Will Howard is officially Ohio State's starting quarterback.
Ryan Day officially anointed the Kansas State transfer as Ohio State’s starting quarterback to begin the 2024 season at his press conference on Thursday, two weeks after the first day of preseason camp.
Day's declaration wraps up a months-long quarterback battle between Howard, redshirt sophomore Devin Brown and the other three scholarship quarterbacks on Ohio State’s roster.
While Howard was always the frontrunner to be Ohio State’s starting quarterback this season, his inconsistency during spring practices – particularly with his downfield accuracy – left the door open for Brown and Ohio State’s other passers to continue competing for the job this summer. By showing significant improvement during the first two weeks of camp, however, Howard proved himself to be the best man to lead the Buckeyes’ offense this season.
"He's taken command of the huddle (and) at the line of scrimmage," Day said last week. "I think he's much more confident out there. ... Will really has taken some strides here in the last couple of practices, taking control of the offense, making plays on third down."
Now, the Buckeyes know Howard will be leading their offense when they play their first game of the season against Akron on Aug. 31, allowing Day and Chip Kelly to build their offensive gameplan around the fifth-year senior quarterback.
Day said Thursday that Brown would be Ohio State’s No. 2 quarterback right now.
Experience certainly helped win the day for Howard, who threw for 5,786 yards and made 28 starts across his four seasons with the Wildcats. He started all 12 of Kansas State's regular-season games in 2023 and completed 61.3% of his passes for 2,643 yards and 24 touchdowns with 10 interceptions, earning second-team All-Big 12 honors.
Howard's running ability will also be part of the plan for him in Ohio State's offense. Clocked at a sprint speed of over 22 miles per hour in Columbus this offseason, the fastest of the team's quarterbacks, he rushed for 351 yards and nine touchdowns in Manhattan last year, sacks included. At 6-4 and 230 pounds, he can be a menacing sight for defensive backs in the open field.
“It's a big bowling ball, I’ll tell you that,” wide receiver Carnell Tate said of Howard's rushing ability. “He was moving down at K-State. I've seen a couple of his highlights, and he's moving. So he only lost a little weight here and got faster. I can't wait to see him roll.”
Now that he’s won the starting job, Howard will be able to take all the reps with the first-team offense in the Buckeyes’ final two weeks of preseason camp to continue establishing command of the offense and building chemistry with Ohio State’s top receivers.
Unlike last season, when Ohio State allowed the quarterback competition to continue through its first two games of the regular season, the Buckeyes will enter the 2024 season with a clear leader behind center, allowing him and the rest of the offense to get into a rhythm as they open the season with three non-conference games before beginning Big Ten play against Michigan State on Sept. 28.
