Is J.T. Barrett the best QB to ever play at Ohio State? Kiffin knows job speculation grows with each FAU victory
COLUMBUS, Ohio — J.T. Barrett helped bring Ohio State a national championship but has heard hysterical fans demanding he be benched. He has broken nearly every school passing and scoring record but isn’t considered a top NFL prospect.
The quarterback who plays his final regular-season game on Saturday against Michigan is more driven than naturally talented, more analytical than emotional, more pragmatic than go-forbroke. He has struggled with accuracy and his arm strength is mediocre.
But he’s undeniably a winner.
He’s 35-6 as a starter at Ohio State and holds 35 school and Big Ten records. If he beats the Wolverines again, which has to happen for the No. 8 Buckeyes to have any shot at getting back to the playoffs, he will tie Art Schlichter for most quarterback wins in school history.
Barrett passed four-year starter Schlichter this season in career passing yards, and also holds school records for passing yards per game, completions, completion percentage, touchdown passes, touchdowns responsible for, and total offense. He’s second only to Heisman winner Troy Smith in career passing efficiency (157.1 to 153.7).
“He’s one of the best leaders I’ve ever been around,” Ohio State senior tackle Jamarco Jones said. “He’s also one of the most competitive people I’ve ever been around. He just wants to win, and he’s going to do whatever it takes to win, and that’s something that everybody feeds off of.”
His coach, Urban Meyer, says part of that makes Barrett exceptional is a desire to win that exceeds physical limitations or ego.
I love J.T.,” Meyer said. “J.T. is a member of the Meyer family and the Buckeye family for the rest of his life.”
Yet Ohio State fans haven’t appreciated him as much at times.
Maybe because he was sitting out with a broken ankle when the Buckeyes won the national championship in 2014. Or maybe because he hasn’t managed to be quite as good as that first year. Or maybe because he’s been there so long. Barrett is a four-year starter in a sport where the brightest stars rarely stick around.
He acknowledged as much during spring practice this year, saying he understood the fascination over newcomer Tate Martell, a flashy freshman quarterback popular on social media.
Barrett hesitates to talk about his legacy. Maybe there will be time to think about that when it’s all over. But the story is still being written.
“I think I’ve done some good things here,” he said. “Who knows?”
BOCA RATON — Lane Kiffin already knows what profession he will choose once his coaching career ends.
Kiffin, in his first season at Florida Atlantic, thinks he is destined to join the sports-media ranks. It will provide him opportunity to switch roles and speculate on a coach’s next destination.
“You [the media] can say whatever you want,” Kiffin said Tuesday. “You can change what people say, too, and you’re never held accountable for it. You guys have a great job.”
Kiffin’s comments came after he was asked about handling the hearsay of his future at FAU. Last week he expressed his happiness in Boca Raton during an ESPNU radio interview, but it was taken as he was automatically returning for another season. The network then tweeted, “Don’t be fooled by all the rumors...@Lane_Kiffin says he’s staying at @FAU_Football.”
“I did not make the statement that I will be here next year,” Kiffin said. “I plan on being here. They write what I say, and they title it differently … I was talking about that I do really enjoy it here.”
Kiffin is more focused on the moment instead of the future. The Owls (8-3) will play in their first Conference USA title game next week against North Texas. They are also bowleligible for the first time in nearly 10 years and chasing their first 10-win season at the Division I-A level.
He said FAU is more than just a pit stop on the way to a higher profile job. Kiffin’s name is often associated with several coaching vacancies among Power Five conferences, including Florida, Tennessee and UCLA.
“It is not what people would assume that, ‘You took this job to get the next one,’ ” Kiffin said. “Coaches do that because they want to get to that elite level that they call it. I think this is a very unique place in where we’re at as a team. We have the majority of our team coming back. We’ve got one of the most dynamic players in college football, and he’s only a true sophomore.”’
Kiffin was referring to running back Devin “Motor” Singletary, who has set nearly every FAU single-season record and leads the nation with 25 total touchdowns. Coaching him and the several talented players returning gives all the reason for Kiffin to want to stick around.
“We’ve got some really good quarterbacks, some that are playing now and some that are playing next year,” Kiffin said. “We live in Boca. We can recruit here. We’ve got an awesome staff. It’s not what people would assume.”
Players have reciprocated the feeling. They have grown to respect him in a short period of time.
“To me, he’s been the same guy,” center Antonyo Woods said. “He’s a good coach. He wants us to be great … Also, he’s just been the same guy, which is one of the greatest qualities in good people.”
Still, Kiffin said there will always be rumors about him coveting a new job. He has yet to address the assumptions with the team because it knows the focus is on this season.
“As far as the noise, it is what it is,” Kiffin said. “When you’re doing well, that’s a product of it. I think it’s good for our players, for our program. FAU needs to get attention … We have totally changed the national dynamic of FAU.”
srichardson@ sun-sentinel.com