The unofficial beginning of the 2026 college football season has arrived, and Ohio State will once again take center stage at Big Ten Football Media Days.

Head coach Ryan Day will represent the Buckeyes alongside quarterback Julian Sayin, wide receiver Jeremiah Smith and safety Jaylen McClain. The selection gives Ohio State representatives from both sides of the ball while offering a clear look at the players expected to lead the program into the 2026 season.

For a team returning some of the best offensive talent in the country but replacing much of its starting defense, the questions surrounding Ohio State are different than they were a year ago.

The quarterback is established. The nation’s premier receiver is back. The offensive line returns valuable experience. This time, the biggest offensive storyline is not who will run the offense on the field, but how dramatically it could change under new offensive coordinator Arthur Smith.

Here are the three biggest questions facing Ohio State as the Buckeyes arrive at Big Ten Media Days.

1. What Will Ohio State’s Offense Look Like Under Arthur Smith?

The biggest change surrounding the Buckeyes entering 2026 is the arrival of Arthur Smith as offensive coordinator.

Smith joined Ryan Day’s staff after spending much of his coaching career in the NFL, including time as the offensive coordinator of the Tennessee Titans and Pittsburgh Steelers and three seasons as head coach of the Atlanta Falcons.

That résumé makes Smith one of the most fascinating assistant-coaching additions in college football.

Ohio State has built its recent offensive identity around spread formations, elite receiver play and the passing concepts developed under Day. Smith brings a background rooted in physicality, formation versatility, tight-end usage and establishing the running game before creating explosive opportunities through play action.

The question is not whether Ohio State will abandon what it already does well. With Julian Sayin and Jeremiah Smith returning, that would make little sense. The real question is how Smith will blend his philosophy with the Buckeyes’ existing strengths.

The personnel should give him plenty of options.

Ohio State returns an experienced offensive core that includes Sayin, Smith, Brandon Inniss, running back Bo Jackson and multiple offensive linemen with starting experience.

That continuity should allow Smith to introduce new concepts without requiring the Buckeyes to undergo a complete offensive rebuild.

Bo Jackson gives Ohio State a potential featured running back capable of becoming the foundation of a more physical rushing attack. The returning experience along the offensive line should help the Buckeyes establish consistency up front. Sayin has already proven he can distribute the football efficiently, while Jeremiah Smith forces defenses to account for him on every snap.

Smith’s history also makes the tight-end position especially interesting. Ohio State must replace experienced contributors at the position, leaving one of the offense’s potentially most important groups without an obvious veteran centerpiece.

How Smith recreates that production—and whether he uses multiple tight ends as heavily as he has during previous coaching stops—will be one of the key developments of preseason camp.

Ryan Day will still have a major influence on the offense, but Media Days could offer more clarity about how much control Smith will have, how the play-calling responsibilities will be divided and what kind of identity Ohio State wants to establish.

With this roster, Smith does not need to reinvent Ohio State football.

He may only need to make it more balanced, more physical and more difficult to defend.

2. How Much Better Can Julian Sayin and Jeremiah Smith Become?

Most programs would be thrilled to enter a season with one established Heisman Trophy candidate.

Ohio State may have two.

Julian Sayin returns after emerging as one of the nation’s most efficient quarterbacks in 2025. He is no longer an inexperienced player being asked to manage the offense. He is now one of the faces of the program and one of the players expected to lead it.

His presence at Big Ten Media Days reflects that transition.

The next step will be determining how much more responsibility Sayin receives under Arthur Smith. His accuracy and decision-making have already been established, but Ohio State will want to see continued growth against pressure, more command at the line of scrimmage and the ability to produce when defenses take away the Buckeyes’ preferred option.

Of course, having Jeremiah Smith makes that job considerably easier.

Through his first two seasons, Smith has already established himself as one of the most productive and physically gifted receivers in Ohio State history. He enters 2026 as one of the most recognizable and dominant players in college football.

He is not merely the best receiver on Ohio State’s roster. He is a player opposing defenses must build their game plans around.

The attention Smith receives will create opportunities for Brandon Inniss and the rest of the receiver room, but it will also challenge Arthur Smith to find new ways to move his star receiver around the formation.

Defenses will bracket him, roll coverage in his direction and force Ohio State to prove it can win elsewhere.

With Carnell Tate no longer part of the receiving corps, the battle to establish another dependable outside target will be an important preseason storyline. Inniss provides experience and versatility, but several younger receivers will need to earn larger roles before the season begins.

The potential of the Sayin-Smith combination is obvious. What remains unknown is how much more dangerous it can become inside an offense that could feature a stronger running game, heavier formations and more play-action opportunities.

If the answer is significantly more dangerous, Ohio State could possess one of the best offenses in the country.

3. Who Will Become the New Leaders of a Rebuilt Defense?

The offensive lineup brings stability.

The defense brings opportunity.

Ohio State must replace several key players from last season’s defensive unit, leaving Matt Patricia and his staff with major questions at every level.

That makes Jaylen McClain’s selection for Big Ten Media Days especially meaningful.

McClain has already gained valuable experience in the Ohio State secondary, but his responsibilities will grow considerably in 2026. He will be expected to help stabilize a defensive backfield undergoing significant change around him.

Last season, McClain could play alongside established leaders and future NFL players. This season, he must become one of those leaders himself.

His experience will be critical as Ohio State replaces some of the most recognizable players from its previous defense. The Buckeyes continue to recruit at an elite level and have also used the transfer portal to add experienced talent, but replacing communication, discipline and leadership is more difficult than replacing athletic ability alone.

The same challenge exists throughout the defense.

Kenyatta Jackson Jr. returns as an experienced presence along the defensive line, while Alabama transfers Qua Russaw and James Smith bring significant talent and SEC experience to the front.

Payton Pierce and Christian Alliegro are among the names to watch at linebacker, while Jermaine Mathews Jr. and Devin Sanchez could take on larger leadership roles in the secondary.

The talent remains considerable.

But preseason projections cannot replace the players who made the calls, handled difficult assignments and delivered in championship moments.

Matt Patricia’s defense established an extremely high standard last season. Expecting a largely rebuilt group to immediately reproduce that level of performance may be unrealistic, especially early in the year.

The more important question is whether the Buckeyes can develop quickly enough to complement an offense capable of carrying a larger share of the load.

McClain’s comments at Media Days should offer insight into who has emerged as a leader, how the new pieces are fitting together and whether the defense believes it can maintain the standard established by the players who came before them.

The Players Representing Ohio State

Ohio State’s three player representatives each embody a different part of the Buckeyes’ identity entering 2026.

Julian Sayin represents stability at the game’s most important position. After establishing himself as Ohio State’s quarterback, he now enters the season as a national star and the leader of Arthur Smith’s first Buckeye offense.

Jeremiah Smith represents the program’s championship expectations. He is one of the most talented players in college football and gives Ohio State a difference-maker capable of changing any game.

Jaylen McClain represents the next generation of defensive leadership. He will be asked to help guide a talented but largely rebuilt unit through the early part of the season.

Together, they provide an accurate snapshot of the 2026 Buckeyes: proven stars on offense, new leadership on defense and championship expectations surrounding all of them.

Final Thoughts

Ohio State enters Big Ten Media Days with fewer questions at quarterback than it had a year ago, but arguably more intrigue surrounding the offense as a whole.

Arthur Smith was not brought to Columbus simply to maintain the status quo. He was hired to add experience, physicality and another perspective to an offense that already possesses elite talent.

How he uses Julian Sayin, Bo Jackson, Jeremiah Smith and a veteran offensive line could determine whether Ohio State evolves from an efficient offense into an overwhelming one.

On defense, the challenge is almost the opposite. Matt Patricia must create continuity with a group filled with new starters while Jaylen McClain, Kenyatta Jackson Jr. and Jermaine Mathews Jr. help establish the next generation of Buckeye leadership.

Media Days will not provide all the answers. Those will begin to arrive when preseason camp opens and become much clearer once the season begins.

But the questions Ryan Day, Sayin, Smith and McClain face will set the tone for what comes next.

A new offensive coordinator.

A proven quarterback and superstar receiver.

A defense searching for its next leaders.

And another Ohio State team entering the season expecting to compete for the Big Ten championship and a place in the College Football Playoff.