Ohio State's Quarterback Quandary
Cardale Jones is a national championship winning quarterback with three career starts and 94 career pass attempts. He is a large human being capable of running over defenders of all shapes and sizes. He has the strongest arm of anyone on the Ohio State Buckeyes and has just come out and said he is not ready for the NFL.
J.T. Barrett just finished his freshman season on the sidelines after throwing for 2,834 yards while completing 64.7 percent of his passes. He threw 34 touchdowns, ran for close to 1,000 yards and 11 more touchdowns all in 12 games before breaking his leg. Barrett is probably the best pure passer on the team. He is ineligible for the NFL draft and would have to sit out a year if he transferred to another division I school.
Braxton Miller was a Heisman Trophy favorite entering the season before a shoulder injury sidelined him for the entirety of it. He has thrown for 2,000 yards and rushed for 1,000 yards in the same season twice already in his collegiate career. He has 84 career touchdowns and graduated from Ohio State, meaning he could conceivably transfer to another school and play right away as a grad student.
This is the pending problem for Urban Meyer and the national champion Ohio State Buckeyes. They have three incredibly talented, star quarterbacks all of whom may wish to return to OSU next season. Logistically, Meyer and his staff only have room for one of them.
It’s possible that Jones changes his mind about the NFL and attempts to capitalize on his current stock. He could leave now, having finished his redshirt sophomore season and be selected somewhere in the middle rounds of the draft.
At the same time, Miller could easily leave, take his talents elsewhere and start right away for a different contender. This would make Barrett the sole owner of the quarterback position, the player who may be the best all-around QB of the three. It would be the cleanest break for the university, although there would be no recourse if another injury hit.
It’s also possible that two or even all three return because they want to return. They want to remain in college; they want to play for the Buckeyes and be returning champions. They may even want to battle with each other for the coveted starter’s spot.
I’m sure Urban Meyer is much keener on the latter scenario. As 2014 proved, you can never have too much depth, even at such an individualistic position.
Recruiting is tricky business. Meyer somehow convinced two incredibly talented quarterbacks to come to his team after there was already a Heisman hopeful on the roster. Now he has to do one more round of recruiting with this bunch. He has to convince them it wasn’t a mistake in the first place.
