Butterfly Effect: What if Joe Burrow never transferred from Ohio State to LSU?

What happens to the Buckeyes if Burrow stays at Ohio State?

Then-Ohio State head coach Urban Meyer had a tough decision to make in spring practice two years ago. J.T. Barrett had exhausted his eligibility and the Buckeyes had a quarterback competition between Haskins and Burrow. The job went to Haskins who threw a Big Ten record 50 touchdowns and finished third in the 2018 Heisman Trophy voting and became a first-round pick of the Washington Redskins.

It’s hard to fault Meyer for naming Haskins the starter.

It’s also not hard to fault Burrow for transferring to LSU to play out his final two years in college.

But if Haskins was still named the starter and Burrow stuck around to play his last season at Ohio State, he would have fulfilled his dream of starting at his dream school. It turns out he had all his dreams come true at LSU and the Buckeyes had Fields in 2019 so they were in good shape at the position.

Burrow’s presence may have precluded Fields from transferring from Georgia if the starting job wasn’t guaranteed. That could have left Fields to pick Penn State instead where he originally committed before enrolling at Georgia for his freshman season.

That would have made Penn State a much more formidable opponent for the Buckeyes last year and it could have made the Nittany Lions the Big Ten favorite in 2020. Fields is a co-favorite to win the Heisman along with Clemson’s Lawrence.

Would Ohio State have rather had Burrow for one season or Fields for two seasons?

There’s no guarantee Burrow would have been LSU Burrow at Ohio State but I’m inclined to think he’d love to play in Ryan Day’s system. He wouldn’t have won the Heisman or thrown 60 touchdown passes because LSU’s receivers are better than Ohio State’s but he would have been a second-team All-Big Ten performer, behind Fields, assuming he was at Penn State.

The Buckeyes were arguably the most complete roster last year but lost to Clemson in the Fiesta Bowl who then lost to Burrow’s Bayou Bengals. With Burrow, I think Ohio State still wins the Big Ten and gets to the College Football Playoff because of guys like Chase Young, J.K. Dobbins and Jeffrey Okudah, among others.

The playoff outcomes would have been the same, however, as last year and the Buckeyes would have fallen short of the national title.

Burrow had to leave to get his Heisman and ring, but that decision may lead to Fields getting his in 2020, at Ohio State.

Not a bad trade-off.