COLUMBUS, Ohio — Stop me if you've heard this before, but there's a quarterback controversy brewing in Columbus.
OK, don't stop me—it's not the type of signal-caller battle that those who have followed the Ohio State program have become accustomed to in the past year.
While J.T. Barrett is firmly entrenched as the Buckeyes' starting quarterback after spending the better part of the past 12 months competing with Cardale Jones for that right, Ohio State now finds itself with a shortage of experience on what's been its most talked-about position on the depth chart.
A year ago, the Buckeyes didn't only seem poised to have the best backup quarterback in the country, but the most talented third-stringer as well, before Braxton Miller made his offseason move to wide receiver.
Now? There's Barrett at the front of the line—that's no longer up for debate. But behind the Fiesta Bowl MVP sits nothing but unknown commodities, even for as well as head coach Urban Meyer has recruited since arriving to Columbus.
The battle for Ohio State's backup quarterback job won't only be important for the future, giving the winner the inside track to replacing Barrett as the Buckeyes' starter—something that could occur as soon as 2017—but for the upcoming season as well.
After all, if there's one program that understands the value of a backup quarterback, it's the one that won a national championship just a year ago with its third-string signal-caller.
With two scholarship quarterbacks behind Barrett on campus and a third on his way for the fall, the fight to serve as Ohio State's top understudy will begin as soon as this spring. At the moment, there is no clear-cut favorite to become Barrett's primary backup, but Meyer will have no shortage of options to evaluate this offseason.
Stephen Collier
If experience is of any sort of importance in the Buckeyes' backup quarterback race, then Stephen Collier would seem to have a slight edge—although not necessarily as big of one as you'd think. Of the three quarterbacks vying for Ohio State's No. 2 signal-caller role, Collier is the only one to have taken an official snap in his college career, with the 6'4", 225-pounder receiving sporadic mop-up duty in 2015.
But while one would think that alone would give Collier an advantage heading into spring practice, Meyer curiously failed to mention the former 3-star prospect while discussing his team's quarterback situation during a signing day appearance on his radio call-in show.
"This is a critical spring for him," Meyer later said at his signing day press conference. "This is the time for him to produce. He works his tail off. To get in the mix you've got to be pretty good."
The reality is that Collier has always been a long shot to be a long-term solution for the Buckeyes at quarterback, an under-recruited player who arrived at Ohio State after Meyer missed on Deshaun Watson, Kyle Allen and Brandon Harris during the 2014 recruiting cycle.
It's likely not a coincidence that the Buckeyes reportedly got back in the Allen sweepstakes this offseason after he announced his intentions to transfer from Texas A&M before ultimately landing at Houston with former OSU offensive coordinator Tom Herman.
A native of Leesburg, Georgia, Collier's ceiling always seemed to be that of former Ohio State signal-caller Kenny Guiton, who turned into a viable backup for Braxton Miller in the final two seasons of his five-year college career.
Ultimately, that's what Collier could find himself as this season: Barrett's backup in title, but a major question mark should significant playing time be needed from the Buckeyes' understudy. Much of where Collier goes from now will be determined this spring, perhaps making him the biggest wild card in this offseason battle.
Joe Burrow
While Collier may have experience—no matter how limited—on his side, it's redshirt freshman Joe Burrow who appears to be Meyer's favorite to secure Ohio State's No. 2 quarterback.
The fifth-year Buckeyes head coach said as much during his signing day call-in show, anointing Burrow as Barrett's backup in the same answer in which he omitted Collier.
"Joe Burrow's really moving," Meyer said.
A former 4-star prospect by way of The Plains, Ohio, Burrow redshirted in 2015 but was impressive enough in practice to steal reps from Collier with the Buckeyes' third team by season's end. Earning Ohio's Mr. Football award in 2014, the 6'3", 208-pounder put up video game-like numbers in his storied high school career, completing 72 percent of his passes for 4,445 yards, 63 touchdowns and two interceptions while adding 642 yards and five scores on the ground in his senior season.
Playing in Ohio's Division III, questions often arose about the competition he faced, but in his short time on campus, that already appears to be a nonfactor. Arriving alongside fellow QB Torrance Gibson, who has since moved to wideout, questions have always seemed to be attached to Burrow's college career, but for now he seems to have the inside track to becoming the Buckeyes' quarterback of the future.
At the very least, Burrow should be considered the favorite to be Barrett's backup this season, giving him the inside track to becoming his long-term replacement. And should Ohio State's starter go down with an injury in 2016, don't be surprised if Burrow finds himself in the starting lineup as the most viable long-term solution to any quarterback needs.
Dwayne Haskins
Although Meyer has seemingly penciled in Burrow as Barrett's backup, the Buckeyes head coach also noted, "The one walking through the doors in June is really good."
"The one" Meyer was referring to is Dwayne Haskins, a 4-star prospect and the lone quarterback signee in Ohio State's 2016 class. A longtime commit to Maryland, Haskins flipped his pledge to the Buckeyes in January after Tristen Wallace spurned Ohio State to play wide receiver at Oregon.
And although Haskins at one time appeared to be the Buckeyes' Plan B, Meyer hasn't been short on praise for the 6'3", 198-pounder who was recently named MVP of the International Bowl.
"If you go watch his highlight tape, just watch the ball come out of his hand, his arm strength, he's a good 6'3"-plus," Meyer said. "The fundamentals that Dwayne Haskins possesses right now is as good as I've ever seen in a young quarterback."
With Barrett entrenched in the starting lineup, Haskins would ideally redshirt in 2016, just like Barrett, Jones, Collier and Burrow have all done under Meyer. But with the way Meyer has talked about his newest quarterback and the uncertainty behind Barrett on the Buckeyes depth chart, the three-time national championship head coach appears to be considering deviating from his plan and playing Haskins as soon as he deems necessary.
"I anticipate...he will compete for playing time as a true freshman," Meyer said.
Without the added benefit of spring practice, beating out Burrow—or even Collier for that matter—could prove to be a tall task.
But for now, the battle to be the Buckeyes' backup quarterback appears wide-open, and could go a long way in shaping the future of Ohio State football.
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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