Ohio State quarterback J.T. Barrett won’t be playing anywhere else in 2017. He said Wednesday he’ll be returning to Columbus for his senior season.
The news that Barrett isn’t heading to the NFL isn’t much of a surprise. Coming back to school gives him a chance to improve as a passer before the 2018 draft. Had he declared for the draft in May, he’d be likely be drafted behind multiple quarterbacks.
He said after Ohio State’s 31-0 College Football Playoff semifinal loss to Clemson on Saturday that it would be hard to leave the school.
“I didn’t really give [the future] that much thought, but it will be really hard for me to walk away when we just lost 31-0,” Barrett said Saturday night.
Barrett’s passing stats were down from 2014, his last full season as a starting quarterback. As a freshman thrust into duty because of Braxton Miller’s shoulder injury two years ago, Barrett was 203-314 passing for 2,834 yards, 34 touchdowns and 10 interceptions before he broke his ankle in the last game of the regular season vs. Michigan.
In 2016, Barrett was 233-379 passing for 2,555 yards, 24 scores and seven interceptions. He spent the 2015 season in a quarterback rotation of sorts with former Ohio State quarterback Cardale Jones.
Barrett’s rushing stats were down in 2016 too. His 4.1 yards a carry (2015 attempts for 845 yards) was the lowest of his career, though some of that decline can be attributed to a less-than-dominant Ohio State offensive line this season.
Had Barrett left, Ohio State wouldn’t have much experience at quarterback. Joe Burrow, a freshman in 2016, threw 28 passes this season. The Buckeyes also have a verbal commitment from four-star quarterback Tate Martell.
No comments:
Post a Comment