What We Think We Know: Julian Sayin will play much better against Texas this time around
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From now until preseason camp starts in August, Land-Grant Holy Land will be writing articles around a different theme every week. This week is all about the things we think, but aren’t 100% confident on. You can catch up on all of the Theme Week content here and all our “What We Think We Know” articles here.
Last year, Ohio State opened the season with a game Ryan Day referred to as “a monster.” Opening against No. 1 Texas, the Buckeyes were also opening a new era at quarterback with Julian Sayin set to make his first career start.
Sayin threw for 120 yards and a touchdown in a 14-7 win against the No. 1 Longhorns, completing 12-of-20 pass attempts. His longest completion was a 40-yard touchdown to Carnell Tate, coming in the fourth quarter and giving Ohio State a 14-0 lead.
Playing against a tenacious Texas defense that allowed just over 200 yards, Sayin didn’t wow anyone, but he didn’t lose the game for Ohio State. The Buckeyes put him in favorable situations, not having him do too much. Sayin didn’t take too many deep shots, settling for easy completions that kept drives moving and weren’t thrown into harm’s way.
This year, though, Sayin is potentially going to unleash against Texas.
By now, we know what Sayin can do as the Buckeyes’ quarterback. The training wheels have been off for a long time. He’s a quarterback who’s not afraid to take deep shots and throw into tight windows.
Playing on the road at Texas this season, that stuff will matter. Not to mention, this will be the second time Sayin faces off against Arch Manning at quarterback.
Sayin and Jeremiah Smith have a fantastic connection despite having played only 14 games together. Smith’s route tree with Sayin is extensive, ranging from go-routes to crossing routes to slants to everything in between. There’s a trust between the two, which is great given Smith’s stature in the overall picture of college football.
Smith is a big-time wide receiver. There’s that perception and worry that wide receivers of Smith’s caliber can be prima donnas and not have patience for the development of young quarterbacks. That has not been the case at all with Jeremiah Smith. If anything, he’s helped Sayin get to where he is today at quarterback.
Manning, whether he was overhyped or not, has become a really good quarterback. If he continues to progress the way he has, Manning is going to be one of, if not the top prospect in the 2027 NFL Draft.
Sayin and Manning will meet for the second time this September. It could be a prolific game from both quarterbacks and offenses.
Saturday night, on ABC, Chris Fowler and Kirk Herbstreit are on the call, College Gameday will be in Austin that morning, and this game may not be the first time we see these two teams this season. These two programs could very easily play each other in the College Football Playoff.
For Sayin, he’s absolutely going to play much better against Texas this season.
First off, he’s going to throw more than 20 times. Ohio State may have to throw a lot anyway, since their rushing attack will likely still be a work in progress. Sayin has proven he can carry the Buckeyes’ offense for an entire game, and he may have to do that against the Longhorns.
Given what we saw in his first season as the Ohio State’s starting quarterback, I am confident Sayin will go out against Texas and put up one of his best games of the season. Hopefully, it will be enough for the Buckeyes to win their third straight game over the Longhorns in less than two years.
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