COLUMBUS, Ohio — Counting last year's spring game and an appearance in the 2010 Kirk Herbstreit National Kickoff Classic in high school, Saturday marked Cardale Jones' third start inside of Ohio Stadium.
His performance helped make the case that it won't be his last.
The Ohio State national championship-winning quarterback didn't have the prettiest outing in the Buckeyes' annual spring game, an affair that resulted in a 17-14 win for Jones' Gray squad over the Scarlet. But with just a few passes, he reminded 99,391 fans in attendance why he's the best bet to start for OSU in the season opener.
While it's hard to read much into any exhibition—especially one where the team didn't allow Jones to be tackled—there was no questioning his arm strength on Saturday, which he displayed with a 74-yard toss in a halftime quarterback competition.
"That's it?" Jones responded when told the length of his throw. "My arm was kind of tired."
Jones' signature cannon of an arm helped him win the halftime battle against fellow Buckeyes signal-caller J.T. Barrett and former Heisman Trophy winner Troy Smith, and it'll be his best weapon in helping him win the more important faceoff coming up this summer.
It's no secret that the biggest quarterback competition in college football is still brewing in Columbus, as Jones will try to fend off Barrett and Braxton Miller as they each attempt to reclaim their status as the Buckeyes' starting quarterback. "There's going to be a lot of people interested," Urban Meyer admitted.
Meyer declined to name a starter for the season after the game, wanting to give Barrett and Miller the chance to recover from their respective injuries before doing so. But Jones appears to have solidified his status as the front-runner of the three heading into the summer, thanks in part to a strong spring.
"For the spring, I'd give him a very good spring," Meyer said after the game. "You didn't necessarily see it today."
Statistically, this wasn't Jones' best performance, a 19-of-42, 304-yard, two-touchdown, two-interception showing on a day where his Gray team only attempted three true rushes behind a makeshift offensive line. "He's got to be much sharper than that," Meyer said.
But while the Cleveland native's accuracy left something to be desired, it's what he did with his throws—both complete and incomplete—that helped strengthen his case to be the Buckeyes' starter.
His halftime throw aside, Jones made a habit of showing off the arm that could have made him a first-round pick had he opted to enter this year's NFL draft. The 6'5", 250-pounder routinely targeted wide receiver Corey Smith on throws down the field, connecting with the senior from Akron, Ohio, on passes of 37, 46 and 58 yards.
Jones was also able to consistently find spring stars Noah Brown (four receptions, 44 yards) and Curtis Samuel (three receptions, 30 yards), as he worked with what was clearly Ohio State's first-team wide receiver unit.
"I was with the guys I was repping with all spring. And for me to be able to have all the [first-team] reps with the guys who I think are going to be able to make plays for us in the fall, I mean, it was pretty fun," Jones said. "I hope I can carry it over to the fall."
Perhaps the player Jones' big arm impacts the most wasn't even on the field Saturday, as running back Ezekiel Elliott could be found running around the stadium with a selfie stick as he heals from offseason wrist surgery.
It's not a coincidence Jones' insertion into the OSU lineup led to big numbers for the Buckeyes running back, who totaled 696 rushing yards and eight touchdowns in Ohio State's three postseason games last year. Defenses were unable to crowd the box thanks to the deep threat Jones provides.
Whether or not Meyer takes that into account when making the decision on which player his starter will be remains to be seen, although the fourth-year Buckeyes head coach insists that he has a plan. Rather than go on intangibles, Meyer says that he'll chart the progress of Jones, Barrett and Miller all summer, before naming a starter midway through fall camp.
"You have to be right on now," Meyer said. "This can't be, well, 'I'm going with him because it's my gut feeling.' It's got to be statistical analysis and data, backed up on who is going to play quarterback."
At first glance, that may not seem to bode well for Jones, who will never put up the same type of numbers as Barrett and Miller as he's more limited—albeit still capable—as a rusher.
But if you look at how the Ohio State offense performed as a whole with Jones in the lineup, totaling 1,633 combined yards against Wisconsin, Alabama and Oregon—as well as the Gray team's 324-yard showing on Saturday—there's no doubting the impact he's capable of making.
All with a single flick of his wrist.
Ben Axelrod is Bleacher Report's Big Ten Lead Writer. You can follow him on Twitter @BenAxelrod. Unless noted otherwise, all quotes were obtained firsthand. All statistics courtesy of cfbstats.com. Recruiting rankings courtesy of 247Sports.
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