\n Julian Sayin isn\u2019t letting his new status as the Heisman Trophy frontrunner distract him from Ohio State\u2019s team goals. <\/p>\n
\n\tMeeting with the media on Wednesday after emerging as the Heisman favorite with his performance against Penn State<\/a> last weekend, Sayin expressed gratitude for the national recognition but said his focus \u2013 and that of his other award-worthy teammates \u2013 is on winning games with his team.\n<\/p>\n \n\t\u201cIt\u2019s an awesome feeling, but nothing matters without the team. We\u2019re all focused on team success here,\u201d Sayin said.\n<\/p>\n \n\tSayin was one of six Buckeye players to meet with the media on Wednesday. Tight end Max Klare talked about his excitement for this week\u2019s game at\u00a0Purdue as he gets a chance to play in the\u00a0stadium he called home for the last three years. Defensive end Kenyatta Jackson Jr. talked about being unleashed as a pass-rusher and how he scared his coaches on Halloween. Cornerback Jermaine Mathews Jr. talked about what makes Carnell Tate and Jeremiah Smith great, defensive\u00a0tackle Kayden McDonald spoke on his breakthrough this season and tight end Bennett Christian talked about his touchdown catch against the Nittany Lions.\n<\/p>\n \tQB Julian Sayin<\/p>\n \n\t\u201cIt\u2019s an awesome feeling, but nothing matters without the team. We\u2019re all focused on team success here. We have a lot of great players, and the guys are up for awards, but we\u2019re all focused on team success.\u201d\u2013 Julian Sayin on being the Heisman frontrunner\n<\/p>\n \t\tSayin said Ohio State\u2019s coaches and players know the standard they have to live up to every day, whether or not the Buckeyes rank No. 1 in polls and rankings. \u201cWhen you\u2019re at Ohio State, you\u2019ve got to bring your A-game every day. In practice, you can\u2019t have a bad day at Ohio State. That\u2019s what Coach Day says. You have to be on your game at all times. Everyone has to do their job. Every position knows that. We\u2019re focused on that each and every week.\u201d<\/p>\n \t\tSayin says it’s not just Jeremiah Smith’s statistics that make him worthy of individual awards, but also his work ethic and attention to detail.\u201cHis work ethic is unmatched. His skill set is very good, but the way he works in practice and the way he fine-tunes his craft is very special. I think the ability for him to go make some great catches, but then also he\u2019ll dig out a safety and go make some great blocks.<\/p>\n \t\tSayin called Day \u201can elite quarterback coach.\u201d He added: \u201cA reason why I came here was because of the coaching that he has and the quarterback development that he has, so I think it\u2019s awesome to see that he\u2019s able to coach the position really well. I take a lot of great tips from him whenever he\u2019s talking.\u201d<\/p>\n \tTE Max Klare<\/p>\n \n\t\u201cI think I\u2019ve gotten a lot better in every aspect. Just keep growing my game and getting better each week.\u201d\u2013 Max Klare on his improvement since transferring from Purdue to Ohio State\n<\/p>\n \t\tKlare is excited to play against his former team, especially since his brother Luke still plays for Purdue. He says his brother is \u201cexcited about the trajectory of the program\u201d despite Purdue\u2019s 2-7 record this season.<\/p>\n \t\tKlare says his family\u2019s rooting interest will be \u201csplit down the middle. Whoever\u2019s winning, I think they\u2019ll root for them.\u201d<\/p>\n \t\tAsked about Ohio State\u2019s history against Purdue, Klare said he was not aware of the \u201cHoly Buckeye\u201d game in 2002 (Klare was born in 2003) but remembered Purdue\u2019s win over Ohio State in 2018 with Tyler Trent on the sidelines.<\/p>\n \t\tKlare said he never would have envisioned he\u2019d be playing for Ohio State when he played against Ohio State as a Boilermaker last year. He said it feels \u201csurreal\u201d to be going back to Purdue as a Buckeye this week.<\/p>\n \t\tKlare said Julian Sayin has been \u201csuper consistent\u201d with who he is amid his growing fame. \u201cHe hasn\u2019t changed who he is. He\u2019s the same guy as he was preseason, which is really good to see.\u201d<\/p>\n \tDE Kenyatta Jackson Jr.<\/p>\n \n\t\u201cHe moves so smooth in the backfield.\u201d\u2013 Kenyatta Jackson Jr. on Julian Sayin\u2019s ability to move in the pocket\n<\/p>\n