Julian Sayin Opens Up on Ohio State-Michigan Rivalry

Julian Sayin understands the emotional weight of college football’s fiercest rivalry better than most quarterbacks his age. Before ever taking a snap against Michigan, he watched from the Ohio State sideline in 2024 as the program suffered a brutal home loss. One year later, as the starting quarterback, he experienced the other side of it entirely throwing three touchdown passes in Ann Arbor to secure a win and learning firsthand just how fine the line is between heartbreak and triumph in this rivalry.

Speaking with On3’s Andy Staples and Ari Wasserman, Sayin was asked directly about the experience of losing to Michigan, and whether it’s something he’d ever want to go through himself as a starter.

“It’s Definitely Not a Good Feeling”: Sayin on Watching Ohio State Lose to Michigan

Sayin didn’t sugarcoat his answer. He described the feeling of watching Ohio State lose to Michigan as genuinely bad, while crediting the leadership he witnessed on that 2024 team for helping the program rally back and ultimately win the national championship that same season. Even with that eventual redemption, he was clear that it’s an experience he never wants to live through again.

That sentiment crystallized into one particularly striking line during the conversation. Asked about what losing to Michigan actually means inside the program, Sayin explained that the rivalry becomes something far bigger than a single Saturday — in his own words, it becomes your livelihood.

Why the Rivalry Hits Different Once You’re in Columbus

Sayin is naturally soft-spoken and rarely one to engage in trash talk, but he made clear that Ohio State-Michigan isn’t treated like a normal week on the schedule once you’re actually part of the program. According to Sayin, new players learn quickly after arriving in Columbus just how much history surrounds the rivalry, and just how important the game is to the entire state and fan base — to the point where it stops feeling like just another football game and starts shaping the day-to-day mood around the program entirely.

Sayin’s First Taste of the Rivalry: A Statement Performance in Ann Arbor

Sayin isn’t speaking hypothetically about any of this he’s already lived through the rivalry as a starter and come out on top. On Nov. 29, 2025, he walked into Ann Arbor and helped Ohio State take control after a shaky start, throwing an early interception before settling in and taking over the game. Playing in difficult, snowy conditions with an entire season’s worth of pressure riding on the outcome, Sayin looked composed well beyond his experience level, finishing with 233 passing yards and three touchdown passes as Ohio State handled Michigan by a final score of 27-9.

Reflecting on that performance previously on The Triple Option, Sayin credited the team’s mindset heading into the game, saying the group didn’t feel overwhelmed by the pressure despite understanding exactly how much the game meant to Ohio’s fans. He pointed to the energy of walking into that stadium as a genuinely fun experience, and explained that once he settled down after his early interception, he felt like Ohio State was firmly in control the rest of the way.

Ohio State’s Straightforward Goals for 2026

With Michigan set to travel to Columbus for this year’s edition of the rivalry, Sayin was direct about what’s expected from Ohio State in 2026. He laid out the program’s priorities in simple terms: beat Michigan, win the Big Ten championship, and win the national championship — the same goals, he said, that define every season at Ohio State regardless of circumstance.

Before Ohio State gets to that point, the Buckeyes still have to navigate a difficult 2026 schedule that includes matchups against Texas, Indiana, Oregon, USC and Iowa. But as Sayin’s comments make clear, none of those games carry quite the same emotional and cultural weight as Michigan week does inside the program.

Ryan Day’s Approach to Managing Rivalry Week

Sayin’s comments echo an approach Ryan Day has talked about publicly as well — treating the buildup to Michigan week like any other normal week of preparation, then playing the actual game with the understanding that it means everything. That formula worked in 2025, and with Michigan now traveling to Ohio Stadium instead of Ohio State going on the road, Sayin and the Buckeyes will look to replicate it in 2026.

Having already gone 1-0 as a starter in the rivalry, Sayin’s message is clear: he has no interest in learning what it feels like to be 1-1. Based on how vividly he described the pain of watching Ohio State lose to Michigan in 2024, it’s clear he doesn’t need another reminder of exactly how much that loss can sting.

Final Thoughts

Julian Sayin’s comments to On3’s Andy Staples and Ari Wasserman offer a rare, honest look at just how deeply the Ohio State-Michigan rivalry shapes life inside the program not just on game day, but as a defining part of what it means to play quarterback in Columbus. Having already experienced both the agony of a Michigan loss from the sideline and the triumph of a Michigan win as a starter, Sayin enters 2026 with a clear understanding of the stakes, and an even clearer motivation to make sure his own record in the rivalry stays spotless.