COLUMBUS, Ohio — For now, the nickname is "Chuck."
That was the nickname bestowed to Ohio State quarterback Tate Martell on his official visit. It's a bit of a tradition started by quarterback J.T. Barrett.
For example, Joe Burrow is "John" and Dwayne Haskins is "Ross." Martell, a four-star early enrollee from powerhouse Bishop Gorman High School in Las Vegas, is "Chuck." He laughed that line of questioning away toward the end of his Signing Day interview session at the Woody Hayes Athletic Center on Wednesday. Ohio State strength coach Mickey Marotti gave Martell the nickname on his official visit. What's done is done.
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Martell, dressed in a scarlet-on-scarlet polo-shorts combo, labeled Ohio State his dream school. He owns a picture of his grandfather holding him in a Buckeyes onesie as a child to prove it. He knew there was a chance Barrett would return to school for a fifth year. That didn't influence his decision. Ohio State has one of its best recruiting classes ever. Martell is roommates with five-star recruits Baron Browning and Jeffrey Okudah. Martell is the quarterback of that class. He's ready for what comes next.
"I was preparing myself for (Barrett) to come back," Martell said. "I have no issue competing with whomever. To make it to the NFL, you have to compete anyway. This is not where I want to stop. I want to play in the NFL, so this isn't going to be the last time I have to compete against the best guy out there."
That's standard operating procedure for a quarterback. Martell has drawn comparisons to former Texas A&M Heisman Trophy winner Johnny Manziel, and as Cleveland.com's Ari Wasserman notes, "The comparison is more about the electrifying way Manziel played in college, which was amazing enough to win the Heisman Trophy."
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That's how it should be. Judge Martell on and off the field on his own merits. He's another cool, confident quarterback in a room full of cool, confident quarterbacks. That was part of the reason why Ohio State coach Urban Meyer added him to the stockpile. The main reason, however, was simple.
"Tate is a winner. J.T. Barrett is a winner. Braxton Miller was a winner. Obviously Cardale Jones is a winner. Tim Tebow was a phenomenal winner," Meyer stopped the roll call before continuing on. "So obviously that's where he fits. He's a winner. He comes from a winning program, a winning sense of the way he is, personality. You see the way he walks around here, so that's what he brings to us."
That's what quarterbacks are expected to bring for the Buckeyes. Martell, Miller and Barrett are among the 10 Ohio State quarterbacks with a four-star rating or better since 2002 according to Rivals.com. Martell is part of a bright future at the position.
In some ways, that competition in 2018 might be more interesting than Miller vs. Jones vs. Barrett drama heading into fall camp in 2015. Haskins — also a four-star recruit — will be in the mix along with Burrow, a former Ohio Mr. Football who secured the backup job in 2016. Emory Jones, who could be the first Ohio State five-star quarterback commit since Terrelle Pryor, also could be in the room in 2018. That's the field Martell could be competing against in the future.
"I'm not thinking about 12 months," Martell insists. "I'm thinking about right now. I want to play. I know I'm going to do everything I can, and if I don't play that's on me. I know that Coach Meyer is going to play the best guy, and if I go prove that then it's not my decision to make or anything. I'm not thinking about that right now."
For now, Martell is an early enrollee making his way through that first year. Barrett will be the starter in 2017, but spring football could be an early primer for that next competition for the backup spot. That's competition Martell seems ready for. He's working with new quarterbacks coach Ryan Day and offensive coordinator Kevin Wilson to start that process.
"If you can make it through this kind of competition, then you can make it in the NFL, at least get drafted," Martell said. "Like I said, this is not where I want to stop. This is just part of the process to keep going."
In the meantime, Martell said he'll continue to learn from Barrett, who has experienced just about every scenario as the Buckeyes' quarterback. Expectations at Ohio State are higher than most places, which comes with the territory playing for a coach who is 61-6 since arriving in 2012.
"You have to watch your back 24/7 here," Martell said. "Not with even being here, but you have to watch yourself off the field to make sure you're not getting in trouble and stuff like that. I've talked to a lot of the guys. J.T.'s still here, and that's good, because he can tell me about all the experiences. He has no problem expressing everything and telling us what to do and what not to do."
Barrett also has no problem what to call the other quarterbacks. For now, Martell's nickname is "Chuck."
Just don't be surprised when he makes his own name in the future.
