Braxton & JT & Cardale & Brutus

[OnWis97]

I think the most fascinating off-season story in college football will be the Ohio State QB situation. Turns out, Ohio State had the three best QBs in the Big Ten, entering the season. Braxton Miller has one year of eligibility left, Jones has two and Barrett has 3. So do they all compete for the job? Does anyone transfer? Does anyone (shoot themselves in the foot and) go pro?

Coming into the next season, status quo, I'd suspect Barrett is the most likely winner of the starting job. If so, that could impact Jones in a big way.

Barrett: Since he has the most eligibility left, I don't see him transferring (and he could not go pro yet). Worst case is that he starts as a senior and he's likely to start before that.

Miller: I could see a position change for him. I don't know that he's very high on too many draft boards as a QB. Maybe he'll starting thinking about a different way into the NFL. Not that I know whether he could make it. I suppose he could transfer (admittedly I am unsure whether he'd have to sit out a year; does this injury redshirt could toward that or does that not start until the transfer is made?)

Jones: Jones gained so much by the other two getting hurt, but he is also the one that stands to lose the most. He needs more time on the field if he is going to get drafted. If Barrett ends up starting, he may never see the field again. He would be a candidate to transfer but the iron is kind of hot and I don't see him wanting to sit out a year. Particularly given his infamous "classes are pointless" tweet. I heard Mike Greenberg suggest on his NFL radio program that he'd say Jones is "even money" to go pro (he is a REDSHIRT sophomore). He'd be a project. Another option is to transfer "down" a division so he does not have to sit.

Prediction: I have NO idea. I guess I predict they all compete for the Job and Barrett wins it. Miller gets some garbage snaps this year and Jones gets some next year. But there are all sorts of options.

As an aside, I always find it funny when good QB candidates like Jones and Matt Cassell end up at QB-stacked schools and don't get to play. Go to Colorado. Go to North Carolina. Go to Wisconsin (we always need a good QB). Or if you go to a QB-stacked school, maybe you should also find the point in going to class.

[Kramerica Industries]

Re: the last paragraph...

Jeez, no kidding. Florida hasn't had a decent QB since Tebow left, yet Ohio State's roster is full of QB's capable of winning championships. Love Urban and all but g-ddamn does it make me jealous.

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An actual opinion on the actual subject?

Braxton - transfer, probably somewhere like Oregon or LSU or someplace where he could start immediately (he is eligible). The fact that Barrett was a Heisman-calibre replacement and still has eligibility for the next two years (draft-eligible in 2016) probably makes him the more sexy starting choice for Urban in 2015.

Barrett - see above

Cardale - Not really sure. He's not transfer-eligible within a Division I university (translated: he can't play in 2015 if he transfers) and he was the starting QB of a team that just won the B1G Championship, Sugar Bowl, and National Championship. And they won certainly with his own positive contributions (though 'Zeke, my g-d, was he unreal). He can only play immediately if he transfers out of Division I, and I doubt he would do that. He is eligible to enter the NFL Draft, however, and while scouts and teams are wary of going after somebody with such limited tape, the tape there is certainly shows some useful tools and projectability. I mean, after the last three games, does anyone really think Brett Hundley is such the better QB prospect? Hundley is the #3 prospect at the position right now; the QB class falls off the roof after Winston and Mariota.

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I hadn't really read the OP, so I see some of these subjects have already been mentioned. Still, probably better I didn't read it because otherwise my thoughts wouldn't flow as well.

[Kramerica Industries]

impressive double post; I only clicked "post" once!

[Billy B]

JT Barrett is the easy one. He can't enter the draft and he'd have to sit out a year if he transferred so he's probably not going anywhere.

Braxton Miller will probably transfer. He can play immediately and will he'll be able to walk in and start at nearly any school. The only way I see him not transferring is if he thinks the only way he makes the NFL is at a different position and he wants to get started on that a year early. But most QBs don't want to change positions, so I think he transfers somewhere where he's going to start and has a chance to win a National Championship.

Cardale Jones is the biggest question mark. If he stays at tOSU, there's a chance that he never starts again. He already redshirted, so he can't transfer without losing a year of eligibility. But I guess if he doesn't play next year, he can use the 5th year transfer rule to play immediately for his senior year. I wouldn't be surprised if he entered the draft. It's supposed to be a pretty weak year for QBs and he played really well in three games against good competition. Even with how little he's played, this may be the highest his draft stock will get. And we all know that he didn't come here to play school, so he might try to cash in as fast as he can.

[Sport]

This may be a Drew Bledsoe-Tom Brady situation. JT Barrett was solid every game except his first start and is pretty much responsible for the regular season, but Cardale Jones brings another element that Barrett doesn't and hello, just won 3 playoff games in dominating fashion.

I suspect that Braxton Miller will transfer and Barrett and Jones will split snaps.

[sportstar1212]

I see Cardale Jones entering the draft. He's been absolutely fantastic these last 3 games, and it would be wise for him to strike while the iron is hot. For the Buckeyes, I expect Miller to get the starting job back, with Barrett backing him up.

[hailstateunis]

I think Jones goes Pro, Miller transfers, and Barrett starts next year. I can't see any of these guys sitting on the bench next year.

[JayMac]

Is Jones eligible to go pro?

[infrared41]

It's all but certain that Miller will transfer. I've heard Oregon, FSU, and LSU. He's not as good a passer as Barrett and he doesn't have the size or arm that Jones has. It's strange how Miller went from a preseason Heisman candidate to a guy with virtually no shot to start for his current team next season. My money is on Oregon - especially after seeing Mariotta's back up last night. Oregon is the smart move. He'll start and he'll be on a NC contender. I suppose you could say the same thing about Florida State but after seeing what happened to the Noles in the playoff, who knows if they'll even be a contender next season. I think Oregon is the best option for Braxton Miller. He fits the Ducks offense better than he would the LSU or FSU offense.

The best move Cardale Jones could make would be to declare for the NFL draft. Strike while the iron is hot. He's got all sorts of potential and the benefit of an impressive but very short resume. Another season in college could expose his weaknesses and hurt is stock. Not to mention, Jones is the "we ain't here to play school" guy. If the money is there, he's grabbing it. And he should. Jones is certainly an NFL "project" but if he ends up with the right team, he could turn out to be a good NFL QB.

That leaves us with J.T. Barrett. He's the best decision maker, best passer, and best overall QB of the bunch. He's not going anywhere.

[CLEstones]

Braxton Miller: Transfer to Oregon after Marcus Mariota declares for the NFL Draft.

JT Barrett: Starting Quarterback for the 2015 Buckeyes (as he should be).

Cardale Jones: Relegated to backup duty, but earning significant time in meaningful games.

The 2 or 3 other QB's Meyer has committed: Who wants to play Receiver, Offensive Weapon, Defensive Back?

[Billy B]

Braxton Miller: Transfer to Oregon after Marcus Mariota declares for the NFL Draft.

JT Barrett: Starting Quarterback for the 2015 Buckeyes (as he should be).

Cardale Jones: Relegated to backup duty, but earning significant time in meaningful games.

The 2 or 3 other QB's Meyer has committed: Who wants to play Receiver, Offensive Weapon, Defensive Back?

I don't see why Jones would come back to be a second string QB when he could enter the draft and get paid. I don't know the guy (other than that he ain't there to play school) but I think most people would rather start their NFL career than enter a pre-season QB battle where the other guy is favored in college.

[Lee Noire]

This is probably a dumb question, but would any team really see Jones as worthy of a pick given his limited resume? I mean, if you are going to have a 3 game resume he has the best 3 games to start in and win. I could imagine some teams wanting to at least see him over the course of a full season.

[gosioux76]

This is probably a dumb question, but would any team really see Jones as worthy of a pick given his limited resume? I mean, if you are going to have a 3 game resume he has the best 3 games to start in and win. I could imagine some teams wanting to at least see him over the course of a full season.

It's a good question, but will his stock get any higher if he spends the next two years behind Barrett? I mean, to a team in need of an immediate starter, he may not be the best solution. But for a team that views him as a project, it would seem a pretty low-risk investment to take him in a lower round.

For him to create a better situation for himself, he'd have to come back and beat out Barrett for the starting job or wait until Barrett gets injured again. It's a high-risk situation for him either way you look at it. But he's got more options before him now than he did two months ago.

[tBBP]

This is probably a dumb question, but would any team really see Jones as worthy of a pick given his limited resume? I mean, if you are going to have a 3 game resume he has the best 3 games to start in and win. I could imagine some teams wanting to at least see him over the course of a full season.

In the Army we always had this saying that the only dumb question is the one you don't ask. That said, two things about that:

1) IIRC, Matt Cassel was a career backup in college and still got drafted. Which segues nicely to...

2) Overall, outside of maybe eight or nine, there really ain't too many good quarterbacks in the league right now. So it's not like he'd really be pressed too much for competition.

Look around the league...You have Aaron Rodgers, Tom Brady, Peyton Manning (?!), Drew Brees (??--didn't see much of him this past season), Russell Wilson, Ben Roethlisberger, and maybe Phillip Rivers on one tier. Then you have the Matt Ryans, Matthew Staffords and, depending of your opinion of them, Colin Kaepernicks and Cam Newtons on the next tier. After that.............

.....yyyeah.

So in a pretty weak QB draft class, combined with his now-raised media profile not to mention the aforementioned current state of quarterbacking in the league right now, why not chance it and make that jump?

[Lee Noire]

Thanks guys. Yeah, I guess it makes sense for him to go and for a team to draft him. The question now is if he will want to go. He flat out said this morning he wasn't ready for the next level.

http://m.espn.go.com/ncf/story?storyId=12161205

[DS729]

This is probably a dumb question, but would any team really see Jones as worthy of a pick given his limited resume? I mean, if you are going to have a 3 game resume he has the best 3 games to start in and win. I could imagine some teams wanting to at least see him over the course of a full season.

With the NFL being such a pass-driven league with a limited number of solid start-able QB's, yeah. Let's be honest, he's probably the third best QB in this class, even with his limited tape, he's got great size, a canon arm, and is pretty mobile for his size. He's comparable to Cam Newton, but the dude has been phenomenal in his 3 starts against pretty good competition. Plus the "Striking while the Iron is hot" argument. Some NFL team might get dumb or desperate enough (or both) to take him in the first round, which ultimately saves him two years where he can make money and not have to go to class.

Miller should and probably will transfer, there are two better, younger QB's on the team that will be ahead of him if he stays. Going pro won't solve anything, he wasn't a high-round draft pick to begin with, and we don't know how he'll come back from the injury. Transferring would let him play at a high-caliber school (Oregon would need a QB if Mariota goes pro, and he's a perfect fit up there) without waiting a year. I don't think he'll want to play another position, most QB's don't. He has a way-out and would be dumb not to use it.

Barrett would probably be who Meyer would go with, the youngest, lead them through the regular season, and was phenomenal since the Tech game. He's not draft-eligible and would sit out a year transferring. If he transfer, it's because he would've lost the job to Jones, but I don't think that'll necessarily happen, because I really only think that one of these three will be on OSU's roster next year.

It'll be very interesting to follow on this and see how it plays out.

[LAWeaver]

There is a report that Cardale Jones is having a press conference at 4 to announce a 'life changing' decision. My guess is that he's going pro.

[Kramerica Industries]

It's not a horrible decision for Cardale Jones if he chooses to go pro because he's no worse than #4 on the QB big board if he enters, and he'd be #3 on my list. There's a giant chasm between Winston and Mariota, and then Hundley and Petty and those likes.

[TheRicSlick]

Well, Jones is coming back.

[OnWis97]

Is that really "life changing?"