Day: Kienholz, Sayin 'neck and neck' in Ohio State's QB battle

Head coach Ryan Day described Ohio State's quarterback competition as "pretty much neck and neck" between Julian Sayin and Lincoln Kienholz entering the final week of spring practice.

"There's nobody that's any that much further ahead of the other one right now, so they're going to continue to compete," Day said Monday, per WBNS 10TV.

"This is a big week for them. And (Saturday's spring game) will be a big day for them as well; get in front of everybody and have an opportunity to compete."

Day added that freshman Tavien St. Clair "has probably the longest way to go" due to his lack of experience.

The Buckeyes are facing one of their most crucial position battles ahead of the 2025 season as they look to name Will Howard's successor. Howard guided the program to a national title after throwing for 4,010 yards, 35 touchdowns, and 10 interceptions with a 175.25 passer rating last season. Neither Sayin nor Kienholz saw significant snaps during the campaign.

However, Day brushed off any notion of feeling nervous about naming a starter in a race that's being compared to Ohio State's positional battle between Dwayne Haskins and Joe Burrow in 2018.

"It's nerve-wracking when you don't have a quarterback," Day said. "It's a good problem when you have a room full of quarterbacks."

While Day didn't answer whether he envisioned the competition lingering into fall camp, he said one of the signal-callers would need to perform well in the final practices to secure the starting role.

"Somebody would have to make a significant move here on Tuesday and or Saturday to really make that move to jump ahead," Day said.