B1G preseason poll: ‘Qhio State QBs’ finished sixth

No one really knows yet who Ohio State's quarterback will be. There are reports that it won't be Braxton Miller, the two-time Big Ten Silver Football winner who's coming off shoulder surgery. He's reportedly moving to wide receiver.

That leaves J.T. Barrett and Cardale Jones. Barrett topped Drew Brees' Big Ten record for total touchdowns in a season, accounting for 45 TDs as a redshirt freshman. Barrett suffered an ankle injury against Michigan and yielded to Jones, the third stringer. Jones led the Buckeyes to a Big Ten championship, a College Football Playoff semifinal win over Alabama and a national final victory over Oregon.

So, you can see why the nameless 'Ohio State quarterbacks” tied for sixth, with two first-place votes, in the voting conducted by cleveland.com.

The runaway winner was the running back who carried the Buckeyes to the National Championship last year, Ezekiel Elliott. The junior received 31 of 39 first-place votes to outpace Michigan State quarterback Connor Cook, who received three first-place votes.

Jones was third, Barrett was fourth and one-time Ohio State quarterback Braxton Miller was eighth. All told, the OSU quarterbacks received 46 total points, which would rank third behind Elliott and Cook.

Voters were asked to rank a top three, with three points given for first-place votes, two for second and one for third. The voting stands as the only leaguewide ballot for players of the year. When Big Ten Media Days open Thursday, the league will release only a watch list of the top 10 players in the conference.

Preseason Big Ten Offensive Player of the Year voting

(First-place votes in parentheses)

1. Ezekiel Elliott, Ohio State RB, 105 (31)

2. Connor Cook, Michigan State QB, 57 (3)

3. Cardale Jones, Ohio State QB, 19 (2)

4. J.T. Barrett, Ohio State QB, 15 (1)

5. Corey Clement, Wisconsin RB, 15

6. Christian Hackenberg, Penn State QB, 9

6. Ohio State quarterbacks 9 (2)

8. Braxton Miller, Ohio State H-back, 3

9. Wes Lunt, Illinois QB, 2

Scott Dochterman and I also voted. Here are our picks;

Scott's

1. OSU quarterback (on a limb, Cardale Jones)

2. Connor Cook, Michigan State

3. Ezekiel Elliott, Ohio State

Marc's

1. Ezekiel Elliott, OSU

2. Cardale Jones, OSU

3. Connor Cook, MSU

l Comments: (319) 398-8256; marc.morehouse@thegazette.com