COLUMBUS, Ohio -- Ohio State is again making sure not to tip its hand about who might be ahead in its starting quarterback battle, by choosing not to send any of the candidates to Big Ten Football Media Days starting July 23.
Only once has head coach Ryan Day brought a quarterback with him to the event that officially kicks off the new season, with C.J. Stroud attending in 2022. Justin Fields more than likely would’ve also attended in 2020 season had the event not been canceled because of COVID.
In every other year since Day took over in 2019, the Buckeyes have left the quarterbacks back in Columbus.
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Instead, OSU is sending cornerback Denzel Burke, wide receiver Emeka Egbuka and defensive end Jack Sawyer, three of the nation’s best players at their positions.
Burke returns as a four-year starter whose career is practically the living embodiment of the resurgence of Ohio State’s cornerback play. He’s coming off a 2023 season where he recorded 24 tackles, three tackles for loss, three pass breakups and an interception.
Egbuka could easily be in the NFL right now had an ankle injury not hindered his 2023 season, limiting him to just 41 catches for 511 yards and four touchdowns. He’ll look to get back to what he was in 2022 as a 1,000-yard receiver while leading a young and talented receiving corps.
Sawyer exploded late last season, as the former five-star recruit had 48 tackles, 10 tackles for loss and a team-high 6.5 sacks. Now he’ll try to build on that while potentially cementing himself as a first-round NFL Draft pick next spring.
While Ohio State is leaving its veteran transfer quarterback Will Howard at home, Oregon chose to bring its transfer quarterback, Dillon Gabriel.
Day and Ohio State’s players are scheduled to speak on the first day of the event. The full schedule:
Tuesday, July 23: Illinois, Northwestern, Ohio State, Purdue, Rutgers and Wisconsin.
Wednesday, July 24: Iowa, Michigan State, Nebraska, Penn State, UCLA, USC
Thursday, July 25: Indiana, Maryland, Michigan, Minnesota, Oregon, Washington
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