Joe McGuire, Jayden Fielding Will Remain Starting Punter, Kicker

Head coach Ryan Day announced at his weekly press conference on Tuesday that punter Joe McGuire and kicker Jayden Fielding will keep their starting duties for the Buckeyes in Week 1.

Day said he allowed the competition to play its course, and said the players vying for both positions had strong fall camps, but ultimately he turned to the veterans.

“We allowed both of those guys to have competitions, at kicker and at punter and both incumbents have done a great job in camp,” Day said. “We still have to go through this week of practice, but our expectation is that Jayden and Joe will handle the kicking and (punting) game.”

Fielding has started the past two seasons, and the senior kicker has made 29 of 37 field goals and 122 of 123 extra points, finishing as the Buckeyes’ leading scorer in each of the last two years.

The IMG Academy product drilled a 33-yard field goal with 26 seconds remaining to secure Ohio State’s 34-23 national championship win over Notre Dame. He had some struggles during the 2024 season, namely missing two field goals in the 13-10 loss to Michigan, but revealed this spring that he had been kicking the entire season with a torn hip adductor.

Australian punter Joe McGuire is also back as the starter after averaging 42.1 yards on 47 punts last season as a sophomore, including five that traveled more than 50 yards.

Redshirt freshman Nick McLarty had a good fall camp for the Buckeyes, likely getting his consistency issues under control, and was able to lose his black stripe.

Day said the staff has not yet made decisions on who will be returning kickoffs and punts.