Dan Hope and Andy Anders of Eleven Warriors bring you inside the Ohio State beat every Wednesday with a podcast covering everything you need to know about the Buckeyes.
Note: This transcript was AI-generated and has not been edited for errors.
[Dan Hope]
Welcome inside Lucas Oil Stadium. Dan Hope joined by Andy Anders for an on-site edition of Real Pod Wednesdays as we are here at Big Ten Media Days in Indianapolis. On Tuesday was the big day for us as Ohio State reporters as Ryan Day, Denzel Burke, Emeka Abuka, and Jack Sawyer all met with the media.
Really this is kind of the kickoff to the preseason. We're only eight days away now from the first day of preseason camp and the summer feels like it flew by but now it really feels like football season is upon us.
[Andy Anders]
Yeah, this is the time as a reporter when you get locked in, you know. It's almost like your pregame kickoff routine, you know. This is when the grind of the season starts.
We're getting our best story ideas together. We're trying to just get prepared to cover this team and figure out where things are as you enter fall camp, as you enter the run-up for the season and in that vein we spoke with Ryan Day for 15 minutes at his podium, his press conference interview on Tuesday. Got him for another 45 minutes in a breakout session later.
You got a one-on-one with him and we got to talk with three players, Jack Sawyer, Emeka Abuka, and Denzel Burke were the three there. We got each of them for 30 minutes so there was a lot to discuss from each of those interviews, a lot of takeaways to be had, even if it's a little more buttoned up in this environment being that it's kind of a formal media setting for Big Ten Media Days.
[Dan Hope]
Yeah, but you know, I think both the players were pretty relaxed, Denzel's Denzel, he's always going to speak his mind, be honest, tell the truth, and have some swagger behind his comments and I think Denzel was Denzel, you know, Jack in a similar way, a guy who always projects confidence, is always pretty relaxed with the media and I think that was the case as well. You know, Emeka probably the most buttoned up of those three in terms of talking to the media but some good insight from him as well about how he's bouncing back from the injury he battled last year and is becoming the best version of himself going into his senior year. Andy, what would you say coming out of Tuesday was your biggest takeaway from Ohio State's media sessions?
[Andy Anders]
Honestly, pretty specific, Carson Hensman is much more involved in the offensive line battle I think than either of us realized. Ryan Day specifically pointed to him and Seth McLaughlin as kind of being both competing to start at center more so than just it being Seth McLaughlin's job. And even if Carson doesn't ultimately start at center for Ohio State, he's much more of a factor in the right guard competition I think than maybe we gave him credit for in the past.
It kind of felt like for a time maybe it was Taylor Chabot or Luke Montgomery and Carson Hensman was a bit of an afterthought. Now it seems like not only Ryan Day but Jack Sawyer was talking about the strides that Carson has made this offseason. So coming off of what happened in the Cotton Bowl with him, there was that general feeling of maybe some of the steam had cooled off with him at the end of last year.
But from what we are hearing at media days here, I think there's a legitimate chance that you either see him as Ohio State's starting center or starting guard this fall.
[Dan Hope]
Yeah, I'd probably put it as more than a legitimate chance right now. Honestly, I think he's probably, if they were going to start a game right now, I think he's probably in that starting five. I think he's probably ahead of Tegra Shibola and Luke Montgomery right now in that competition to be that fifth starter.
We expect that Seth McLaughlin's going to be a starter on the offensive line. It did seem like Ryan Day opened the door to the possibility that he could potentially end up playing right guard, even though he was recruited primarily to play center.
[Ryan Day]
When it comes to that right guard position, I think you're going to see Carson Hinsman and Seth, they both can swing between center and guard, but then Tegra Shibola is someone that has had another guy who stepped up and had a good summer, Luke Montgomery. We feel like we have some decent guys in there that can fill that role, but we've got to go put it on the field now and see how this training and everything that's happened this summer is going to translate to being on the field.
[Andy Anders]
I think that shows you the versatility Seth brings, his experience. I don't think it's too big of a transition. It's much harder to go from guard to tackle or tackle to guard than it is to go from center to guard or guard to center.
In my eyes, the only thing that really is different about those positions is setting protections and snapping as a center and kind of being that captain of the offensive line. But Carson's got a year of experience doing that now, and that was something else Ryan Day talked about in that vein, is he felt last year was a year early for Carson. You get the sense that maybe they didn't expect to lose a Luke Whipler, and Carson was kind of thrust into that role.
And he had a lot of growing pains in the first half of the season, found his stride a little bit in the back half. What happened in the Cotton Bowl happened in the Cotton Bowl where he didn't play, and they ended up moving Matt Jones to center, Enoch Tamahi at right guard, and the catastrophe that ensued there. But the strides he's taken this offseason clearly have the coaching staff in a much more confident place with him.
[Dan Hope]
Yeah, I think based on what we've heard, they feel comfortable with him. They feel like he has taken the strides they needed to see to where he has a chance to make a significant leap from year one to year two as a starter. As we sit here right now, I would still predict that Seth McLaughlin will ultimately be the starting center, but I don't think it's out of the question that Carson Hinsman could still compete for that job, because every time Ryan Day brought up Seth, he made sure to bring up Carson too, to kind of at the very least keep the idea to the public that that's still a competition, that that's still a job that Seth has to win. Kind of in a similar vein, Will Howard's kind of in a similar spot to Seth McLaughlin, where he comes in, both of them started 27-28 games at their previous schools. The expectation was they come in, they're going to be surefire starters for Ohio State.
Neither of them has outright secured a starting job yet, and in terms of Will Howard, I don't think Ryan Day really dropped any hints on where he's leaning in the quarterback competition right now. When he was asked about Will Howard, he certainly stopped short of naming Will Howard as his starting quarterback, but he also didn't say anything to give the impression that Will Howard wouldn't be the starting quarterback. So at least from my end, personally, I think I come out of Big Ten Media Days not really feeling any different about the quarterback competition than I did going in.
[Andy Anders]
Yeah, I think the most insightful quarterback quote we got really was from Denzel Burke on Will Howard, and Denzel had reservations about needing to see more from Will in the passing game in the spring when we talked to Denzel about the quarterback competition, and it doesn't seem like that's really moved. He said he's seen things from Will in terms of being a leader, that he's liked what he's seen from Will in the weight room, leading workouts, taking charge of the guys, but he was still pretty hesitant to say he's confident in what he's seen thus far from Will throwing the football.
[Denzel Burke]
I think I see a lot more definitely going against this defense we're in. I saw a little bit of flashes towards the end, a little something new, but Fall camp is really going to test him, and they're going against the best defense in the country, so we just plan on getting him better and hoping for the best. The sky's the limit.
[Andy Anders]
Now Ryan Day noted, and it should be noted generally, that he is working with a new group of receivers. It is a new offense. Spring, you're not going to have everything sorted out, but you and I saw some inconsistencies in practice we watched, and so is that a symptom of just being new to the offense?
Is that a more pervasive issue with his deep ball accuracy and things like that? Who's to say? And I think we're going to find out over the course of Fall camp exactly how close this quarterback battle is and how real maybe some of those reservations you might have about what Will Howard could do throwing the football are.
[Dan Hope]
And Denzel's comments on Will Howard not the only thing that we heard from Denzel on Tuesday certainly of course. Probably the quote I think of the entire spring that's probably resonated the most from anybody was Denzel Burke saying this season is natty or bust. That's kind of something that's been brought up over and over again, and I think it's kind of become the narrative around this team that it is natty or bust.
When Denzel was asked about that on Tuesday, he did not back down from that declaration. He explained that he quote, just kind of put it out there just to get the younger guys for transfers to understand that I ain't come back for no BS. We're here to win it all, and we're going to need everybody.
We've got to hold each other accountable, and every game is a match-up game this year. No matter who we're playing, it's our job to just take them out and dominate. And he said a little more as well about the importance that he feels like Ohio State needs to win every game this season.
[Reporter]
A lot of guys come back, choose to come back this year. How much did the Michigan game affect those decisions?
[Denzel Burke]
Every part of it, honestly. You know, no go pants, no natty, so that was a big part of our, one of the reasons why we came back. You know, we're all on the same page, and we've got to win every single game, and all the fans are buzzing about it.
[Andy Anders]
Sticking with Denzel for a moment, you know, obviously, never a guy to sugarcoat things, and that's, I think even Emeka said on Tuesday that he's just a guy that has no filter, right? And when you hear him talk about Jeremiah Smith, in the glowing terms that he talks about Jeremiah Smith, I mean, it was someone asked him about Jeremiah on Tuesday, and Denzel goes, says, yeah, he's like that, and then he pauses, and he says, like, like that, like that. Like, that amount of emphasis.
He said it two extra times, the added emphasis, you know, and I'm sure you can glean what that means, even if you haven't necessarily heard that phrase. The hype around Jeremiah Smith only continues to grow. Ryan Day tried to temper it on Tuesday, but even he was kind of like, in hushed tones, saying, yeah, he's one of the most talented players we've ever brought in, sort of a thing.
And Jack Sawyer had maybe the best reaction, I think, just like in terms of his, how taken aback he was when he first saw Jeremiah.
[Jack Sawyer]
There's a lot of things I can list. That kid is just special. I mean, that's the only word I can use to describe him.
Having been in his shoes, meaning being a five-star recruit and having a lot of hypes around him coming in, you know, I kind of, I was like, man, like, you know, I just want to see him, you know, practice a couple of times, you know, I don't want him to feel like, you know, if he doesn't play this year or if he doesn't live up to the hype his freshman year, then, you know. But then I saw him for the first time at the first practice, I was like, holy shit, this kid's good. So, you know, he's a great young player, he's got a great future ahead of him.
He's got a great head on his shoulders, very humble kid, so whatever he gets, he's earned and he's worked for it. So I'm super excited for him.
[Dan Hope]
Yeah, Jack's comments really kind of mirroring what we saw with Denzel when he was asked about Jeremiah before the Cotton Bowl. He said, oh, we'll see, you know, the ratings don't mean anything when you get to Ohio State. And then after two practices, he was like, oh yeah, he's the real deal.
So, you know, you could just tell that based on those comments that, you know, this was a guy from day one of spring practice, they could see that he was special and it just seems like everything has just continued to go like this ever since where, you know, you would think like even a freshman that talented, you know, maybe he'd have some great days in the spring and maybe there'd be a point where, you know, maybe there'd be a dip and maybe, you know, there'd be more of an effort to really kind of temper those expectations.
But, you know, even Ryan Day, yeah, he said, oh, I don't want to say too much, but I don't really feel like there's been any real effort from Ohio State to temper those expectations. I mean, they've consistently said this guy's really good. He's he's going to play a lot for us this year.
And, you know, I don't think there's any question about that. But Jeremiah Smith, based on everything we've heard, is going to have a massive role on this Ohio State offense from day one. But, you know, I also think based on what we heard Tuesday, that Brandon Ennis is going to be another player to watch in that receiver room, too.
It's not going to be a matter of, oh, Jeremiah is going to come in and start with Emeka and Carnell and Brandon Ennis isn't going to play this year. I think we're going to see a lot of Brandon Ennis this year, too. We heard Ryan Day praise him again on Tuesday, saying, you feel Brandon when he's out there.
So I think they've got a core of four wide receivers that they feel really good about right now, maybe still a little bit concerned about the depth behind those four. But I think between what they have in Emeka as a leader of that group, with Carnell, with all the good things we heard about him last year, the way Brandon's coming along, and then just how good Jeremiah's been since he got on campus, I think Ohio State feels really good that it's going to have one of the best receiving corps in the country once again this year.
[Andy Anders]
Yeah, and I think, Ryan, the only concern with the receivers right now seems to be they want to build a little more depth. Ryan specifically pointed to Jaden Ballard as someone who needs to take another step, wants to see more out of Bryson Rodgers in his second year, and kind of in that vein, a position that I think, really, you look at and say, okay, Ohio State could be in trouble if the right guys go down or out for some reason, you know, is running back. When you have Travion Henderson, you have Quenshawn Judkins at the top, of course, probably going to be the best running back tandem in the country.
But behind them are two freshmen, it's James Peeples and it's Sam Williams-Dixon, T.C. Caffey, the experienced walk-on for Ohio State, now out for the year. And so there have been questions about how Ohio State is going to build depth at that position now that you don't have that piece. And Caleb Downs has been brought up before by Ryan Day as a guy who could play running back, who has the skill set to allow him to do that, did that in high school.
And it seems right now he wanted to scale back a little bit on that on Tuesday, talked about he's going to start at safety and focus on safety right now, and then the running back, and even maybe the return game is something that could evolve with him over time. But also Emeka Bucca and Brandon Innes were two names that got mentioned by Day when asked directly who else could play running back. And I do think it's important just to have those emergency options available in case the worst happens.
You know, and you hope not to have to use those guys. You also hope James Peeples and maybe Sam Williams-Dixon can be meaningful contributors if needed in year one. But if not, you need contingency plans.
[Dan Hope]
Yeah, I mean, we said it before, and I think it's important for people to understand, it's not going to be a situation where if Travion or Quenshawn gets hurt, suddenly Caleb Downs becomes a full-time running back. I think that's something that Ryan Day would like to get him involved in some way on offense. One, because Caleb wants that, and it's probably something that was talked about with him, not even just in the transfer recruiting process, but in the high school recruiting process.
Ryan Day talked on Tuesday about going to watch Caleb Downs in high school and thinking, this guy could play running back at Ohio State, that's how good he was on offense. So I think they view Caleb Downs as someone who, if they can find a role for him on offense that makes sense, that he can be a legitimate asset to their offense. But it's not going to be a matter of, oh, he's going to suddenly become the number two running back if Travion Henderson gets hurt.
It's more of a matter of, they could find a package of plays on offense that makes sense for him, in addition to playing on defense. In terms of those contingency plans at running back, I don't think he's ever going to be that guy who's, oh, he's suddenly going to become a full-time running back. He's too important at safety for that.
And so, obviously the hope is that you just don't have many entries at running back. Because you don't have a whole lot on that depth chart right now behind Travion Henderson, Quenshawn Judkins, James Peoples, and Sam Williams-Dixon. You're hoping that those four guys can carry the load all year.
But Brandon Innes, I think, is the name that I would have thought of. I wasn't surprised to hear Ryan Day say his name. I think he's a guy, I feel like he could have some of that Xavier Johnson in him to where you could move him around between receiver, between running back.
You could utilize some of his skill set as a weapon out of a backfield. So I think if they got into a situation where they're in a big game, Travion or Quenshawn can't go, and they need somebody else who can kind of present a changeup, Brandon Innes would personally be the guy I would watch for as somebody who could maybe take on some of that load and add a different spark to the offense from that position.
[Andy Anders]
Right. And you hope for the best, you prepare for the worst. We've seen Ohio State get riddled with running back injuries in the past.
I mean, you think back to 2022 when Dallin Hayden was forced to start games as a freshman. This is a position where Ohio State has sustained multiple injuries in the past. Even last year, Travion, Mayan, a lot of guys missed games.
And so you need to have those backup plans because you've shown the last few years you need to have those backup plans. And it's maybe not something that fans are always thinking about, but it's certainly something on Ryan Day's mind. But in that vein, too, Chip Kelly is still working to establish the best core of what this offense is.
And I think that was another large topic of conversation here at Media Days, that Chip Kelly is trying to establish an identity for this team on offense. And while O-line has been the top area of focus for Ohio State this offseason, trying to cultivate a front five group that can get the job done, Ryan told us that he and Chip Kelly working together to find exactly what this offense's identity is, is kind of like their top thing they're trying to figure out this offseason.
[Dan Hope]
Then just focusing on the here and now, what are the biggest things you feel like you guys need to accomplish here over this next month so that when you get into the season, you can be ready to achieve all those goals?
[Ryan Day]
Gotta establish our identity on offense. What exactly are we going to look like? Does everything have to be decided going into the Akron game?
No, but I want to really get a feel for it. I have an idea, but I think Chip has great ideas and has such a library of different things that he can do. What is the right thing for where we are based on the players that we have?
[Dan Hope]
Yeah, I think it's clear that that meshing process between Ryan Day and Chip Kelly, it's still ongoing. They're still figuring out exactly what that offense is going to look like this year. But I think the good news is Ryan Day has so much trust in Chip Kelly.
I mean, he said it when he was on the stage for his press conference, I would trust Chip with my life. So that's how much Ryan trusts Chip. They have such a close relationship dating back to when Chip was Ryan's offensive coordinator, when he was the quarterback at the University of New Hampshire.
And so this is going to be a very different situation than what we saw last year when Ryan kind of hemmed and hawed about, am I going to delegate play calling? Ultimately, he decided not to do so. I think he is very comfortable.
Even though he does like play calling and he's still going to certainly have a significant hand in the offensive philosophy of his team, I think he feels very comfortable with Chip being the guy who's calling the plays on Saturdays. And as we've discussed before, I think that's something that can be good for Ohio State because it can allow Ryan to focus on the bigger picture rather than what are we going to call on second down.
[Andy Anders]
Yeah, and that's the entire vision behind bringing in a guy you trust that much to run your offense, a guy with, and he called Chip Kelly also one of the top offensive lines in the history of college football. Now, Ryan might be a little biased in that perspective, but he's definitely got the track record of that. And even talking with you, some of the UCLA reporters that are here at Big Ten Media Days, that's the thing they'll tell you about Chip Kelly is for anything else that might have gone wrong in his tenure at UCLA, his offenses were awesome.
And so him just being able to focus on scheme, Ryan being able to step back and just focus on that CEO role and the broad scope of the program, it's clear that it's a situation that works super well for what both guys need at this point in their careers. Maybe going a little away from offense or defense and talking about special teams here, we did get some answers on the punting battle, which will unfold this off this fall camp as well. And it seems like Nick McLarty, the freshman from Australia, kind of maybe risen to the top a little bit, even after you bring in Anthony Vennari, who has some experience.
Right. Nick McLarty has been impressing. And I think that kind of like that offensive line situation with with Carson Hinsman, it's someone that we weren't necessarily expecting to be at the front of the battle.
But it seems just on the way Ryan Day spoke on Tuesday, that's where it is.
[Dan Hope]
Yeah, I mean, they obviously gave him a scholarship for a reason. Right. And they brought in Anthony Vennari as a lock on.
And so I think that's somewhat telling in terms of what they think Nick McLarty can be. Now, that doesn't guarantee anything. The guys never played an American football game before.
So Ryan did say he expects that battle to go into the third week of preseason camp. You know, they're going to see how Nick McLarty, how Anthony Vennari, how Joe McGuire all perform over those first few weeks of camp and then make a decision on who their punter will be in games this year. But it does feel like the job could be Nick's to lose.
I mean, again, they brought him in on scholarship for a reason. I mean, he's a guy he's he's much bigger than your average punter. He's got a booming leg.
I think they really like the upside that Nick brings to that punting battle. And punter's a different position than, you know, an offensive lineman or a quarterback or a linebacker. It's easier to come in and play as a freshman, as a punter, than it is at most other positions.
And so if he's the guy who's booting the ball most consistently during those preseason practices, he'll be the guy pumping the ball when they play Akron on August 31.
[Andy Anders]
Yeah, I'd almost say it's the easiest position to come in and start as a freshman. You don't have those even like way easier than kicker because kicker, at least you have the big pressure of a situation where you need to get a field goal. I mean, you can obviously shank a punt.
You can obviously have bad moments as a punter, but either have it or you don't. There's no like major scheme for a punter to learn. There's no huge development process that takes place.
Not that punters don't develop, but everything about a punter is something you can just walk on to a football field and do with a little bit of like, you know, here's your shoulder pads. Here's how you put on your football gear. In Nick McLarty's case, when you've never actually played American football in the past and get to work, you know, it's not a like you said, it's not a position that requires a huge ramp, a huge track development for a player to get ready.
[Dan Hope]
Going back to Ryan Day, there's, of course, been plenty of heat, plenty of questions on Ryan Day and Columbus based on the fact that Ohio State has not beaten Michigan in three years. And we know the pressures on Ryan Day and this entire team to turn that thing around this year and win that game in November. And we'll have the opportunity to talk to some Michigan folks and get the other side of that on Thursday here at Big Ten Media Days.
But, you know, one thing that's been very evident is while there may be some in the fan base that are questioning whether Ryan Day can get the job done, the Ohio State team, the players themselves still wholeheartedly believe in Ryan Day. And we heard that from Jack Sawyer on Tuesday.
[Jack Sawyer]
Coach Day is a coach that I would, he's the only coach I'd want to play for in college football. I'd commit to him 100 times over if I could. So that's why, you know, when we talk about coming back, you know, a lot of us have felt like we're his first real recruiting class.
And we kind of all thought we let him down in a sense of not reaching the goals that we set out to do when we signed our name on the dotted line. And so I think that, you know, going through the things we've gone through the past few years with Coach Day definitely feels like we've gone through it hand in hand.
[Andy Anders]
Yeah. And I was the person assigned to film and talk to Jack Sawyer from our crew yesterday. And you could hear it in his voice, you know, just how emphatic he was.
I'd commit to Ryan Day 100 times over. And he feels almost a personal responsibility, too, as a kid from Columbus. Like he's let the city down.
That's terminology he uses, that this is on the players as much as it is on Ryan. The failures against Michigan the last three years. And look, that game is obviously the most important game to the fan base, and it should be the most important regular season game Ohio State plays every year.
There's no debating that. But when you look at what else Ryan has accomplished, I mean, there's still, especially if he goes out and writes that wrong this year, I think you can still say that he's done great things as Ohio State's football coach. And it's clear his players love him at the very least.
Like when you hear Jack Sawyer say those kinds of things, and we've heard similar sentiments from other players, I think they are clearly bought into whatever Ryan Day is selling. And otherwise, you know, a dozen of them wouldn't have come back that had NFL draft stock. I mean, that doesn't happen if you don't like the coach of your program, you don't like where the program is at.
And I know those players are getting NIL money, but they could still be making even more going to the NFL, believe me. So it's very telling. That was very telling in the offseason.
It's very telling to hear Jack Sawyer talk about it now. Ryan still has some things to go out and prove this year, but it's clear that his players believe he can get the job done and that they have all the faith in the world to talking points that really dominated the day for Ohio State on Tuesday.
[Dan Hope]
One, of course, being that Michigan game, can they can they get back and they beat Michigan? Denzel Burke, Emeka Abuka, Jack Sawyer, there's multiple reasons why all those guys are back at Ohio State. But one thing they all agree on is one of the biggest, maybe the biggest reason why they're back at Ohio State is because they haven't beaten Michigan yet.
They haven't gotten that pair of gold pants and they don't want to leave Ohio State. They don't want to end their Ohio State careers. Without beating Michigan, they'd also like to win a Big Ten championship and win a national championship, too.
And so those are clearly the expectations for his team. I think by the end of the day, Ryan Day might have been a little bit sick of getting asked about expectations, because I think it came up. He did a lot of interviews on Tuesday.
I think, you know, probably of all the one on ones he did, I didn't get the exact number, but he was certainly busy all day here in Indianapolis fielding lots of questions. I think that's a question that probably came up more than any other is just how this team is dealing with those expectations. And, you know, he said it over and over again.
You know, we're here at Ohio State. We know what the expectation is. The expectation here at Ohio State is to win every game.
And so Ohio State has to embrace that. And I think they certainly are. I also think, though, from Ryan Day's perspective, I think he's ready to get back out there on that field next week and get back to practice and get back to just being on the field of the team and preparing for the season.
Because, you know, he said it when he was talking to me, you know, this preseason is going to be very, very important for us. If they want to achieve all those goals, you know, they don't play Michigan for another four months. You know, the college football playoff isn't for another five months.
But there's things that they need to start accomplishing in August during preseason camp if they're going to ultimately get to those goals at the end of the line.
[Andy Anders]
Yeah, I think that's any football coach. Really, you find the things out when you're actually on the field working with the players, you learn exact strengths and weaknesses. And you know, a lot of those that Ohio State needs to address during fall camp.
We talked about them offensive line, running back. But when you talk about living up to expectations in that in that respect, when you talk about handling the pressure, that's how you do it. You have to work through it.
You have to work on the issues facing your team and try to figure out exactly how to achieve the goals you want to achieve. So I think any coach in that position, it definitely makes sense for my position, is going to want to get back out and work on those problems in fall camp and try to address the issues before you ultimately play the games that matter in September. And so that's that's kind of the next phase of things, right?
We're here at media days. You're talking about all of the issues that face the team entering fall camp, all of the outlook of the team entering fall camp. But now once you get into fall camp, that's when you really get down to business and the details and learning exactly where this team stands, trying to establish the identity, trying to fix the offensive line.
So that's that's that next phase that you get excited for, both as a reporter and in Ryan Day's case. You know, you get to actually take the field with pads and work work out all the kinks before you take the field for the first time.
[Dan Hope]
Preseason camp just eight days away. It sounds like we're going to get to attend each of the first four practices of preseason camp. Fans are going to be there as well.
So that's going to be fun. It did sound like based on what Ryan Day said Tuesday, that maybe those aren't going to be the most telling practices of camp, that maybe they're going to wait till that fifth practice to really start showing things that would maybe be more revealing to us reporters. It sounded like they're probably going to split up for reps a lot those first four practices.
And then once they're behind closed doors, then they might start setting the depth chart a little bit more. So not sure if those first four days are going to give us a clear cut answer on who Ohio State starting quarterback is going to be this year, who it's starting center or starting punter even is going to be this year. But it's going to be a great opportunity for us to see a lot of guys get a lot of reps to watch those practices.
I know we're looking forward to that. We'll still have another show before that. So we'll be back next week to talk more about the start of preseason camp for Ohio State.
In the meantime, two more days of Big Ten Media Days here. Lots more coverage coming on 11warriors.com from Indianapolis. So be sure to keep up with all of our Big Ten Media Days content over on 11warriors.com.
And we hope you'll join us again next week on Real Pod Wednesdays.