3 Ohio State Football Returning Starters With the Most to Prove This Season

Training camp officially opens for the Ohio State Buckeyes tomorrow, and football is officially back as ever. The Buckeyes' first game is one month away, after it’s felt like forever since those boys laced em up.

We know that college sports have a lot of shakeups going from one year to the next, where players and coaches move on to other teams or move on to the pros. Ohio State isn’t a stranger to those facts, as they have seen many players transfer out or get to the next level.

This makes having a returning nucleus that much more important, a group that can be extensions of the coaching staff.

There will be lofty expectations, though; these three guys have the most to prove.

1. Brandon Innis

Innis has had the unfortunate fate of playing alongside Jeremiah Smith, Carnell Tate, Emeka Egbuka, and even Marvin Harrison Jr. in his freshman year. Last year, he caught 36 passes for 271 yards and three touchdowns. Being behind Smith and Tate, they're about the numbers you’d expect for a fourth option.

The problem is that Ohio State needs Innis to be the second option this season, with Tate and Max Klare in the NFL now. Sure, the hype around Chris Henry Jr, Devin McCuin, Kyle Parker, and maybe even Brock Boyd is there, but this is Innis’s senior season. He is now the veteran who needs to be the example for those young guys and prove why he was a top-five receiver in the nation coming out of high school.

2. Kenyatta Jackson Jr.

Jackson is the only returning starter on the defensive line, and with the uncertainty around him, he must lead that group. Jackson could have declared for the NFL Draft last year, and with his size (6’6, 265 lb) and second-half production, he probably would have gone in the second to third round.

But Jackson is expecting more of himself, saying that he came back to become a more complete football player and that he’s taking a leadership role now with the transfers in and young players. Jackson expects big things of himself, and in that defensive line room, he will have to be the one to lead it.

3. Julian Sayin

Now, this does not mean Sayin did not have an incredible first season as the starting quarterback that led him to being a Heisman finalist, just that the expectations are high. Sayin was extremely accurate, smart, and had many great games, including against the team up north.

The goals for Ohio State are always on top, though, and with the influence of QB talent across the board in college football, Sayin will have to be among the best. He has the potential to do that, and just because of the position he plays, his attention is at an all time high.

Sayin is now the returning starting quarterback; he will need to be the leader of that offense and guide them to their ultimate goal of winning it all.

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