COLUMBUS, Ohio — Ohio State opened spring practice Monday morning, less than two months after its national championship.
The Buckeyes already hung a championship banner in the indoor facility, along with some pictures from the playoff run, but now they have to look ahead to a season aimed at defending their title.
As expected, the first practice was a light one. Nobody was in pads, there wasn’t any tackling and the coaching staff was primarily installing what they wanted to do all spring.
Still, a few notable storylines and takeaways emerged from the session.
QBs getting started
It’s too early to look deep into the quarterback depth chart. Ohio State only has three in the room right now, freshman Tavien St. Clair and returnees Julian Sayin and Lincoln Kienholz.
As Ryan Day said last week, the Buckeyes were rotating them in drills, giving them chances with the first, second and third team units.
When team periods began, though, Sayin was the one with the starters in most drills, although Kienholz rotated in at times as well.
Both looked good and accurate, but there wasn’t much of a pass rush or any hitting in the hour the media got to watch. Day said they would get into more decision-making in the next few practices.
Monday wasn’t about trying to see which quarterback would come out and win the starting job. It was about getting them up to speed. The quarterback battle will be a marathon, not a sprint, as Day and new quarterbacks coach Billy Fessler work through everything St. Clair, Kienholz and Sayin do on and off the field.
New tackles in O-line rotation
Ohio State is replacing a lot up front after losing starting tackles Josh Fryar and Josh Simmons, as well as center Seth McLaughlin from a much improved offensive line.
The Buckeyes filled those holes by adding two offensive tackles in the transfer portal: Phillip Daniels and Ethan Onianwa. They weren’t the starting tackles on the first day, though. Austin Siereveld, who had been splitting time at guard last season with Tegra Tshabola, was the starting left tackle, while sophomore Ian Moore took the start at right tackle. Inside was as expected, as Tshabola was the right guard with Carson Hinzman at center and Luke Montgomery at left guard.
Ohio State doesn’t usually slot transfers into the starting lineup to start the spring — even tight end Max Klare was taking second-team reps — so it wasn’t surprising to see Daniels and Onianwa with the second team. Daniels checked into the spring at 6-foot-5 and 315 pounds, while Onianwa was at 6-foot-6 and 357 pounds, but will likely cut some of that weight as he gets ready to take more starting left tackle snaps.
The main questions will be how fast they can jump into the starting lineup and how much Ohio State moves players around, including Siereveld. Day said he wants to get as much versatility up front as possible so that if injuries happen, like they did last year, players can move into a role seamlessly.
“Now that we are going to a roster of 105 we have to have versatility and guys have to be able to play multiple positions,” Day said. “We’ve seen Austin play guard and we want him to play some tackle.”
Currently, it looks like Ohio State has a chance to be eight deep along the offensive line, which is a luxury new coach Tyler Bowen will enjoy.
Latest on defensive line rotation
Linebacker CJ Hicks made his debut at defensive line and was already on the second-team unit and took some first-team reps. The Dayton, Ohio, native is entering his fourth year at Ohio State and early observations indicate he’ll compete for reps right away at defensive end.
“He has a great first step, he’s powerful for somebody who isn’t as big or strong as some of the defensive ends we’ve had and he can really get skinny around the edge,” Day said. “He has a knack for rushing the passer.”
Still, the first-team unit included defensive ends Kenyatta Jackson and Caden Curry, with Kayden McDonald and Eddrick Houston at defensive tackle.
Things will continue to evolve along the defensive line, especially as they work through how multiple they want to be under new defensive coordinator Matt Patricia.
Freshmen thoughts
This freshman class has a chance to be very good. It finished as the No. 4 class in the country and they have impressed Day already this spring.
“There’s not a guy in that class that can’t physically make an impact as a freshman,” Day said.
St. Clair is the quarterback of the future that everybody is looking at, but wide receiver Quincy Porter and corner Devin Sanchez stood out physically right away Monday.
Porter, a five-star receiver, is a big body at 6-foot-4 and looks the part of an Ohio State receiver already. Reporters did not get a chance to watch team drills much, but from the portion observed, it’s clear Porter will be one to watch in a loaded receiver room. It seems unlikely he’ll make the jump that Jeremiah Smith did last season, but Porter looks the part. If he can get down the playbook and mentality that coordinator Brian Hartline wants, then he has the potential to be very good.
Sanchez fits the build of a Tim Walton corner right away. The five-star and top corner in the 2025 class looks taller than the 6-foot-2 size he’s listed at on the roster. He’s the one many are watching to see if he’ll jump into the starting lineup and was already working with the second team. At one point in practice, he was outside with Aaron Scott on the other side, with Bryce West in the slot.
It’ll be interesting to see how much Ohio State moves its secondary around to fit its talent, because Sanchez looks like a guy physically ready to contribute.
(Photo: Adam Cairns / Columbus Dispatch / USA Today via Imagn Images)
