Which quarterback Ohio State will take in the 2024 class is no longer up in the Air.
When former Ohio State five-star 2024 quarterback commit Dylan Raiola decommitted from the Buckeyes in December, all bets were off for where Ohio State would turn to next.
The Noland File
- Class: 2024
- Size: 6-3/195
- Pos: QB
- School: Langston Hughes (Fairburn, Georgia)
- Composite Rating: ★★★★
- Composite Rank: #84 (#8 QB)
After months of due diligence that actually started in October before Raiola's decommitment, Ryan Day, quarterbacks coach Corey Dennis and offensive coordinator Brian Hartline knew which signal-caller best fit the OSU program. And while Day waited until one week before four-star Georgia quarterback Air Noland's scheduled commitment date to officially extend the top-100 prospect an offer, that didn't matter.
The offer was more of a formality anyway, with Noland talking daily with Ohio State's coaching staff over the past few months. The 6-foot-3, 195-pound signal caller knew he'd be offered upon taking his first Columbus visit, especially considering OSU had visited Noland at his school twice and seen him throw in person.
One week after watching current OSU quarterbacks Kyle McCord and Devin Brown compete for the Buckeyes' starting quarterback role in a scrimmage, Noland felt comfortable enough to commit to the Buckeyes, giving his verbal commitment to OSU on Saturday. He picked the Buckeyes over his other finalists Miami, Texas A&M, Clemson, Oregon, Alabama and Arkansas.
“I think Ohio State’s coaching staff has done a great job recruiting me between coach (Ryan) Day, coach (Corey) Dennis and coach (Brian) Hartline," Noland told Eleven Warriors in March. "They’ve visited my school twice, and I think they think I have the right intangibles and all the right things to play quarterback for Ohio State. I think coach Dennis does a great job with quarterbacks and coach Day and coach Hartline’s offensive system is a very quarterback-oriented type of offense. A lot of quarterbacks have watched Ohio State this year and previous to this year and saw how explosive the offense can be. I’m very excited and can’t wait to get to Columbus.”
| Pos | Name | Rating | Rank | Size | School |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| WR | JEREMIAH SMITH | ★★★★★ | #2 NATL | #1 WR | 6-3 | 198 | Chaminade-Madonna Prep (Opa Locka, Florida) |
| WR | MYLAN GRAHAM | ★★★★★ | #27 NATL | #5 WR | 6-1 | 170 | New Haven (New Haven, Indiana) |
| RB | JAMES PEOPLES | ★★★★ | #69 NATL | #5 RB | 5-10 | 192 | Veterans Memorial (San Antonio, Texas) |
| QB | AIR NOLAND | ★★★★ | #84 NATL | #8 QB | 6-3 | 195 | Langston Hughes (Fairburn, Georgia) |
| OT | IAN MOORE | ★★★★ | #88 NATL | #4 IOL | 6-5 | 295 | New Palestine (New Palestine, Indiana) |
| LB | GARRETT STOVER | ★★★★ | #139 NATL | #12 LB | 6-0 | 195 | Big Walnut (Sunbury, OH) |
| OT | DEONTAE ARMSTRONG | ★★★★ | #313 NATL | #25 OT | 6-6 | 280 | St. Edward (Lakewood, OH) |
| OL | DEVONTAE ARMSTRONG | ★★★★ | #354 NATL | #23 IOL | 6-4 | 265 | St. Edward (Lakewood, OH) |
| OL | MARC NAVE | ★★★★ | #549 NATL | #31 IOL | 6-5 | 315 | Central Catholic (Toledo, OH) |
| Prospect Rating Data: 247Sports | |||||
Noland, who becomes the ninth member of Ohio State’s 2024 class, is likely to be the Buckeyes’ only quarterback in the class. He'll join five-star wide receivers Jeremiah Smith and Mylan Graham in Columbus, who Noland will no doubt be eager to throw to in future seasons.
It's been a very offense-heavy start for the Buckeyes' 2024 class, as eight of the first nine commitments have been from the offensive side of the ball. With Noland's commitment, Ohio State remains in fourth place in 247Sports' national class rankings, trailing third-place LSU by less than two points.
One of the biggest perks for Noland in committing to Ohio State is reuniting with his former high school teammate, Buckeyes freshman tight end Jelani Thurman.
“He’s sold me on Ohio State a lot,” Noland told Eleven Warriors of Thurman. “He loves it up there in Columbus. Jelani works very hard and is very smart. He does the right things on and off the field. We talk every day. That’s my guy."
Per 247Sports' composite rankings, Noland is considered the No. 84 overall prospect and the eighth-ranked quarterback in the 2024 class. He joins a list of top-100 quarterback prospects to commit to the Buckeyes since Ryan Day became head coach that includes Devin Brown (2022), Kyle McCord (2021) and C.J. Stroud (2020).
Noland picked Ohio State over the likes of Alabama, Arkansas, Texas A&M, Miami, Clemson, Oregon, Auburn, Boston College, Colorado, Houston, Indiana, Kentucky, Louisville, Maryland, NC State, Ole Miss, Purdue, UCF, Utah, Vanderbilt, Wake Forest, West Virginia and Liberty.
Noland gives Buckeyes an accurate, athletic signal caller
Should Noland take the field for the Buckeyes in upcoming seasons, Buckeye fans are going to notice something instantly: The Georgia prospect is left-handed. It's been a while since a lefty quarterback at Ohio State has played a prominent role in its offense, as the Buckeyes haven’t had a southpaw passer since Steve Bellisari (1998-2001).
Noland helped Langston Hughes High School (Fairburn, Georgia) to an undefeated 15-0 record in his junior season, completing 236 of 323 passes for 4,095 yards and a whopping 55 touchdowns. He threw only four interceptions while also running for five touchdowns, and was one passing touchdown away from tying a Georgia state record for the most touchdown passes in a single season. Noland has received acclaim throughout the recruiting industry for having one of the quickest releases of any quarterback in the 2024 class.
As displayed by his 73 percent completion percentage, Noland is an extremely accurate passer who displays a nice touch attacking all three levels of the field. Noland's accuracy remains strong when throwing on the run, and Langston Hughes ran plenty of RPOs in its offensive scheme.
While Noland is a dynamic athlete certainly capable of creating plays with his legs and running for first downs, he's viewed as a pass-first quarterback. He shouldn't have much of an adjustment adapting to Ohio State's offensive scheme, as his high school also primarily ran a spread offense.
