Ohio State Buckeyes quarterback Julian Sayin (10) speaks to his teammates in the second half of the NCAA college football game at Ohio Stadium on Saturday, Nov. 15, 2025 in Columbus, Ohio.
Julian Sayin QB Ohio State |
NFL Draft Profile & Scouting Report
| Jersey: #10 PLAY STYLE: Pocket Passer | ||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Last Updated: 08/03/2026 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Draft Year: 2027 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||
| FORTY time: 4.70 seconds (76%*) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||
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| Jersey: #10 | |
| PLAY STYLE: Pocket Passer | |
| Last Updated: 08/03/2026 | |
| Draft Year: 2027 | |
| Forty time: 4.70 seconds (76%*) | |
| Overall Rating: |
92.2 / 100
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| Average rating of opposition Defense player has faced | ||
| Defense Rating: |
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78% |
| Click the links below to view how player ranks vs other prospects. | ||
| Release Speed: |
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81% |
| Short Passing: |
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86% |
| Medium Passing: |
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93% |
| Long Passing: |
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95% |
| Rush/Scramble: |
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66% |
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DRAFT PROJECTION:
1st - Top 5
Overall Rank:
#3
Position rank:
#2 (QB)
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| College Games: 18 College Snaps: 859 | ||
ESPN RATING: 91/100
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247 RATING: 98/100
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RIVALS RATING: 6.1 (100%)
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| Player Comparison* (Similarity level) | ||
|---|---|---|
| Michael Penix Jr. - Washington |
|
85% |
| Shedeur Sanders - Colorado |
|
84% |
| Ty Simpson - Alabama |
|
78% |
Draft Profile: Bio
Julian Sayin grew up in Carlsbad, California and was a consensus five-star recruit, rated the No. 1 quarterback in the 2024 class by ESPN, 247Sports, On3, and Rivals. He was named the Elite 11 MVP in 2023 and finished at Carlsbad High School with 7,824 passing yards, 85 touchdowns, and 10 interceptions across three varsity seasons. As a senior, he completed 75 percent of his passes for 2,347 yards and 24 scores against a single pick while leading Carlsbad to a fifth straight league title.Sayin signed with Alabama in December 2023, enrolled in January 2024, then entered the transfer portal following Nick Saban's retirement. He landed at Ohio State, where he redshirted behind Will Howard during the Buckeyes' 2024 national championship run, appearing in four games and completing 5-of-12 passes for 84 yards and a touchdown.
He won the starting job in 2025, led the nation in completion percentage at 77.0 percent, threw for 3,610 yards and 32 touchdowns against eight interceptions, and finished fourth in the Heisman Trophy voting. He earned Big Ten Freshman of the Year honors, was a finalist for the Maxwell Trophy and the Davey O'Brien Award, and led Ohio State to a 12-0 regular season before back-to-back postseason losses to Indiana and Miami.
Scouting Report: Strengths
- Best ball placement in the class, throwing receivers open for yards after the catch
- Led the nation in completion percentage while still pushing the ball down the field
- Quick, compact release shrinks the window and beats tight coverage to the spot
- Layers touch and velocity by route, dropping seams and lacing comebacks
- Lit up Wisconsin for 393 yards and four scores, a career-best afternoon
- Carved Penn State 20 of 23 for 316 and four touchdowns in a signature win
- Lives in structure with a tiny turnover-worthy rate despite an aggressive target depth
- Climbs the pocket with purposeful footwork instead of drifting into sacks
Scouting Report: Weaknesses
- Slight frame for the position, with the durability questions that come with it
- Creates little off-script, winning almost entirely from the pocket and on time
- Late coverage rotations sped him up at Indiana, where pressure forced a quiet night
Scouting Report: Summary
Sayin was a five-star early enrollee at Alabama who transferred to Ohio State after Nick Saban retired, won the job in his first year on campus, and led the nation in completion percentage as a redshirt freshman, finishing fourth in the Heisman voting and Big Ten Freshman of the Year while pushing the Buckeyes into national-title contention. The tape is unusually clean for a quarterback with one season of starts. Accuracy, processing and release work together: the ball comes out fast, it goes where it needs to, and he rarely puts it in harm's way.He completed seventy-seven percent while averaging better than nine yards an attempt, which is not a checkdown number, and he throws receivers open rather than waiting for separation. He hung 393 yards and four scores on Wisconsin and carved Penn State 20 of 23 for 316 and four more in his biggest spots. The placement is the separator; defenders rarely get a chance to adjust because the ball is on time and on the frame. He climbs the pocket with purpose and protects the football at an unusually high level for his experience.
The drawbacks are real but manageable. He is slight and will need an NFL strength program to hold up over a 17-game season, and he wins almost entirely within structure, with little of the off-script creation that bails out a play when the first read is gone. Late post-snap rotations sped him up at Indiana, where pressure forced his quietest game. Those are experience issues more than structural flaws, and he returns to Ohio State for 2026 to answer them. Overall, he is the safest passer in the class and a top-of-the-board fit for a timing or West Coast offense, with the ceiling tied to proving he can solve disguise and add play strength.
How other scouting services rate Julian Sayin (Overall Rank)
All Scouts AverageOverall Rank
22.7
All Scouts AveragePosition Rank
4.0
*Percentile Ranking in Player's Position Group (NFL Combine Historical Data): This percentile reflects how a player's specific statistics rank
in comparison to historical performances at the NFL Combine, specifically within their position group. A higher percentile indicates a better performance.
For instance, being in the 90th percentile for a particular stat means the player outperformed 90% of their peers in that category.
*Similarity Percentage: This percentage is calculated based on a comprehensive analysis of various factors, including height, weight, 40-yard dash times, on-field performance statistics, and overall player rating. The analysis is conducted against our database of draft prospects from 2021 to 2023. This similarity score helps in evaluating how closely a current prospect aligns with past prospects. It is important to note, however, that this score reflects similarities based on college production and attributes, and does not account for eventual success or performance in the NFL.
*Similarity Percentage: This percentage is calculated based on a comprehensive analysis of various factors, including height, weight, 40-yard dash times, on-field performance statistics, and overall player rating. The analysis is conducted against our database of draft prospects from 2021 to 2023. This similarity score helps in evaluating how closely a current prospect aligns with past prospects. It is important to note, however, that this score reflects similarities based on college production and attributes, and does not account for eventual success or performance in the NFL.