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Brant ranks his top 10 Ohio State quarterbacks of all time based on college accolades. Where do legends such as Troy Smith, J.T. Barrett, Justin Fields land?
In recent years, Ohio State has been a quarterback factory. As one of the top programs in college football, you can always count on the Buckeyes to have a reliable signal caller.
If you're a longtime Ohio State fan, you know that it has not always been that way. Most school record holders in passing stats have come through the school in the past 10 years. It was only recently that the Buckeyes started to develop top-rated quarterbacks for the NFL Draft, such as Justin Fields, C.J. Stroud, and Dwayne Haskins Jr.
Who are the top 10 quarterbacks in Ohio State's entire history? Read on to see who cracks the top 10 list.
10. Dwayne Haskins Jr. (2018)
He only started for one season in Columbus, but Haskins had a great season in 2018. Haskins owns five of the top 10 single-game passing yard games in school history, as he passed for 400+ against Northwestern, Purdue, Indiana, Maryland, and Minnesota.
He also holds the single-season passing touchdown record with 50, and ranks seventh in career passing touchdowns despite starting for just one season. Haskins will always be remembered for his role in the thrashing of fourth-ranked Michigan, as he passed for 396 yards and six touchdowns in the 62-39 win.
Haskins did not pan out in the NFL despite being picked in the first round by Washington, as he was released after just two seasons and tragically passed away in 2022. He will forever live on in the hearts of Ohio State fans, and his historic 2018 season will never be forgotten.
9. Will Howard (2024)
You may find him on the Kansas State version of this list as well. Will Howard only spent one season in Columbus, but he cracks the list of top 10 quarterbacks in Ohio State history because of the generational run that he led his 2024 Ohio State team on en route to their first National Title in 10 seasons. Howard threw for 4,010 yards, 35 touchdowns, and 10 interceptions while rushing for 226 yards and seven touchdowns during his lone season in Columbus, leading the Buckeyes to a 14-2 record and a championship.
8. Terrelle Pryor (2008-2011)
As a true freshman, Terrelle Pryor took over for incumbent quarterback Todd Boeckman and led Ohio State to an 8-1 record while offering a glimpse of what made him so special as a recruit. Pryor started his sophomore and junior seasons as well and won the Big Ten title each of his three seasons as a starter, but never ended up making a National Championship game. His time at Ohio State came to a close after selling memorabilia for profit, which was illegal at the time in the NCAA, and prompted the firing of Jim Tressel and the 2012 postseason ban.
Pryor was extremely successful as Ohio State’s quarterback, and even went on to have a crazy NFL career that featured a stint as the Raiders’ starting quarterback as well as a 1,000-yard receiving season for the Browns that earned him a big payday in free agency.
Terrelle Pryor Sr went from a starter at QB in 2013 to a 1000-yard receiver in 2016 🔥 pic.twitter.com/UH6k9dx6Er
— Football’s Greatest Moments (@FBGreatMoments) December 26, 2025
7. Craig Krenzel (2001-2003)
He may not be the most talented quarterback of the bunch, but Craig Krenzel won. His first big win came in 2001 when he started in relief of starter Steve Bellisari in the Michigan game, leading Ohio State to its first win in Ann Arbor since 1987. Krenzel then went on a tear in 2002 as the starter, finishing the season at 13-0 with a National Championship upset over Miami in double overtime. He lost just two starts in his career, finishing at 24-2.
6. Art Schlichter (1978-1981)
The final starting quarterback for the legendary Woody Hayes, Art Schlichter, was a four-year starter at Ohio State. Schlichter finished his final three seasons in the top six of Heisman voting, although he never cracked the top three. He ranks third in school history with 7,547 career passing yards and was drafted fourth overall in the 1982 NFL Draft.
As successful as he was on the field, Schlichter’s off-the-field problems cost him his career. Schlicter was addicted to gambling and blew his entire signing bonus as a rookie on gambling. He was even arrested at one point and conned money from friends and strangers when running low on funds. His off-the-field antics remove him from many all-time lists, but his successful tenure as a Buckeye must be acknowledged here.
5. C.J. Stroud (2021-2022)
A two-year starter at Ohio State, Stroud never beat Michigan and never won a CFP game. However, his performance in the 2022 Peach Bowl, his last college game ever, is one of the greatest Ohio State quarterback performances of all time. Stroud dissected an elite Georgia defense to the tune of 348 yards and four touchdowns, just narrowly losing an all-time classic game.
The Houston Texans’ quarterback holds the single-game record for passing yards, putting up 573 against Utah in the 2021 Rose Bowl. He actually accounts for five of the 10 highest-yardage games in school history, while ranking second and fourth in single-season passing (4,435 yards in 2021, 3,688 yards in 2022). He didn’t check the win boxes that Buckeye fans look for, but Stroud had a great college career that led him to be drafted second overall.
4. Braxton Miller (2011-2015)
Arguably the most electrifying quarterback in Ohio State history, Braxton Miller started games as a true freshman after taking the reins from Joe Bauserman. Miller’s freshman season was a transition year for Ohio State, as it had just moved on from Tressel due to the tattoo scandal. With Luke Fickell as the interim head coach, the Buckeyes finished the season at 6-7. The following season was Urban Meyer’s first year at the helm, and Ohio State went a perfect 12-0 with Miller at the helm, but was banned from the postseason.
Miller won back-to-back Big Ten Offensive Player of the Year awards in 2012 and 2013. In the Orange Bowl against Clemson in early 2014, Miller injured his shoulder. He had to get surgery, which led to him missing the 2014 season in which J.T. Barrett and Cardale Jones led the Buckeyes to an improbable National Title. Miller did return to the Buckeyes in 2015, but ceded his position as QB1 to Barrett and Jones while opting to move to receiver. It was during this time that he created perhaps his most memorable highlight, the spin move against Virginia Tech.
Great moments of 2015 - Braxton Miller spin move vs VT pic.twitter.com/3LjAFr8Ezh
— Urban Meyer (@CoachUrbanMeyer) February 22, 2016
3. J.T. Barrett (2014-2017)
The current Chicago Bears’ quarterback coach may not have had an NFL career as a player, but his quick rise up the coaching ranks tells you all that you need to know about his game knowledge, leading to success as a collegiate quarterback. Barrett is one of the most beloved quarterbacks in the school’s history.
A four-year starter, Barrett holds school records for career passing yards (9,434), career passing touchdowns (104), and career quarterback rushing yards (3,263). He was the epitome of stability from 2014-2017 under center for Ohio State, helping lead the team to a CFP berth in 2014 before suffering an injury and turning the reins over to Jones for the title run.
2. Justin Fields (2019-2020)
What Fields did in his career at Ohio State will never go unappreciated by the Buckeye faithful. While it hasn’t panned out for him yet in the NFL, Fields put together an all-time great season in his first year starting. He threw for 3,273 yards, 41 touchdowns, and three interceptions while also rushing for 484 yards and 10 touchdowns.
Ohio State’s season fell short in a playoff game against Clemson that was full of questionable calls, but Fields returned in the Covid-shortened 2020 season to lift the Buckeyes past Clemson and into the National Championship, where they fell to a star-studded Alabama team.
Never forget when Justin Fields silenced the haters in the 2020 CFP semi-finals vs. Clemson
-22/28
-385 yards
-6 touchdownsOhio State won 49-28pic.twitter.com/AhSf7RVIe3
— 247Sports (@247Sports) July 29, 2023
1. Troy Smith (2002-2006)
The only Ohio State quarterback to win the Heisman in modern-day football, Troy Smith is the greatest signal caller in Buckeye history. An Ohio guy through and through, Smith first became the starting quarterback in his sophomore season. Smith never lost to Michigan, going 3-0 as a starter. He won the 2006 Heisman Trophy and made the BCS National Championship Game, where the Buckeyes lost to Urban Meyer’s Florida Gators.
Smith’s margin of victory in his Heisman voting was the second-largest in the history of the award, only trailing O.J. Simpson. He ranks ninth in school history with 5,720 career passing yards and was a dual threat, rushing for 1,154 yards in his career.
