2017-2018 QB - Matthew Baldwin (Transfer to TCU)

Meyer said Matthew Baldwin is up to 210 pounds and is progressing well off of ACL injury. Added "Receivers love him."

— James Grega Jr. (@JGrega11) July 24, 2018

 

Ohio State has a quarterback with elite potential in its offense beyond sophomore Dwayne Haskins and redshirt freshman Tate Martell. Find out why the #Buckeyes have been so high on freshman Matthew Baldwin. https://t.co/EstoPZGgul via @TimLMoody pic.twitter.com/6ciuVxX3ZQ

— Buckeye Sports Bulletin (@Buckeye_Sports) July 28, 2018

 

Matthew Baldwin is a true freshman coming off a knee injury, but has already impressed Urban Meyer and Parris Campbell in his first seven months at Ohio State, showing Campbell that "he can absolutely sling it." https://t.co/xcVwSVNlrr pic.twitter.com/b2FFhOv5BW

— Eleven Warriors (@11W) July 30, 2018

 

Ryan Day said true freshman QB Matthew Baldwin, who is coming of an ACL injury, will start doing more this week. Day said he's coming along.

— Ari Wasserman (@AriWasserman) September 3, 2018

 

Matthew Baldwin and Alex Williams became the latest freshmen to shed their black stripes on Wednesday. https://t.co/JDCYJxdO0R

— Eleven Warriors (@11W) October 18, 2018

 

Urban Meyer says Matthew Baldwin is “about full speed now” as the freshman quarterback completes his ACL recovery road back from surgery in January. “He’s coming back,” Meyer said of Baldwin.

— Garrett Stepien (@GarrettStepien) October 25, 2018

 

How QB Matthew Baldwin could define the beginning of the Ryan Day era at Ohio State https://t.co/a0bmvuyL61

— Ari Wasserman (@AriWasserman) December 11, 2018

 

Ohio State QB Matthew Baldwin: “I’m going to compete as if I’m the starter and I’m going to prepare as if I’m the starter." https://t.co/st7YwaaZML

— Doug Lesmerises (@DougLesmerises) December 24, 2018

 

Matthew Baldwin is both confident in his ability and patient enough to wait his turn -- if necessary.
Heading into a heated QB battle after the arrival of Justin Fields, both of those traits make him key for the future of the position at Ohio State. https://t.co/Fc6O5hxhLA

— Austin Ward (@AWardSports) January 5, 2019

 

OSU Freshman QB Matthew Baldwin on Justin Fields: 'I'm not afraid of competition' https://t.co/AyTDQwQrNm via @TonyGerdeman

— Tony Gerdeman (@TonyGerdeman) January 6, 2019

 

#OhioState QB @matthewb_12 has competed for a starting job before. He’s not worried about doing it again with the #Buckeyes (FREE via @_Pat_Murphy)https://t.co/GNBPrJXqQV

— Bucknuts (@Bucknuts247) January 16, 2019

 

Ohio State: Importance of Matthew Baldwin only increasing for Buckeyes https://t.co/ZOt8oMkLQU

— Lettermen Row (@LettermenRow) January 16, 2019

 

Matthew Baldwin must be ready to play this season, even if Justin Fields is eligible to play immediately, with Tate Martell's transfer to Miami. https://t.co/AMGMJrm6h0

— Eleven Warriors (@11W) January 16, 2019

 

Ohio State football | Matthew Baldwin eager to compete for starting QB spot https://t.co/t0Fh8HokPI

— BuckeyeXtra.com (@BuckeyeXtra) January 19, 2019

 

QB Matthew Baldwin
2018 in review: After suffering a torn ACL on his first play of a high school playoff semifinal game, Baldwin spent most of the season recovering from his injury. He might have been able to play in the final few weeks of the season, but he didn't take a snap the entire year.

2019 outlook: Either Baldwin will start at quarterback or he will back up Justin Fields. His role will largely be determined by whether or not Fields gains immediate eligibility. If Fields is able to play in the fall, Baldwin will likely back him up. If Fields' waiver is not successful, Baldwin will assuredly start. In both scenarios, he's one of the most indispensable players on the team. Even as a backup, he would be one of just three scholarship quarterbacks on the roster and one of two quarterbacks that the coaches would feel comfortable playing in a game.

Long-term outlook: Even if Baldwin doesn't start in the fall, he's positioned well to land a starting spot down the line, and he almost certainly will have the edge in experience on whomever competes with him. If everything with Fields goes according to plan, the Georgia transfer will start in 2019 and 2020, then head to the NFL with two years of starting experience. Baldwin, who will be a redshirt junior in 2021, could be next. Jack Miller, a four-star quarterback from Arizona, will be a redshirt freshman and will likely be Baldwin's main challenger for the starting job. But considering what has happened with Ohio State's quarterbacks this offseason – Dwayne Haskins leaving for the NFL, Tate Martell transferring to Miami and Fields transferring to Ohio State – nothing is certain.

 

Matthew Baldwin
Of course, Fields' eligibility isn't good news for everybody. His impending arrival already scared off one quarterback to South Beach (not a bad place to get scared off to, in my opinion).

Baldwin arrived from Lake Travis High School in Austin, Texas as a raw quarterback with a really nice arm, similar to Haskins, and really to Fields himself. After Martell left, it was expected that Baldwin would be lining up under center against Florida Atlantic had Fields not been ruled eligible. Of course, the NCAA ruled in favor of Fields, meaning Baldwin will be relegated to second-string bench duty.

However, as we've seen before, backup quarterbacks have played a big part in recent Ohio State history, so Baldwin should be ready whenever called upon.

 

Garrett Wilson and Matthew Baldwin lost the 2017 Texas State Championship with Lake Travis.

Now, Wilson comes to Ohio State focused on finishing the job he and Baldwin wanted to accomplish in high school. https://t.co/CwyEHBPYgH

— Lantern Sports (@LanternSports) February 14, 2019

 

Matthew Baldwin began his Ohio State career with ACL surgery last winter. He has the complete opposite this spring with a QB battle coming. On the redshirt freshman's road to 100% with development "physically, mentally and emotionally." https://t.co/dAO3y586RR via @Buckeye_Sports

— Garrett Stepien (@GarrettStepien) February 15, 2019