Julian Sayin

#10 · QB · Jr. · Ohio State6′1″ · 214 lb · Carlsbad, CA

ZPR872nd of 119 QBsHeismanNo. 12in our modelLast gameL 18–30at USC · Oct 31
Nextvs OregonSat Nov 7 · 3:30 pm ET
via ohiostatebuckeyes.com ↗

Did not play in Ohio State’s last game.

Luke Fahey started the last one, L 18-30 at USC, Oct 31.

Ohio State’s next game: vs Oregon, Sat Nov 7, 3:30 p.m. ET · CBS

Ohio State has won five straight in the games played, 6-1 in all. A vertical passer.

Strongest: 10.5 yards an attempt, 3rd best of 158 starters.

Passing yards

2,007

131 of 192, 68%

TD–INT

19–4

10.5 per throw

NCAA rating

184.5

2nd of 119

ZPR

87

2nd of 119

How ZPR works

Graded Solid against Maryland, the last full game; steady: solid or better in every start.

  • 2-1 against ranked teams, 279 passing yards a game.

Best by our grade: Kent State. Lowest: at Indiana, with 2 interceptions and sacked 3 times. Biggest game: at Texas, No. 4.

Tap a game for its plays

Q1Q2Q3Q4

at USC

L 18–30·Unranked

Did not play

If this is what the playcalling is going to look like without Sayin, Jeremiah can just call it a career and declare for the draft now.

Ohio State fan

Season

Fades after halftime

How to read this

Each column is a quarter. Blue and up is a good stretch for the quarterback, red and down a bad one, hatched means the game was already decided. A red cross is a turnover and a black dot a touchdown. The word on the right grades the whole game. A gold line means the r/CFB game thread kept naming the quarterback. Dashed outlines on the Season row are last season’s average. Tap a game to open its plays: each bar is one of the quarterback’s plays, up helped the team’s chance of winning and down hurt it, and the grey line is that chance.

The word grades the game against every FBS quarterback start, from Rough to Great, using the same throws as the season Zeitgeist Passer Rating and adjusting for the defense faced. Bars are points added per throw in that quarter. The Season row leaves out quarters after a game was decided.

Style of play

Vertical passer

Why this word
Runs3.0 a gameRarelyA lot
Throws10.8 yards past the lineShortDeep
Completes68%FewerMore
Takes sacks7% of dropbacksRarelyOften

The dot is this quarterback, among this season’s starters; the tick is the middle.

Throws deeper than most and runs some. 3.0 carries a game. Closest matches: Stokes, Mendoza ’25, Russell, Minicucci.

Where the throws go

Behind the line13%typical 17%
Short42%typical 47%
Middle27%typical 22%
Deep17%typical 14%

Runs 3.0 times a game; 68% of starters run more.

Closest in style

StokesMendoza ’25RussellMinicucciThis QB

Nearer the middle means more alike.

  • Stokes Memphis · Chain-mover
    2,532 yards, 25 TD, 6 INT so far. Both throw deep and are efficient.
  • Mendoza ’25 Indiana 2025 · Chain-mover
    3,535 yards, 41 TD, 6 INT. Drafted in round 1 (No. 1 overall) by Las Vegas, 2026. Both rarely throw behind the line and complete a lot.
  • Russell Alabama · Playmaker
    2,057 yards, 15 TD, 5 INT so far. Both complete a lot and are efficient.
  • Minicucci Delaware · Chain-mover
    1,477 yards, 14 TD, 4 INT so far. Both complete a lot and rarely throw behind the line.

Compared with the 158 FBS starters this season for throws and running, and with 219 quarterbacks across 2 seasons for the matches, on how they play and how they have done.

This week

What’s being said

18 stories this week, from 9 outlets.

Oct 29: 5Oct 30: 4Oct 31: 5Nov 1: 4L 18-30 at USCLOct 29Nov 4Most in a day: 5
Oct 29: 5Oct 30: 4Oct 31: 5Nov 1: 4L 18-30 at USCLOct 29Nov 4Most in a day: 5
Stories per day. W and L: the team’s results.

How many games will Ohio State win without Julian Sayin? Predictions for USC and beyond

The New York Times Oct 29

All 297 stories this season

Worth knowing

  • Julian Sayin is rated 94 overall in EA College Football 27, 2nd among the game's quarterbacks.
  • Julian Sayin was second-team All-Big Ten in 2025.

His most important play this season

  1. Q2, 0:07 · Ohio State down 4, takes the leadJulian Sayin finds Bo Jackson for a 2-yard touchdownOhio State at Indiana, week 7Q2, 0:07 · Ohio State 10, Indiana 7Ohio State took the lead in the second quarterOhio State took the lead in the second quarterJ.Sayin pass complete short left to B.Jackson caught at IND00, for 2 yards to the IND00 touchdown, kick goodWatch from this playBig Ten Football

All 17 of his plays on video

The story

As of

Sayin's first act was a quiet kind of stardom. The former Alabama signee who left when Nick Saban retired found his home at Ohio State, and in his first year starting he completed 77% of his passes — the best in the nation — for 3,610 yards and 32 touchdowns. He was the only underclassman invited to New York as a Heisman finalist.

Read the rest of the story

What he didn't get was the trophy or the title. Indiana beat Ohio State in the Big Ten Championship and Fernando Mendoza ran off with the Heisman; the door Sayin had pried open swung shut on the biggest stage. That's the engine of his 2026: fans don't just want him better, they want it finished.

He's built to deliver — 14 career starts now, the nation's best receiver in Jeremiah Smith, and a roster that opens the year as a national-title favorite. The forward question isn't whether Sayin is good; the nation-leading numbers settled that. It's whether the quiet accuracy becomes a closer's resume — and whether the next time the season comes down to one game, the result flips.

As of Oct 28: Ohio State is 6-1 in his seven starts. He has 2,007 passing yards, 19 touchdowns and four interceptions. The loss came at No. 4 Texas on Sep 12, 24-23, after Ohio State led 23-3 entering the fourth quarter. At No. 5 Indiana on Oct 17 his last pass came in the fourth quarter, and Luke Fahey finished the 19-15 win. On Oct 20 Ryan Day confirmed that Sayin is out indefinitely, according to headlines that day.

Sources