Ohio State quarterback J.T. Barrett has been named the Big Ten’s Thompson-Randle El Freshman of the Year.
Barrett, who suffered a season-ending ankle injury against Michigan last weekend, is also the conference’s Griese-Brees Quarterback of the Year and a unanimous first-team All-Big Ten selection.
Barrett, a redshirt freshman who became a star in replacing the injured Braxton Miller less than a week before the team’s season opener in August, completed 65 percent of his throws for 2,834 and 34 touchdowns (the latter of which is a single-season school record). He also rushed for 1,117 and 11 touchdowns on 171 attempts.
On Monday, head coach Urban Meyer said Barrett deserves to be a Heisman Trophy candidate — injury or not.
“He should be invited to New York. If he's not, then there is something wrong,” Meyer said. “He has Heisman statistics; I did a little research on that. Got asked that question several weeks ago, and I didn't know, but he's got very excellent statistics and he's a leader of one of the top five teams in America. So I hope that that young man is invited to New York, and he should be.”
Barrett is the third Ohio State quarterback to win the league's Freshman of the Year award behind Terrelle Pryor and Braxton Miller.
The Buckeyes play Wisconsin in the Big Ten Championship Game Saturday.
