COLUMBUS, Ohio - It's always about the best man winning the starting job, but Ohio State is having a hard time figuring out who that is.

While any of three quarterbacks are supposed to be capable of handling the starting duties, it's difficult to believe one is not in front of the other. Although Dwayne Haskins seems to be a favorite, with Joe Burrow in his shadow, the hype-train still follows one Tate Martell.

The phenom from Las Vegas still captivates media members, although there's nothing about his attitude that shows he feels he's taking the job.

"I would hope they just picked the best player out of the three," Tate said at Thursday. "Regardless who it is, I hope the coaches pick the best out of the three of us. That's what you should do regardless for any team. If you want to win the national championship, you put the best player out there."

Obviously, players will convey a certain camaraderie in times like this, where they're silently working their hardest to edge out a player that's supposed to be a brother to them. When their success and personal desires for self-gain are hidden behind a wide smile, while they put forth a teamwork type attitude.

It's unreal to think a player actually wants to see someone else beat him out for a job, even if he's marginally better at it. So, while Tate says he wants to put the most proficient passer in place, he probably is still leaning towards hoping it's himself.

Martell's ability to extend plays and move fluidly around the field, while bombing passes downfield, is well-documented. But he's a quarterback who might rival even J.T. Barrett in redzone running, Martell can toy with a defense close to the endzone.

Although he understands he's good at running the ball deep in enemy territory, he doesn't have much of an explanation for it.

"Maybe it's you've gotta put an extra guy in the box if I'm running the ball," Martell said. "I just go out there and do my thing. I don't know what it is."

Martell was the primary scout-team quarterback last season, earning valuable time playing against the quality defensive players of Ohio State, some of which will be hearing their names called early in this year's NFL draft. While it was in a practice capacity, that's still some time spent analyzing defenses that could prove invaluable.

The job will remain open for a while, since Ryan Day gave little indication of who is actually leading. Martell held true to wanting to see the most likely to lead Ohio State to victory as the primary signal caller next year. But, that did not take away any of his confidence he's so well-known for.

"I feel good with where I'm at and what I'm doing and the progress that I'm making," Martell said. "It's obvious I was hoping after a guy left that was here like J.T., there would be an open competition. Like I've said before, I didn't come here to sit on the bench."

Martell might have to endure another year on the bench, but if you ask him, he's ready to go right now. His spring game performance coming up in April might be a good indication of what's to come for one of the winningest high school quarterbacks in recent memory.