Why It Was Important For Ryan Day To Name Julian Sayin Starting QB For Texas Game

Ryan Day had been slow-playing Ohio State's quarterback battle for much of the fall, but he ultimately felt it was important to name a starter and allow that player to prepare for arguably the biggest game of the season.

It's interesting because many schools across the country are going to be playing "cupcake" opponents to kick off the 2025 campaign. That won't be the case at Ohio State, though. The No. 3-ranked Buckeyes kick off their national championship defense against the No.1-ranked Texas Longhorns.

Not only is this a rematch of last season's College Football Playoff battle — a Cotton Bowl game that OSU won to advance to the national championship game — but the No. 1 ranking in college football is on the line.

It's going to be intense come kickoff from Columbus on August 30, and that's why Day felt the right thing to do was name Julian Sayin the starter right now so that he can get all the first team reps heading into this clash of titans.

"Yeah, I think in a game like this, you've got to prepare," Day told the media on Monday, according to Steve Helwagen of 247Sports. "You've got to get the reps with the ones. You've got to be at your best for the first game of the year, and if you are splitting reps, I think that's hard to do because you only have so many times in practice where you can rep a play, and a lot of times you need three or four reps at the very least in that week of a play to get the different looks, the different coverages, the different leverages and making sure that receivers can only run so many routes, for example. It's the same thing up front."

Reps as the starter are extremely important for Julian Sayin

Julian Sayin, Ohio State QB, and other QBs. — Ohio State Buckeyes quarterback Julian Sayin (10) takes a snap during the first football practice of the season at the Woody Hayes Athletic Center on July 31, 2025. | Adam Cairns/Columbus Dispatch / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

Day explained that splitting reps at quarterback is easier to do when you're further away from a game like this one because the opportunity to learn and grow is there. At this point in fall camp, though, the rubber has to start meeting the road, and practice becomes less about development and more about preparation.

This means that from here on out, Sayin will be getting a majority, if not all of the reps, with the first team at quarterback. Not surprisingly, Day said that he wants backup Lincoln Kienholz to be ready to go, but the brunt of the preparation, as well as the pressure, is going to be on Sayin's shoulders moving forward.

As far as the expectations for Sayin from his head coach go, it only comes down to winning. Everything else is secondary at Ohio State.

"Just win, baby. That's it, man. Just win. Find a way to win. One more point than them. If it's 14-13 or 65-64, we've got to find a way to win," Day said.