CJ Stroud sets expectations for Julian Sayin as Ohio State starting quarterback

by: Alex Byington 1 hour ago _AlexByington

Ahead of Saturday’s highly-anticipated season-opening showdown between No. 1 Texas and No. 3 Ohio State in Columbus, former Buckeyes quarterback CJ Stroud joined ESPN’s First Take on Tuesday morning to discuss his expectations for his alma mater. That included showing a little love to the new Ohio State QB1, redshirt freshman Julian Sayin .

Despite being the lower-ranked team, the reigning national champion Buckeyes are slight 2.5-point favorites Saturday in its home opener, according to BetMGM’s sportsbook. That’s no surprise for Stroud, who expects Ohio State to run it back as back-to-back national champs, even while breaking in former Five-Star Plus+ recruit Julian Sayin as a first-time starter in 2025.

“I say we go all the way. I went up to practice last year and I got to see Julian Sayin and I thought he looked great. You know he’s a Cali kid, and we produce the best quarterbacks. So, I’m excited to see him play,” Stroud said Tuesday morning on ESPN’s First Take. “He may be rusty at first or have some nervousness. But I think once he gets warmed up, Coach ( Ryan ) Day is going to be calling it great, O-line is going to be blocking, running backs are going to be doing their thing, defense is going to be balling.

“So, when I go up there, I gotta check out Applebee’s and make sure I hit it up, make sure I get some good grub. It’s the NFL’s sponsor of the year, bar and grill, make sure everybody goes watch that commercial. Me, Dan Campbell and Ashton Jeanty went this summer and shot it and I thought it was a really great commercial.”

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