J.P. Andrade will duke it out in the depth chart should casualty or transfers strike.

A spring season would allow some of them to see game action and let Ryan Day start the process for 2021. It may not be ideal, but it could help the Buckeyes push for the playoffs next season.

 

Contact/Follow us @BuckeyesWire on Twitter, and like our page on Facebook to follow ongoing coverage of Ohio State news, notes and opinion.

We have a forum and message board now. Get in on the conversation about Ohio State athletics by joining the Buckeyes Wire Forum.

Ohio State football welcomes early enrollees for 2020 class via Twitter

A few early enrollees for the 2020 Ohio State football recruiting class have moved to campus. Ohio State welcomed them on Twitter.

Ohio State’s 2019 football season came to a premature end (queue the flashbacks), but it’s already time to turn the page to the 2020 season. And in the world of big-time college football that’s exactly what happened over the weekend.

A few of the highly rated Buckeyes’ 2020 recruiting class is enrolling early, and it was time to move in and “come home.” Here’s a look at what some of the future OSU players looked like on Twitter as they backed the U-Haul up to the banks of the Olentangy to start the next chapter in their football careers.

Hopefully we can look back on some of these and reminisce about a class that made Ohio State football memorable.

Here is defensive back Lejond Cavazos checking in.

And here’s his tweet on his own.

Quarterback Jack Miller, defensive back Ryan Watts and Julian Fleming also hit campus together.

There will surely be more move in over the next few days, but for now, some of the best of the best are starting to hit the ground running at THE Ohio State University.