Ohio State Buckeyes' Quarterback Room Ranks No. 4 Prior To 2024 Season
![April 13, 2024; Columbus, Ohio, USA;
Ohio State Buckeyes quarterbacks Will Howard (18) and Devin Brown (33) stand on the sideline during the second half of the LifeSports spring football game at Ohio Stadium on Saturday. April 13, 2024; Columbus, Ohio, USA;
Ohio State Buckeyes quarterbacks Will Howard (18) and Devin Brown (33) stand on the sideline during the second half of the LifeSports spring football game at Ohio Stadium on Saturday.](https://images2.minutemediacdn.com/image/upload/c_crop,w_2609,h_1467,x_0,y_173/c_fill,w_720,ar_16:9,f_auto,q_auto,g_auto/images/ImagnImages/mmsport/buckeyes_now/01j3my533jhbfbadh8t1.jpg)
Although there is still an ongoing competition at quarterback, Will Howard is projected to be the starter for the Ohio State Buckeyes in 2024. The transfer from Kansas State has plenty of college football playing experience from his time with the Wildcats. Since 2020, Howard has completed 458 passes for 5,786 yards, 48 touchdowns and 25 interceptions. Howard also has plenty of running ability to go with his 6'4", 237-pound frame. He has 19 rushing touchdowns on the ground in four seasons with Kansas State.
Howard's competition for the starting job comes from Devin Brown. Brown is a rising junior with the Buckeyes and also offers plenty of size under center at 6'3", 212 pounds. Brown has a big arm and the ability to run, but does not have the college starting experience that Howard has to this point.
Although there is not a definitive answer quite yet, the Ohio State quarterback room has a ton of depth with lots of highly-rated prospects as recruits. For that reason, Pro Football Focus still ranked the Buckeyes pretty high on their top 10 quarterback room rankings headed into the upcoming season. Max Chadwick chose to place the Buckeyes at No. 4 behind the Georgia Bulldogs, Oregon Ducks and Texas Longhorns.
1. Georgia
— PFF College (@PFF_College) July 20, 2024
10. Missouri
PFF’s Top 10 Quarterback Rooms in College Football⬇️https://t.co/yp7juu1eZc
Although Chadwick acknowledged that Ohio State doesn't have a proven college star like the three schools ranked above the Buckeyes, the talent on the depth chart is intriguing. In addition to Howard and Brown, the Buckeyes have plenty of young talent with Julian Sayin, Air Noland and Lincoln Kienholz.
Both Sayin and Noland were top-five quarterback recruits in the 2024 class and Kienholz was also a fairly highly-rated quarterback in the 2023 class.
If the Ohio State offensive line can step up this season and have a better year than last year, then that will be beneficial for any quarterback under center. With Quinshon Judkins and TreVeyon Henderson in the backfield, along with Emeka Egbuka, Carnell Tate, Jeremiah Smith, Brandon Inniss and others at wide receiver, the Ohio State offense is set up for success.
As fall camp begins at the start of August, Ohio State fans will wait to see if Howard can take a firm hold on the starting quarterback job.