\n Going into his second year as Ohio State\u2019s starting quarterback, Julian Sayin is embracing the spotlight and expectations that surround his position. <\/p>\n
\n\tThe spotlight was on Sayin once again as he made an appearance at the Panini America Mobile Tour\u2019s stop at Midwest Cards in downtown Columbus on Wednesday. Ohio State fans and memorabilia collectors lined up for the opportunity to take pictures with Ohio State\u2019s quarterback and receive free FIFA World Cup Sticker Albums from Panini as the United States prepares to host the international soccer tournament.\n<\/p>\n
\n\tSayin was all smiles\u00a0as he met Buckeye fans who were excited to share a moment with the Ohio State quarterback. But he\u2019s also hard at work looking to improve entering his second season, as the returning Heisman Trophy finalist knows he\u2019s expected to be even better in 2026 than he was in 2025.\n<\/p>\n
\n\t\u201cJust having that experience, you kind of know what it is to be the quarterback here, and you know everything that comes with it and the expectations,\u201d Sayin said.\n<\/p>\n<\/p>\n
\n\tThe expectation for Sayin and the entire Ohio State football program is to win championships, a goal the Buckeyes fell short of with their Big Ten Championship Game loss to Indiana and College Football Playoff quarterfinal loss to Miami (Florida) last season. Sayin and his teammates are hungry to make up for that in 2026.\n<\/p>\n
\n\t\u201cI think our whole program does,\u201d Sayin said when asked if he has a chip on his shoulder entering 2026. \u201cWe didn’t end the way we wanted to, we wanted to get a championship trophy, and it didn’t end that way. So I think the whole program has a chip on our shoulder from that this year.\u201d\n<\/p>\n
\n\tDespite completing a school-record 77% of his passing attempts last season \u2013 the third-highest completion percentage in FBS history \u2013 Sayin has been the subject of plenty of discourse this offseason about just how good he actually is, especially in regards to whether he\u2019ll be a first-round pick if he enters next year\u2019s NFL draft. While Sayin\u2019s full focus is on playing for Ohio State right now, the redshirt sophomore feels like he does have something to prove entering this season.\n<\/p>\n
\n\t\u201cI think the day you stop having something to prove is the day you stop improving,\u201d Sayin said.\n<\/p>\n
\n\t\u201cWe didn’t end the way we wanted to, we wanted to get a championship trophy, and it didn’t end that way. So I think the whole program has a chip on our shoulder from that this year.\u201d\u2013 Julian Sayin on Ohio State\u2019s motivation entering 2026\n<\/p>\n
\n\tA Carlsbad, California native, Sayin went home to spend some time with family and friends as the Buckeyes had a few weeks off following the spring semester. Although he took some time to relax while he was back in California, Sayin said his preparation for the season was still on his mind.\n<\/p>\n
\n\t\u201cI think there’s definitely a balance of you spend your time relaxing. You don’t really fully take your mind off football because you love the game, you think about it all the time, but you spend some time relaxing,\u201d Sayin said. \u201cBut I was texting (offensive coordinator Arthur) Smith throughout the time I was home.\u201d\n<\/p>\n
\n\tNow that Sayin is back in Columbus, he\u2019s participating in regular throwing sessions with Ohio State\u2019s receivers to build chemistry while also working to continue developing physically during summer workouts.\n<\/p>\n
\n\t\u201cSummer is all about what you’re doing in the weight room, getting stronger and faster, and keep getting better on the field throughout our workouts,\u201d Sayin said. \u201cI’ve gotten a good bit stronger just because being with (director of sports performance Mickey Marotti), he does such a great job, and so it’s been great to be working with him.\u201d\n<\/p>\n
\n\tSayin didn\u2019t want to share specifics about how Ohio State\u2019s offense has changed this offseason under Arthur Smith, but he\u2019s excited about what the Buckeyes\u2019 new offensive coordinator has brought to the table. Asked to describe Smith\u2019s offense in one word, Sayin said the offense will be \u201cexciting.\u201d\n<\/p>\n
\n\t\u201cHe’s done a lot of great things,\u201d Sayin said. \u201cYou gotta wait for the fall and see. It’s going to be exciting.\u201d\n<\/p>\n
\n\tSayin is one of eight returning starters on Ohio State\u2019s 2026 offense along with wide receivers Jeremiah Smith and Brandon Inniss, running back Bo Jackson and offensive linemen Austin Siereveld, Luke Montgomery, Carson Hinzman and Phillip Daniels. That gives Sayin good reason for confidence that the Buckeyes\u2019 offense will improve despite scoring only 24 points in their final two games of last season, but he knows the onus is on him \u2013 alongside Ohio State\u2019s other veterans \u2013 to lead the way.\n<\/p>\n
\n\t\u201cWe have a couple guys who are returning and played a lot of football for us last year. I think we have to kind of drive the pace and kind of show the way,\u201d Sayin said.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Going into his second year as Ohio State\u2019s starting quarterback, Julian Sayin is embracing the spotlight and expectations…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":669191,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[67],"tags":[399,398,396,397,99],"class_list":["post-669190","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-ncaa-football","tag-football","tag-ncaa","tag-ncaa-football","tag-ncaafootball","tag-sports"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/669190","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=669190"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/669190\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/669191"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=669190"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=669190"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=669190"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}