QB controversy?
Two very different candidates battle to take over OSU
Wednesday, March 31, 2004
Ken Gordon
THE COLUMBUS DISPATCH
Justin Zwick, left, and Troy Smith are about to get down to the business of replacing Craig Krenzel.
They came to Ohio State on different tracks — Justin Zwick as the highschool phenom, the wunderkind who looked for all the world as if becoming the starting quarterback was his birthright.
Troy Smith was the scrapper, lacking Zwick’s accolades. The 2003 OSU media guide points out that he was recruited "as an athlete," which generally is the kiss of death when it comes to winning the quarterback job.
But their paths now have converged.
When spring practice begins Thursday, the battle begins. Sure, Ohio State has holes to fill on both lines, at tight end, flanker, linebacker, in the secondary and even at punter.
But all eyes will be focused on the fight to fill Craig Krenzel’s 24-3 shoes.
And there’s nothing like the smell of a quarterback competition in the morning.
"It’s always interesting," said fullback Branden Joe, shaking his head and smiling. "It gives (the media) something to talk about. It’s like a campaign, you know. It’s going to be ‘The Troy Smith vs. Justin Zwick Show.’ "
Sniff the air again, though. Is it really a wide-open competition?
OSU coach Jim Tressel said yesterday that "if the game were played today, Justin Zwick would start. Troy Smith probably would play. But the game isn’t today."
Zwick is listed ahead of Smith on the spring two-deep.
Tressel quickly squelched the specter of playing both quarterbacks.
"Typically, the person that has emerged has played to the degree the team needed for him to play," he said.
The two contestants are very different in many ways.
Zwick is a tall, rifle-armed pocket passer. He threw for 10,500 yards and 112 touchdowns in high school and graduated from Ohio’s prep football shrine, Massillon Washington.
Two years ago, there was a clamor for him to start as a true freshman. Cooler heads — and Krenzel — prevailed.
Now, after a redshirt year and a 2003 season in which he threw eight passes, Zwick is eager to play.
"Sitting has made him hungrier," said Rick Shepas, Zwick’s coach at Massillon. "He’s as focused as I’ve ever seen him. The thing that benefits him is he comes from a successful program, and he’s been in highpressure situations and been highly scrutinized. I don’t think he could be better prepared for the situation (at OSU)."
Zwick and Smith have not been made available to the news media.
Smith is from Cleveland Glenville, where he threw for 969 yards his senior season. He also redshirted in 2002 but played more than Zwick last season, albeit mostly as a kick returner.
He was 0 of 2 passing.
Ted Ginn, Smith’s high-school coach, said Smith used the last two years to great benefit. Ginn said he has been working hard in the classroom (he had a 3.56 grade-point average last quarter) and also mentally preparing himself to assume the role of starter.
"He knows that to be a quarterback at a major university is about a lot more than just playing," Ginn said. "It’s about learning the offense totally, being the image of the program. He’s matured so much just in the past six months.
"He feels he’s going to get a fair shot and the only person that can mess that up is him."
Tressel said Zwick has an edge in understanding the passing game, and Smith is better at scrambling out of trouble.
Edges, though, can be sharpened or dulled in the course of 15 spring sessions and 29 more in August.
"I feel good about all of them," said Tressel, including freshman Todd Boeckman in the mix. "They’re passionate about becoming the Ohio State quarterback. It will be fun. I’m as anxious as all of you to see how we step up."
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