It seems the Ohio State Buckeyes rarely miss at the quarterback position. Entering his fifth-year senior season as a transfer from the Kansas State Wildcats, Will Howard is already getting hyped up by his new teammates Denzel Burke, Jeremiah Smith and Brandon Inniss.
Is the Buckeyes' locker room speaking a winner of Ohio State football's QB battle into existence? That must be the case because they're presenting a unified front.
“Will Howard’s been gaming. He’s a great leader, a great person, a vet,” Burke said, via Chase Brown of Eleven Warriors.
Smith said, “He definitely made a big jump from the spring. I like his confidence.”
With the season starting on August 31 in a home game against Akron, head coach Ryan Day should name Howard the starter.
Will Howard gives Ohio State football their best chance at a national championship run
With 28 starts during his tenure at Kansas State, Howard has the right mix of experience and leadership that the Buckeyes' offense needs. Ohio State already returns a ton of talent to their football team. It all begins with RBs Quinshon Judkins and TreVeyon Henderson. Emeka Egbuka continues the trend of next-level talent Ohio State features at wide receiver.
Since Michigan seems to be in disarray with more recruiting violations and a coaching staff upheaval, the road to glory can't be much clearer for Howard and the Buckeyes. Winning the Big Ten is the first step. Fortunately, the traditional conference powers are not likely to get in the way this year. The Oregon Ducks, ranked third, the first-year Big Ten upstarts, pose the most imposing challenger to the Wolverines.
Ohio State ranks second in the preseason polls behind Georgia, and to keep it that way, what the Buckeyes need from Howard is for him to protect the football and execute. Not every team can have a Joe Burrow-type throwing 60 touchdowns. Howard is not that, and for the greater success of Ohio State football, they don't need him to be that.
Between Judkins and Henderson, Howard will be a handoff specialist. He'll be tasked with whipping his head around and showing off his arm on play-action passes. Having the admiration of his teammates, like Brandon Inniss, should mean a lot:
“All the quarterbacks have been good (at that), but he’s been on a different level,” Inniss said, via Chase Brown.
Between Burke, Smith and Inniss providing their stamp of approval, Ohio State football should confidently step forward into the 2024 season and name Howard the Buckeyes' starting quarterback.
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