Skull Session: Will Howard is Ohio State’s QB1, James Peoples and Sam Williams-Dixon Are Confident Entering 2024 and Kojo Antwi Impresses Ryan Day in Practice

By Chase Brown on August 16, 2024 at 5:00 am
Will Howard
Adam Cairns / USA TODAY Sports
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Welcome to the Skull Session.

Garrett Wilson – still good at football.

Have a good Friday.

 THE POWER OF WILL. Will Howard is Ohio State's QB1.

On Thursday, head coach Ryan Day named Howard Ohio State's starter for the 2024 season. The Kansas State transfer beat out Devin Brown, Lincoln Kienholz, Julian Sayin and Air Noland in the position battle.

Day's selection confirms what we all believed when Ohio State landed Howard from the transfer portal in January: that a Power Five quarterback with 33 appearances, 28 starts, almost 6,000 passing yards and 48 touchdowns did not come to Columbus to be a backup. Nevertheless, Day didn't hand over the offense to Howard when he arrived. No, Howard earned the title of QB1 – much like he earned all of his opportunities for the Wildcats as a three-star prospect from West Chester, Pennsylvania.

In March and April, Howard was inconsistent in practice, leaving the door open for Brown, Kienholz, Sayin and Noland to become the starter. However, when Howard returned to the practice field in August, he looked like a brand-new version of himself. Not only did Howard shed 14 to 16 pounds off his 6-foot-4, between 233 and 235-pound frame, but he also seemed more comfortable in the pocket and added "accuracy" and "zip" to his passes. Howard also showed off his wheels on several occasions, including an 80-yard touchdown run in preseason practice No. 3, which prompted offensive coordinator Chip Kelly to reveal Howard had one sprint of 22 mph this summer, the fastest speed among Ohio State's five scholarship quarterbacks.

I mean, could you imagine a 6-foot-4, let's call him a 234-pound quarterback absolutely hauling toward you at that speed? Wide receiver Carnell Tate's seen it. He said it's terrifying.

"It's a big bowling ball. I'll tell you that," Tate said last week. "He was moving down at K-State. I've seen a couple of his highlights, and he's moving. He only lost a little weight and got faster. I can't wait to see him roll."

Neither can I, Carnell. Neither can I.

And neither can Day.

"We're excited about Will being the starter," Day said on Thursday. "Will has really taken command of the offense, I believe. You feel him in the huddle. You feel his experience. ... He's become a threat both with his legs and with his arm. The more he understands what he's doing out there, and when he does, he's really executing well."

 A PAIR AND SPARES? With Howard now confirmed as QB1, we have a clear(er) picture of how Ohio State's offense will look this season, save for the position battle between Carson Hinzman and Tegra Tshabola on the offensive line.

Howard at quarterback; either TreVeyon Henderson or Quinshon Judkins at running back; three out of Emeka Egbuka, Tate, Brandon Inniss and Jeremiah Smith at wide receiver; either Gee Scott Jr. or Will Kacmarek at tight end; and Josh Simmons, Donovan Jackson, Seth McLaughlin, Josh Fryar and either Hinzman or Tshabola in the trenches.

That's a good-looking offense.

But as Day has explained several times since March, depth will be crucial for Ohio State this season as his team could need 17 games to win a national championship. (That's 12 regular-season games, a potential Big Ten Championship Game and a potential four College Football Playoff games).

More games mean more wear and tear for the Buckeyes, especially for the running backs. That's the reason, now more than ever, Ohio State needs a pair and a spare in the running back room – and it wouldn't hurt to have spares, plural. Thankfully, freshmen ballcarriers James Peoples and Sam Williams-Dixon seem ready, willing and able to be those spares behind Henderson and Judkins.

"Tough, physical runners. Slashers," Locklyn said of Peoples and Williams-Dixon last week. "Good hands. Willing pass protectors. Of course, they were here before I got here, but both kids have been a joy to work with."

Peoples shed his black stripe on Friday, becoming the fifth freshman to participate in the rite of passage behind Smith, Sayin, safety Jaylen McClain and defensive end Eddrick Houston.

If called upon to relieve Henderson or Judkins, Peoples said he would look natural with the ball in his hands.

"I feel very confident," he said, "because of the intensity in practices we've been through with Coach Lock. I feel like if they call my number, I'll definitely be ready. ... I bring an edge to my game. I'm very competitive. I run hard every play. I'm a hard worker."

Confident was the word Williams-Dixon used to describe himself, too.

"Quinshon and Trey have confidence in me, and when they have confidence in me, I have all the confidence in the world," he said.

Locklyn is confident.

Henderson and Judkins are confident.

Peoples and Williams-Dixon are confident. 

I am, too.

Look out for the running backs in 2024.

 SHOUTOUT KOJO ANTWI. Like the Ohio State running back room, the Ohio State wide receiver room will also need to have depth if the Buckeyes want to accomplish their goals this season.

On Thursday, Day said several receivers have "flashed" in preseason camp, including Kojo Antwi, Jayden Ballard, Bryson Rodgers and five-star freshman Mylan Graham. Of those pass catchers, it seems Day has been most impressed with Antwi, who will enter his third season with the Buckeyes in 2024.

"I've been very impressed with Kojo Antwi," Day said. "He runs good routes. He's become very accountable."

The praise didn't stop there for the slot receiver from Suwanee, Georgia.

"I just like his work ethic," Day said. "He's really changed his body. He's changed his life. He's changed his habits. I'm proud of the preseason Kojo's had, and we really need him to be a guy who can help us this year. I see some things in him that are pretty special, and I'm hoping that we can continue to build on that."

I was surprised when Antwi didn't enter the transfer portal this offseason, especially considering his place on the depth chart behind Emeka Egbuka, Tate, Inniss and Smith — maybe even Ballard and Rodgers, too.

But Antwi's still here. He's impressing his head coach. He's proving doubters – like me –wrong.

I hope he continues doing that this season.

 AN URBAN MEYER PODCAST. Former Ohio State head coach Urban Meyer will be one of three hosts on a new college football podcast, The Triple Option, with former Alabama and NFL running back Mark Ingram II and FOX commentator Rob Stone. The trio are also hosts for FOX Big Noon Kickoff, which will return to television on Saturdays this fall.

According to Sinclair, The Triple Option will "guide you through the ever-changing landscape of the sport we all live for." In each episode, Stone will ask Meyer to explore "championship caliber leadership and locker room culture" and Ingram to "offer the player perspective from all levels."

"From the expanded College Football Playoff, NIL, conference realignment, the increasing popularity of the NFL draft and everything in between, Meyer, Ingram and Stone have the experience and perspective to offer fans unparalleled access into the game they love," a Sinclar press release stated.

Meyer coached at Ohio State from 2012 to 2018. In those seven seasons, the Ashtabula, Ohio, native led the Buckeyes to an 83-9 record, including a 54-4 mark in Big Ten competition. Meyer's teams won three Big Ten Championship Games and made two College Football Playoff appearances. The Buckeyes won a national title in 2014, defeating Oregon 42-20 at AT&T Stadium in Arlington, Texas.

After he retired as head coach of the Buckeyes in 2018, Meyer joined Ohio State's athletic department and later became a commentator on FOX. He also had a brief and controversial tenure as head coach of the Jacksonville Jaguars in 2021, leading the NFL franchise to a 2-11 record before the Jaguars fired him, and he returned to the FOX college football desk.

 SONG OF THE DAY. "The Waiting" - Tom Petty & The Heartbreakers.

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