Ryan Day talks Ohio State’s quarterback battle and other offensive plans for 2019

“He’s picked (the offense) up pretty quickly, so the fact he’s able to run the offense right now without a lot of reps under his belt is pretty significant and he can make a few plays with his arm and his feet.”

— Ryan Day via Marcus Hartman, Dayton Daily News

The Buckeyes finished up their ninth spring football practice, and Ryan Day, along with the offensive lineman and coaches, spoke to the media to provide some updates.

Day talked a bit about the quarterback situation, and despite what many assume was an easy decision to name transfer Justin Fields the starter, the head coach noted that Matthew Baldwin is still very much in the mix. He wasn’t willing to name a starter just yet, but did say that they are getting close to a time when there is enough film and snaps with each of them to start making their plan.

“We’re going to start looking at the completion percentage and who’s moving the ball,” Day said, according to Kyle Rowland. “We’re starting to get to the point where I think there’s enough snaps of film we can get an idea where guys are at.”

There’s still a lot of work to be done on offense, but Day still intends to call plays, and notes there’s plenty of room for improvement before the start of the season. They’ve got a lot of new starters all over, from the quarterback to receivers, and several spot on the offensive line, but so far he’s happy with what he sees — although acknowledges they need to be far more consistent.

He also talked a bit about veteran players needing to step up and become leaders for the team, despite some of them not having a lot of playing time. Day also noted that the tight ends could be a bit more involved this season depending on personnel groupings and talent levels.

“Head coach Zac Taylor could start his tenure in Cincinnati with the quarterback of his choosing.”

— Dan Kadar, SB Nation

It seems like a lock that Buckeye Nick Bosa will be one of the first few names called during the 2019 NFL Draft. He’s still making the rounds to meet with teams, most recently scheduled to visit with the Giants, but him falling to No. 6 seems to be a bit of a pipe dream.

There’s a lot less certainty surrounding the potential landing spot of quarterback Dwayne Haskins. Originally thought to be a lock to land with the Giants, he’s now projected to fall a bit and could draw interest from the Broncos at No. 10 and even the Bengals at No. 11.

The Giants passing up on yet another first-round quarterback option would be very Dave Gettleman, the team’s GM — you know, the one who decided to trade Odell Beckham Jr. — and he’s repeatedly thrown his support behind Eli Manning as the team’s quarterback, not just this year, but for several years to come. The NFC East will be sure to thank Gettleman should he decide to pass on Haskins, who would be a great pick to develop as Manning nears retirement.

The Broncos have recently traded for Ravens’ QB Joe Flacco, but he lost his starting role in 2018 and is someone else who is probably on the latter half of his career. Plus, Denver has really missed the mark the past few seasons at quarterback, and could certainly use a young, promising passer like Haskins to build around.

Should Denver decide to go another direction, new Bengals head coach Zac Taylor may finally make a good choice for Cincinnati and snag Haskins. There’d be a lot of bonus for the Buckeye QB to stay in Ohio, not least of which a built-in fanbase and support system, not to mention a center (Billy Price) he’s familiar with.

Plus, Taylor isn’t rushing to sign Andy Dalton to an extension and instead wants to see how they fit together in 2019 before making a move to keep him in Cincinnati any longer, leaving the door wide open for him to get a quarterback he wants to develop as the franchise guy.

The Buckeye softball team had a tremendous weekend series against Maryland, run-ruling the Terps on Saturday, and then pulling off a 15-run win against the team on Sunday.

It only took Ohio State five innings on Saturday to make it 10-1 and clinch the win, which included a three-run homer by Lilli Piper — who tied her season-high with three RBIs and two runs. Kallie Boren also had a big day at-bat, matching her career-highs of runs scored (2) and hits (2), in addition to two RBI.

On Sunday, the Buckeyes moved to 20-10 for the season with their big 12-run win over the Terps. It was another big day at the plate for several players, including Piper, who had a career-high four runs and five at-bats (not to mention two RBI). Ashley Prange drove in a career-best three runs, and Bri Betschel scored a career-high three runs.

Plus, you have Kallie Boren with two runs and two RBI, and Meg Otte with two hits and a RBI. Overall, Ohio State recorded a season high with seven extra-base hits with 6 doubles and 1 triple.

So, good weekend on the road for the Buckeye softball team.

Some weekly awards — both college and in the pros

STICK TO SPORTS

• It’s April Fool’s Day, which is not so great for trusting news-related tweets. But, even if it isn’t true that the US Open is adding puppies to their ballperson team in 2019, it’s probably one of the cutest pranks of the day.
• The Ohio Machine, the state’s Major League Lacrosse team, announced that they would not be participating in the 2019 season, much to the chagrin of the team, business partners and ticket holders.
• Ohio State announced their 10 Student-Athletes of the Month, who represent 10 different sports, including football’s Thomas Tagiai.
• Khalid’s “Free Spirit World Tour” will include a stop in Columbus.
• Joey Bosa is taking his talents to television, and will reportedly make a cameo in an upcoming episode of Game of Thrones.