The Buckeyes have a lot of talent and only so many starting roles.
It has now been over three months since the Michigan football team raised the national championship trophy back in January at NRG Stadium in Houston. It was a season to remember in college football as it was the last year of the four-team College Football Playoff, and it was also the last year of the Pac-12. There are going to be a lot of changes next season, and there have also been a lot of changes in this offseason already in terms of coaching moves and the transfer portal. Now, spring football is well underway, and a sense of hope has returned to college football fans. Ohio State football had their spring game last week, and Buckeyes fans can’t wait for the season.
Spring football is a special time of year as fans across the country get to see their new team in action for the first time. It’s hard to tell much about a team from spring practices, but it’s still fun to see the teams on the field competing against each other, and football fans are all eager for the new season to roll around. The first few months of the offseason are tough to get through and the football season seems so far away. Now, the weather is warming up, and you can sense that the new season is nearing. There is still a ways to go, but it’s coming.
This next season of college football is going to be an exciting one, and there are a ton of reasons to be looking forward to it. There are a lot of changes coming to the game like rule changes, coaching changes, conference changes and playoff changes. Perhaps the most intriguing part of the new season will be the new conferences. The Pac-12 is gone, and the Big Ten and SEC are going to be loaded. They both seem to be on the verge of forming super conferences.
The SEC will be welcoming Texas and Oklahoma to the conference next year, and the Big Ten is getting a good crop of Pac-12 teams as USC, UCLA, Oregon and Washington are all joining the conference. Both the Big Ten and the SEC are going to be absolutely loaded next year, and it seems like more schools will potentially join the conferences in the future.
Next season, the College Football Playoff will look different as well as it is expanding to 12 teams. There will also be first round games on college campuses. More teams will have a chance to make the CFP, and there will be more games. It’s going to be fun.
Ohio State football has a big year ahead of them
One team that has extremely high expectations heading into the 2024 season is Ohio State football. The Buckeyes are returning a ton of talent from last season, and a lot of those players were expected to go pro. Ohio State has also already hit the transfer portal hard and they have one of the best classes in the country. There’s no doubt about it, the talent is there for this team to win a national title. Then again, not having talent hasn’t been the issue for this team the past few years.
Ohio State football head coach Ryan Day has a ton of pressure on him this season. The Buckeyes have failed to beat rival Michigan and win the Big Ten each of the last three seasons, and if that happens again with this roster, Day’s job could be in jeopardy. The Wolverines have lost just about everything, coach and player-wise, from last year’s national title team, so this has to be the year for Ohio State, right?
The Buckeyes are absolutely loaded with talent, but only some will earn starting spots. Here are some good position battles to watch this offseason.
Quarterback
This is the biggest position battle to watch for Ohio State by a long shot. The QB position is the most important in football, and last season, it held the Buckeyes back. QB is normally a strength for Ohio State, but Kyle McCord didn’t quite matchup to past Buckeyes QBs, and he ended up hitting the transfer portal when the offseason hit.
Ohio State did some work in the transfer portal after McCord left, and they now have a few intriguing options for QB.
The most experienced QB that they have is Will Howard, who transferred in from Kansas State. Howard was expected to be the guy for certain when he transferred, but then the Buckeyes picked up someone else.
Former five-star Julian Sayin is now with the Buckeyes as well as he transferred over from Alabama. He doesn’t really have any college playing experience, but the word in Columbus is that he is very talented and can compete for the starting job.
Devin Brown got the start for Ohio State in the Cotton Bowl, and he will be back with the Buckeyes next season. It seems unlikely that he wins the starting job, but you never know.
Ohio State football will also have 2024 recruit Air Noland on the squad. He will be a true freshman, so it’s unlikely we wins the battle over these other three guys, but he is going to end up being a great player.
Running back
The RB position is also going to be an interesting one to watch for Ohio State football, and a transfer player is a big reason why. Quinshon Judkins was one of the best RBs in the country last year, and he transferred from Ole Miss to Ohio State this offseason. He is way too talented to keep off the field, but the Buckeyes have TreVeyon Henderson returning this season.
Both of these players were outstanding last season and they are both going to get a lot of touches this season. However, it’s going to be interesting to see how Ryan Day utilizes to this special duo. There’s a chance that they split carries, but it seems more likely that one of them will earn RB1 status and the other will still get a good amount of touches as RB2. We’ll have to wait and see, but it’s definitely an interesting position to watch.
