Returning starters, transfers have No. 2 Ohio State talking about another national championship

COLUMBUS, Ohio (AP) — The national championship window has been thrown wide open again for the Ohio State Buckeyes.

NIL money helped keep the cupboard full of returning starters and lured other key contributors from the transfer portal. New athletic director Ross Bjork has said it cost around $20 million from donor collectives and brand affiliates to assemble this collection of players.

The way the pieces have fallen into place, including an experienced starting quarterback in Kansas State transfer Will Howard, coach Ryan Day couldn’t have it much better. AP Top 25 voters recognize it, too, ranking the Buckeyes No. 2 in the preseason poll.

With TreVeyon Henderson and Ole Miss transfer Quinshon Judkins, Ohio State will boast one of the most formidable running back tandems in college football.

Emeka Egbuka is ready to be the No. 1 receiver after playing the shadow of Marvin Harrison Jr. the past two seasons. He had 1,151 receiving yards in 2022, but an ankle injury that required surgery limited his production in 2023.

“They’re the same expectations people throw out every year when it comes to Ohio State,” Egbuka said. “It’s just more of the same. We try not to let it get into our heads. We try to stay down and keep working and recognize that you have to put everything together on the field.”

With the second-best scoring defense in the nation last season, the unit could be even better this time as seven starters return, and the addition of Alabama transfer safety Caleb Downs bolsters an experienced secondary.

Talent-rich QB room

Behind Howard, Day and new offensive coordinator Chip Kelly, who left his job as head coach at UCLA to join the Buckeyes, have an embarrassment of riches at quarterback. They won’t be able to keep them all happy.

Howard is Mr. Right Now. He’s been there, done that, passing for nearly 5,800 yards and 48 TDs in four years at Kansas State.

“The one thing I would say is that I don’t feel like I have to be a hero here,” Howard said. “And I feel like I have the guys around me to where I just need to facilitate and just get them the ball and make good decisions. At the end of the day, I don’t have to go out there and do anything superhuman.”

Other quarterbacks in the stable include third-year player Devin Brown, who was a candidate for the starting job last year and will again start the season as the No. 2 option. Second-year player Lincoln Kienholz, and heralded recruits Julian Sayin — he transferred to Ohio State after briefly enrolling at Alabama — and Air Noland will wait their turn.

Last year’s starter, Kyle McCord, transferred to Syracuse.

That team up North

The Buckeyes have lost to their biggest rival, Michigan, the past three years, the first time that happened in almost three decades.

Ohio State was dominated of late by Jim Harbaugh-led teams, making Buckeye Nation restless and raising thorny questions for Day. Michigan won 30-24 last November without Harbaugh, who was serving a suspension due to a sign-stealing scandal.

The lethargic 14-3 loss to Missouri in the Cotton Bowl that followed exacerbated the bad mood in Columbus. Harbaugh has since left for the NFL.

“I’d be lying if I told you it didn’t burn a fire inside of us,” said fourth-year defensive end Jack Sawyer, who grew up in suburban Columbus and decided he didn’t want to leave without beating Michigan. “It’s definitely something we think about, and we know what’s at stake when we play those guys. All our goals and aspirations for the season ride on that one game in November. They hate us, we hate them. That’s the way it’s got to be. That’s the way we want it to be.”

Player to watch

No Ohio State receiver — not even Harrison, an eventual first-round NFL draft pick — has generated the kind of hype that surrounds freshman Jeremiah Smith. The top national prospect in the 2024 class, the 6-foot-3, 215-pound receiver out of Miami Gardens, Florida, is considered a generational talent and will immediately be under the spotlight.

The schedule

With the addition of USC, UCLA, Washington and Oregon to the Big Ten this season, schedules had to be rejiggered.

The Buckeyes open Aug. 31 against Akron and get a couple more tune-up games after that, against Western Michigan and Marshall. Big games include Iowa (Oct. 5), at Oregon (Oct. 12), at Penn State (Nov. 2) and Michigan (Nov. 30). They’ll play Northwestern at Wrigley Field on Nov. 16.

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AP college football: https://apnews.com/hub/ap-top-25-college-football-poll and https://apnews.com/hub/college-football