Buckeyes freshman quarterback Tavien St. Clair sheds black stripe

COLUMBUS — Ohio State freshman quarterback and former five-star prospect Tavien St. Clair is beginning to show signs that he can be a future star at the most important position.

St. Clair has already taken his first snaps of his career, those coming in the Week 2 win over Grambling State. But after practice Tuesday night, St. Clair achieved a major milestone: he shed his black stripe, a sign that he’s beginning to figure things out in his first season on campus.

St. Clair is the 13th Ohio State freshman to lose the black stripe from the 2025 recruiting class. He joins wide receiver Quincy Porter, linebacker Riley Pettijohn, tight end Nate Roberts, cornerback Devin Sanchez, safety Faheem Delane, wide receiver Phillip Bell, running back Bo Jackson, offensive lineman Jake Cook, wide receiver De’zie Jones, defensive tackle Jarquez Carter, defensive end Zion Grady and linebacker TJ Alford. Porter lost his during spring practice, while Pettijohn, Roberts and Sanchez shed theirs during the first week of training camp. Delane and Cook lost their black stripe after the team’s second scrimmage of training camp last month. Bell lost his a week and a half before the opener. Jones lost his two weeks ago before the Grambling State game.

For St. Clair specifically, Ohio State coach Ryan Day has talked glowingly of his freshman signal-caller, even if he knows St. Clair isn’t ready to be competing for reps right now.

“He has all the traits. He has the tools,” Day said in August. “We think he can absolutely be the quarterback of our future. But he’s got a gap here that he’s got to cover. He’s working at it hard. It’s [Billy Fessler’s] job and my job and [Brian Hartline’s] job to make sure that we’re giving him everything he needs to grow, but he has the tools. Right now, he’s the clear third.”

Third, of course, behind starter Julian Sayin and backup quarterback Lincoln Kienholz.

But now St. Clair’s stripe is off, a clear sign that he’s beginning to figure out how the quarterback position is supposed to look at Ohio State.

He’s only a few months into his Buckeyes career, but the Buckeyes freshman quarterback is making major progress.