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ATHENS, Ohio — As Ohio football makes its way through spring camp, and the spring football game quickly approaching, eyes from inside and outside of camp have been on six players on Ohio's roster: the quarterbacks.
Parker Navarro, the fourth-best passer in program history in terms of passing yards, is out of eligibility. This means that for the first time since fellow program-best passer Kurtis Rourke graduated, Ohio is in spring camp without a set starter at football's most important position.
Veteran offensive coordinator and quarterbacks coach Scott Isphording likes the options he has in camp, with a wide range of skill sets and experiences among the six quarterbacks on the roster.
The last two quarterbacks for Ohio, Rourke and Navarro, are almost polar opposites in playing style. Rourke was more of a pure passer who could execute throws at a high level, while Navarro was more of a scrambling quarterback who was always a threat to make a play with his legs when possible. For Isphording, he doesn't prefer a particular style of play; he just wants someone who can get the job done.
"Managing the game sounds like a cliché, but I do think that's the biggest thing," Isphoring said. "Knowing when to be aggressive and knowing when to do everything that we can to avoid turnovers. But at the same time, you want explosive plays. So, when you manage the game, that's probably the thing that I think the best quarterbacks that we've had have found a way to do, and that's still what we need."
Among the top qualities of a good quarterback for Isphording is elite leadership. Graduate student Nick Poulos (Granite Bay, Calif.), Ohio's backup quarterback for the past two seasons, has been working to improve his leadership ability more than anything this offseason.
"For me, I think it's taking more command of the offense, being a little more vocal. I'm not the most vocal guy, I tend to be more of a by example kind of guy," Poulos said. "But also, it's about being consistent. I think in my time here, it's been a lot of flashes that are really good every day. I need to be more of the steady hand."
Not only has Poulos worked to become a leader, but he's also the quarterback with the most experience. A transfer to Ohio prior to the 2024 season, Poulos has already spent two years learning the offense.
Among the other six quarterbacks in camp, two were on Ohio's 2024 MAC Championship team: redshirt sophomore Matthew Papas (Grove City, Ohio) and redshirt junior Jacob Winters (Jackson, Ohio).
A former captain at Jackson High School, Winters has spent three years with Ohio, making two total appearances.
"Jacob Winters is coming off a knee injury that he suffered last spring," Isphording said. "... He is phenomenal in the quarterback room, and knows the offense, so he can kind of go out there and know what's going on."
Papas, similarly to Winters, is a former local standout at Grove City High School but has yet to get on the field as a Bobcat.
"Matthew Papas is similar to Jacob (Winters), and that is very valuable to the room," Isphording said. "He was a broken nose away from probably having to go in in our bowl game last year for Parker (Navarro). We know he can execute our offense."
The Bobcats have two young quarterbacks in camp who each have the potential to be leaders early in their careers. Redshirt freshman Hype Grand (La Puente, Calif.) played scout team for the Bobcats all last season and comes into his second season with the team ready to make an impact.
Ohio's other young quarterback, freshman Levi Davis (Lewis Center, Ohio), is the only freshman the team brought in at the position and is coming off success at the high school level. Playing with Olentangy Orange High School, Davis is coming off a state title and all-state award honors.
"Levi Davis kind of comes in with a little bit of fanfare off of his high school career and all the accolades that he got," Isphording said. "What you want to see with a guy that has not been here very long is pretty substantial steps of improvement…I've seen Levi taking big steps every day, every practice, and doing things he wouldn't have done successfully the practice before."
Rounding out the list, Ohio brought in one quarterback from the transfer portal, junior Matt Vezza (Elmhurst, Ill.), who most recently played at New Hampshire. In 13 games last season, Vezza passed for 2,673 yards and 19 passing touchdowns while recording 601 rushing yards.
"You can see that (Vezza) has got a lot of experience," Isphording said. "He played every snap of offensive football in New Hampshire last year, and you can see that he's comfortable being out there, but he's still learning the offense."
Isphording and his staff haven't made a decision on who will lead Ohio on offense next season, but each quarterback has impressed in their own way. No matter who it is, Isphording is confident that they will be able to continue the legacy of impressive quarterback play at Ohio.
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