The confetti has barely settled in Columbus after Ohio State’s National Championship win, but there’s already a burning question for 2025 — Who will be the next QB1? With Will Howard heading to the NFL, the battle for the starter spot is pronounced. Three young QBs — Julian Sayin, Tavien St. Clair, and Lincoln Kienholz — are poised to compete for the top spot. Speculations have it that despite being the QB2 this past season, Sayin is going to have a tough time getting ahead of his competitors. Have the roles already been decided? Let’s hear what Ryan Day has to say. 

Buckeyes’ HC Ryan Day made an appearance on WBNS 10TV on February 13 to drop an update on their QB room. Unlike the rumor mill churning out Julian Sayin’s name off the list, there’s no involved favor. It’s going to be a wide-open scenario where the best wins the starting nod. “It’ll be a very fierce competition,” the Buckeyes HC declared. “You know, Lincoln and Julian and then Tavien. We’re excited to see those guys compete. We’ll chart everything and everything will be a competition.”

Nothing is guaranteed. Every snap this spring will carry weight. Both Julian Sayin and Tavien St. Clair are 5-star, top-3 recruits in their respective classes (2024 and 2025). Lincoln Kienholz is also a 2023 class 4-star recruit. “I feel like there’ll be a lot of growth coming out of the spring and an opportunity for these guys to take it and run,” Day observed. “It’s one thing when you’re a backup, it’s another thing when you’re actually running it. And I’ve shared with those guys, especially with Lincoln and Julian who were there last year.” 

The starter advice that Day gave these two former backups — “You have to walk different, you gotta move different, you have to practice different.” These two QBs were able to learn behind Howard and OC Chip Kelly, who left after the season for the NFL. And then there’s the wild card — Tavien St. Clair. “Tavien is just coming in but Tavien spent two weeks here too, and that was great for our freshmen to see how these guys operate in the last two weeks of the season,” Day noted. Does this mean that OSU is about to shut down the Tavien St. Clair warning by an insider?

The Tavien St. Clair warning

The general notion in Ohio State is that Julian Sayin will get the starting nod for the 2025 season. This means he would step over Lincoln Kienholz, who’s been around since 2023, but Bill Kurelic’s observation on Bucknuts 247Sports takes a different direction — “Lincoln Kienholz wouldn’t have stayed around if he didn’t think he could win this battle.” It’s worth wondering why he would stick around for another season if there’s no starting role for him on the horizon. 

And then, there’s Tavien St. Clair whom he sees a serious threat to Sayin’s presumed lead. “That job just won’t be handed to Sayin,” Kurelic boldly asserted. “I tend to think Sayin will win it, but I think Kienholz and, for that matter, Tavien St. Clair are going to compete like crazy this spring.” It could be a possibility but despite these speculations, the plan is clear as Ryan Day had mentioned.

Ohio State has options. They could find their guy early and roll with him or they could let things shake up in the fall camp. Before any of that happens, these three QBs will have to prove themselves this spring to see who’s worthy to be on the top.