In a rivalry game like Ohio State-Michigan, you would rightfully expect both teams to rely heavily on their veteran players. Historically, when the Buckeyes and Wolverines meet, it is the upperclassmen — the experienced players — who make the game-winning plays.
However, freshmen have made their presence felt in The Game.
In recent years, freshmen at Ohio State have delivered impressive performances. Ohio State fans fondly remember Maurice Clarett rushing for 119 yards and a touchdown against the Maize and Blue in 2002. Chris Olave caught two touchdowns and blocked a punt as a first-year player in 2018, and Garrett Wilson followed the next season with three catches for 118 yards and a touchdown. J.K. Dobbins rushed for over 100 yards and got into the end zone in 2017, while TreVeyon Henderson amassed over 100 total yards and two touchdowns in 2021. As a freshman starting quarterback in 2011, Braxton Miller threw for 235 yards, rushed for 100 yards and accounted for three touchdowns.
On the other side of the rivalry, Michigan had its share of freshmen making an impact in The Game. Charles Woodson introduced himself to the Buckeyes in 1995 with two interceptions. In 2004, Chad Henne made his rivalry debut with 328 passing yards and two touchdowns. Mike Hart had 61 rushing yards, 39 receiving yards and one touchdown that same year.
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When Ohio State and Michigan meet for the 121st time on Saturday, several freshmen have a chance to add their names to this list.
“These are the types of games where legends are born,” Buckeye head coach Ryan Day said this week. “And so, these guys understand that. And I think about Chris Olave as a freshman, that year where he blocked the punt and had two touchdowns in that game. His career just took off from there. Garrett Wilson had a big game that year. Guys in this game have used this as an opportunity to springboard their careers.”
Both teams will start freshmen at quarterback in The Game.
Julian Sayin is a redshirt freshman who played in four games in 2024 as a backup to starter Will Howard, but he will play in his first rivalry game. Day and offensive coordinator rian Hartline gradually brought Sayin along, not wanting to overload him early in his first year as a starter in big games. When Sayin takes the field on Saturday, he will be a Heisman Trophy contender who has thrown for 2,832 yards and 27 touchdowns and leads the country with a 79.4 percent completion rate.
While Day trusts Sayin, he still isn’t asking him to do too much in his first Michigan game.
“To continue to do what he’s done and lead the team to a victory,” Day responded when asked what Sayin’s priorities are against the Wolverines. “That’s it at the end of the day. And what does that look like? It depends on how the game plays out, but he’s got to do his job, make great decisions and ultimately be the guy that leads the team to victory. And that’s the No. 1 goal. The rest of it is gravy.
“Just win. Like, that’s it. Just lead the team to victory, whatever that looks like and however that is.”
Bryce Underwood is a true freshman. The No. 1 player in the 2025 recruiting class, Underwood was named the Maize and Blue’s starter heading into the season. As a dual-threat quarterback, he is developing as a passer, having passed for 2,166 yards and rushed for 322 yards, with five more trips to the end zone.
“He’s well-educated on the rivalry,” Michigan head coach Sherrone Moore said this week. “He knows everything about it. He’s seen it from afar and we’ve talked about this game for a very long time… So, it’ll be about going through the routine and just doing the things that he’s done at this point to get him prepared for the game.”
Both quarterbacks will have freshmen running backs alongside them on Saturday.
Redshirt freshman Jordan Marshall became the starter for the Wolverines after sharing carries with Alabama transfer Justice Haynes at the beginning of the season. Marshall has rushed for 871 yards and scored 10 touchdowns on 143 carries. Haynes was injured in late October and is not expected to play, so the role has shifted to the Cincinnati native, who had some thoughts on Ohio State and his running backs coach, Tony Alford, who left Columbus for Ann Arbor last year.
“I didn’t like a few other people (at Ohio State), and that’s truly why I didn’t pick there,” Marshall said of his recruitment this week. “I think coach Alford would tell you the same. He came here, and he sees the best head coach in the Big Ten, in college football, and how he carries himself and how he puts himself over the team. It’s all about culture, and that’s what I wanted to be around. I didn’t want to be around people that were about themselves, and I truly just believe that. That’s why coach Alford came here, too. He knew that he wanted to be around better people.”
The Buckeyes did not make either freshman running back available to the media this week; however, both Bo Jackson and Isaiah West have made an impact in their first years with the Scarlet and Gray and will play a role in this game.
Jackson took over as the starter in early October after impressing and earning more opportunities earlier in the season. Going into the game, Jackson leads Ohio State in rushing with 835 yards and five touchdowns on 129 carries.
West arrived in Columbus with an injury from his senior year of high school and wasn’t at full go until fall camp. He got his first real opportunity in mid-October and has become the Buckeyes’ No. 2 back as part of a four-man rotation.
“We need Bo to play well,” Day said. “We need him to be at his best like everybody else, and you just go with what you’ve seen all year. And we all know what this game means, but we also have to make sure they understand it’s football. And so you have to trust what you’ve done leading up to this point. That’s why we work so hard in preparation and what he’s done up to this point and his growth.”
The Scarlet and Gray will rely on other freshmen in smaller roles. Defensive back Devin Sanchez has played in nickel formations and is the first cornerback off the bench for Ohio State, having played in every game as a true freshman. Tight end Nate Roberts has also played in each game in his first college season, mainly lining up as a fullback in short-yardage situations. Redshirt freshman wide receiver Mylan Graham has played in every game on offense and could be called upon if either Carnell Tate or Jeremiah Smith is not fully healthy. With backup offensive lineman Joshua Padilla missing the last three games, redshirt freshman Gabe VanSickle has taken over, rotating with starting right guard Tegra Tshabola.
Michigan starts three redshirt freshmen – Jake Guarnera, Blake Frazier, and Andrew Sprague – on the offensive line. True freshman Andrew Marsh leads the Wolverines in receiving with 42 receptions for 641 yards and three touchdowns. Defensive backs Jayden Sanders and Jordan Young rotate in the secondary, with each getting opportunities with the first-team defense this year.
All these players will be expected to handle their first rivalry game properly.
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“We try to educate them throughout the year of what this game is all about,” Moore said. “Training camp, speakers come and talk about it. We’ll talk about it throughout the week. Throughout the building, they see it every day. They see it even more now. But I don’t think there’s really a way to just take away that initial feeling that you’re going to get when you walk out on the field. And you kind of don’t want them to take that away. You want them to feel that intensity, that burn. That’s that little extra motivation.”
Both Ohio State and Michigan have trusted freshmen this season, believing in their abilities. They will do so again on Saturday as these young players step into college football’s biggest rivalry game.
“You have to play with emotion, but you can’t let it play with you,” Day said. “And you have to learn to use it as nitrous, not as a primary fuel source. And I think that’s where our guys have to continue to just focus on the process of how they prepare for games. And they’re going to have enough emotion when they get into the game. We don’t need to incite any more of that during the week. They know how important this is. They know that this is our number one goal every year to win this game. So that’ll be our focus.”
