What 2025 QB commit Tavien St. Clair thinks of Ohio State offensive coordinator Bill O'Brien

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Wed, Jan 24, 2024, 5:35 PM·5 min read

Ohio State quarterback commit Tavien St. Clair admitted he was a bit nervous to meet new offensive coordinator and quarterbacks coach Bill O’Brien.

Corey Dennis, Ohio State’s former quarterbacks coach, was St. Clair’s primary recruiter and someone he was “really comfortable with.” But after spending most of Saturday with O’Brien to “just talk ball and really just get to know each other” at an Ohio State recruiting event, St. Clair, who is in the 2025 class out of Bellefontaine, is feeling much more comfortable with the new hire.

“Coach O’Brien was perfect,” St. Clair told The Dispatch. “I mean, he’s a great guy. Knows football, the ins and outs of it. And seeing his resume of the players he’s coached and the coaches he’s coached with was really impressive.”

O’Brian joins Ryan Day’s staff at Ohio State with 19 years of experience as an offensive coordinator, quarterbacks coach or head coach for six different college football and NFL teams, including the New England Patriots, Houston Texans, Penn State and Alabama.

FILE - Alabama quarterback Bryce Young (9) warms up as offensive coordinator Bill O'Brien, left, watches before an NCAA college football game against Florida, on Sept. 18, 2021, in Gainesville, Fla. Young views the Heisman Trophy as about what he and Alabama have already done, not what the top-ranked Crimson Tide are still trying to accomplish in his first season as their starting quarterback. (AP Photo/Phelan M. Ebenhack, File)

“There’s things I learned just about coverages when talking with him for 30 minutes more than I have ever learned in my life,” St. Clair said.

When he met O’Brien for the first time, St. Clair said he sought out stories about quarterbacks the coach has developed, including Deshaun Watson, Bryce Young and Tom Brady.

Talking about the future of Ohio State’s offense, St. Clair said he sees O’Brien fitting right in with Day and his scheme.

“(O’Brien is) still going to run coach Day’s offense,” St. Clair said. “It feels like him and coach Day, they run some things that are similar, so he felt pretty good and that’s why coach Day felt comfortable with making him offensive coordinator. His plan is to just add a few things to the offense and just kind of be like the head guy of the offense so coach Day doesn’t have to worry about just the offense. He can be a CEO of the team.”

Since the coaching hire, St. Clair said he hasn’t spoken with Dennis or heard from Day about what the former quarterbacks coach’s role will be at Ohio State in 2024. But St. Clair said he is “content” with Day and O’Brien.

Tavien St. Clair: Julian Sayin boosts Ohio State quarterback competition

O’Brien is not the only move Ohio State has made inside its quarterback room this offseason.

Ohio State added 2024 five-star quarterback Julian Sayin via the transfer portal. Sayin originally signed with Alabama but entered the portal after coach Nick Saban’s retirement. Sayin is one of two 2024 quarterbacks on Ohio State’s roster along with Air Noland, and joins a room that will include Devin Brown, Lincoln Kienholz and Kansas State transfer Will Howard.

Recruit Tavien St. Clair watches Ohio State warm up before playing Penn State Oct. 21, 2023 at Ohio Stadium.

During his recent Ohio State visit, St. Clair said, he and his family spoke with Day about the state of the quarterback room for about 90 minutes. And while Day had not made a decision on Sayin at that point, St. Clair said the Ohio State coach fixated on the importance of competition in the quarterback room.

“The main thing that we talked about was just building competition in the team,” St. Clair said. “They feel like if they can start it off with the quarterbacks, the other position groups will want to compete as well. They’re just trying to have the best play and I feel like bringing a guy like Julian in there brings some competition for the older guys, not just for Air and Lincoln, but for Devin and Will. They feel like bringing a young guy in there, outside of Air, that’s going to come in and compete, will be beneficial for them.”

St. Clair committed to Ohio State the summer before his junior season at Bellefontaine High School and is ranked as the No. 48 player and the No. 4 quarterback in the 2025 class.

But when he committed, St. Clair said, Day repeated the same message of competition. And adding Sayin is a continuation of that plan, a plan St. Clair said he’s in favor of.

“(Day’s) plan is at Ohio State you should never be able to start as a freshman. It should be the best quarterback room in the country,” St. Clair said. “So adding Julian didn’t really affect me. I’m happy that they made the decision. I’m happy that the team’s going to get some more competition in there and have the best players we can have.”

Tavien St. Clair continues to build Ohio State 2025 recruiting class

In his most recent visit to Ohio State, St. Clair had work to do.

He had two targets in Columbus to recruit −four-star tight end Nate Roberts and four-star offensive tackle Carter Lowe. Both have Ohio State high on their lists.

St. Clair and four-star wide receiver Jayvan Boggs are Ohio State’s only two offensive commits in the 2025 class, something St. Clair said he's continually trying to build up.

Sep 3, 2022; Columbus, Ohio, USA; Ohio State Buckeye recruit QB Tavien St. Clair (2025) before the NCAA football game between Ohio State Buckeyes and Notre Dame Fighting Irish at Ohio Stadium.

“I’m really just trying to create the best team that we can have when I’m there,” St. Clair said. “I’ve just become really comfortable with being the main recruiter, not just for the offense, but for our class. Devin Sanchez and me, Jayvan and Blake (Woodby), we all recruit really heavily. I know Eli (Lee) and Zahir (Mathis) do as well. We’re just trying to recruit like crazy and have the best class that we can have.”

St. Clair said Ohio State has set the tone in the 2024 class, securing another top-five class in the country with five five-star players in wide receiver Jeremiah Smith, wide receiver Mylan Graham, defensive lineman Eddrick Houston, cornerback Aaron Scott and Noland.

And with additions of players such as Sayin, safety Caleb Downs and running back Quinshon Judkins through the transfer portal this offseason, St. Clair said he doesn’t have any questions as to what Ohio State is doing ahead of 2024.

“When I’m there, when it’s our time to take over, we’ll know what it looks like,” St. Clair said. “At Ohio State, you expect excellence. The championships are in our DNA and that’s what we live by.”