Notre Dame And Ohio State Still Have Quarterback Competitions

COLUMBUS, OHIO – DECEMBER 21: Quarterback Julian Sayin #10 of the Ohio State Buckeyes seen in action during the game against the Tennessee Volunteers at Ohio Stadium on December 21, 2024 in Columbus, Ohio. (Photo by Jason Mowry/Getty Images)

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After facing each other in the College Football Playoff national title game in January, Ohio State and Notre Dame enter this season among the favorites to play again for the championship. Still, they both have difficult tests in Week 1. And they both have not yet named a starting quarterback, a position that could make or break whether they live up to expectations.

The Buckeyes, the reigning national champions, are No. 3 in the Associated Press preseason poll and host No. 1 Texas on Aug. 30 in the season opener. A day later, No. 6 Notre Dame visits No. 10 Miami in another highly anticipated matchup.

Ohio State coach Ryan Day has narrowed the starting quarterback competition to sophomore Julian Sayin and junior Lincoln Kienholz, neither of whom have much experience. They spent last season backing up Will Howard, a transfer from Kansas State who helped Ohio State win its first national title in 10 years by completing 17 of 21 passes for 231 yards and two touchdowns and running 16 times for 57 yards.

Sayin, who turned 20 last month, was the top quarterback in the high school class of 2024, according to the 247Sports Composite. He was ranked ahead of DJ Lagway and Dylan Raiola, who started at Florida and Nebraska last season, respectively. Sayin, who grew up in Carlsbad, Calif., signed with Alabama in December 2023 and enrolled in classes but transferred to Ohio State the next month after Alabama coach Nick Saban retired. Sayin played in just four games last season, completing 5 of 12 passes for 84 yards and a touchdown.

Kienholz, meanwhile, is only the second player from South Dakota who signed with Ohio State. He won three consecutive state titles at T.F. Riggs High School and was the No. 15 quarterback in the high school class of 2023, per the 247Sports Composite. As a freshman, Kienholz appeared in two regular season games and in the Cotton Bowl, completing a combined 10 of 22 passes for 111 yards. But last season, he didn’t attempt any passes.

Whoever wins the starting job will be throwing to the top receiver in college football in Jeremiah Smith, a 6-foot-3, 223 pound sophomore who caught 76 passes for 1,315 yards and 15 touchdowns last season, setting Ohio State freshman records in each category. Carnell Tate, the No. 3 receiver last season, is also back. Tate, a junior, had 52 catches for 733 yards and 4 touchdowns a year ago.

Notre Dame is in a similar spot with sophomore CJ Carr and junior Kenny Minchey battling it out for the starting job. CJ Carr, the grandson of former Michigan coach Lloyd Carr, was the No. 6 quarterback in the high school class of 2024 behind Sayin, Lagway, Raiola, current South Carolina backup Air Noland and current Mississippi State backup Luke Kromenhoek.

Carr redshirted last season after sustaining an elbow injury in September, but he played well in the team’s annual Blue-Gold Game scrimmage in April, completing 14 of 19 passes for 170 yards, two touchdowns and one interception. After Steve Angeli, who was the backup to Riley Leonard last season, transferred to Syracuse in the spring, it was assumed Carr would be the favorite to start this fall.

Still, the Fighting Irish are considering giving the starting job to Minchey, who was the No. 14 quarterback in the high school class of 2023, one spot ahead of Kienholz. Minchey appeared in three games as a freshman and one game as a sophomore last season. He has only attempted three passes in college, completing all of them for 16 yards.

After a scrimmage Sunday, Notre Dame coach Marcus Freeman told reporters that he still had to watch the tape of how the quarterbacks performed before naming a starter for the Miami game.

“We’ve got to make a decision here soon,” Freeman said. “I don’t know when we’ll make it. I don’t want to put a timeline on it. But they’ve both been playing really, really well. You’ve got two guys that have been battling all camp, and today was no different…Both of those two have really elevated their play.”

If the Fighting Irish can rely on their quarterback this season, they should be in good shape. They have arguably the nation’s best running back combination in juniors Jeremiyah Love and Jadarian Price, as well as an experienced offensive line, a talented tight end in Eli Raridon and an improved receiving group that includes returners Jaden Greathouse and Jordan Faison and transfers Malachi Fields (Virginia) and Will Pauling (Wisconsin). And on defense, Notre Dame has several starters returning, including preseason All-American Leonard Moore at cornerback plus cornerback Christian Gray, safety Adon Shuler and linebackers Jaylen Sneed and Drayk Bowen.

Even with all of that talent plus a top-tier coach in Freeman, the Fighting Irish are facing a tougher regular season schedule than a year ago. After losing to lowly Northern Illinois in the second game, Notre Dame won its final 10 regular season games against a weak slate of teams before winning three in a row in the postseason against Indiana, Georgia and Penn State. This season, the Fighting Irish open with Miami on the road, then get a week off before playing No. 19 Texas A&M at Notre Dame Stadium on Sept. 13. They also play at Arkansas on Sept. 27, followed a week later by hosting No. 25 Boise State, and face USC at home on Oct. 18 and Pittsburgh on the road on Nov. 15.

The Fighting Irish relied last season on Leonard, a veteran who had started for two seasons at Duke before transferring to Notre Dame. Leonard completed 66.7% of his passes for 2,861 yards and 21 touchdowns and ran for 906 yards and 17 touchdowns. They won’t have the same experience at quarterback this season, making the position much more of a question mark and leading to a thorough evaluation before committing fully to either Carr or Minchey.

Freeman, for his part, said on Sunday that he has the best staff in the country and always relies on offensive coordinator Mike Denbrock and others for their input and feedback. Still, there is no doubt who has the final say on who will start at quarterback at Miami.

“At the end of the day, I have to make a decision,” Freeman said. “It will be my decision. I’m not passing this along on anybody else.”