{"id":867385,"date":"2026-04-16T01:11:48","date_gmt":"2026-04-16T01:11:48","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/867385\/"},"modified":"2026-04-16T01:11:48","modified_gmt":"2026-04-16T01:11:48","slug":"ohio-state-offensive-tackle-ian-moore-making-strong-push-for-starting-job","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/867385\/","title":{"rendered":"Ohio State Offensive Tackle Ian Moore Making Strong Push for Starting Job"},"content":{"rendered":"

\n Ian Moore\u2019s temporary role as Ohio State\u2019s top left tackle this spring could turn into a full-time starting job on the Buckeyes\u2019 offensive line this fall. <\/p>\n

\n\tMoore took over as Ohio State\u2019s first-team left tackle midway through spring after Austin Siereveld and Phillip Daniels underwent minor surgeries that sidelined them for the rest of the spring. While Siereveld and Daniels are both returning starters from last season, Moore has performed well enough this spring to make his case that he should be one of the Buckeyes\u2019 starting offensive tackles in 2026.\n<\/p>\n

\n\t\u201cIan has done some really good things, so that’s been great,\u201d Ryan Day said Monday. \u201cI think that he understands now going into this year, he’s got some time under his belt here as a Buckeye, so we need him. We need him to step up in a big way for us. And I don’t know exactly what the grades look like, but overall, he certainly has gotten better, and he’s going to have an opportunity to play himself into a starter role here. Now whether he does and takes the next final step or two, we’ll have to see, but he’s certainly going to be in the conversation.\u201d\n<\/p>\n

\n\t\tRyan Day said Ian Moore has “done some really good things” this spring and will “have an opportunity to play himself into a starter role” in 2026. pic.twitter.com\/0fzsCsJAgl<\/a>\n\t<\/p>\n

\t\u2014 Eleven Warriors (@11W) April 13, 2026<\/a><\/p>\n

\n\tMoore was Ohio State\u2019s top backup tackle last season. He made one start at right tackle against Purdue when Daniels was sidelined by an injury, and played the second half of Ohio State\u2019s College Football Playoff loss vs. Miami at left tackle after Siereveld exited with an injury. He performed well when called upon, allowing just one sack and no other quarterback pressures in 150 snaps as a redshirt freshman, according to Pro Football Focus.\n<\/p>\n

\n\tHe\u2019s built momentum off of those strong showings this spring, showing his coaches and teammates that he\u2019s ready to play a major role in his third year as a Buckeye.\n<\/p>\n

\n\t\u201cIan’s been doing an amazing job, tremendous job,\u201d said Ohio State left guard Luke Montgomery. \u201cHe’s very explosive off the ball, very strong and a smart dude. And what I like about him is he reminds me of me with the energy. He brings a lot of energy.\u201d\n<\/p>\n

\n\tWhile Siereveld is a lock to start somewhere along the offensive line this season, Ohio State\u2019s starting left tackle from last season could potentially move back inside to guard \u2013 where he spent his two years as a Buckeye before moving to tackle last season \u2013 to fill the Buckeyes\u2019 vacancy at right guard if Moore continues to show he\u2019s ready to protect Julian Sayin\u2019s blind side.\n<\/p>\n

\n\tIf Ohio State ultimately decides to keep Siereveld at left tackle after he earned second-team All-Big Ten honors there last season, Moore could still end up in the starting lineup at right tackle or even at guard. Daniels isn\u2019t a sure bet to keep his starting job after he struggled in pass protection down the stretch of last season, while Moore has also cross-trained at guard, where other candidates to start alongside Montgomery and Carson Hinzman include Gabe VanSickle and Joshua Padilla.\n<\/p>\n

\n\tIn the end, Ohio State\u2019s goal is to find the best possible combination of five offensive linemen to start up front, and Moore has seemingly done what he\u2019s needed to do to tentatively put himself in that group right now.\n<\/p>\n

\n\t\u201cIan’s been stepping up, dude. It’s fun to watch him starting to come into his own,\u201d Hinzman said Wednesday. \u201cBecause in the weight room, he’s like, insanely dominant, you know what I mean? So for him to start taking that weight room strength and start translating that to football strength is huge.”\n<\/p>\n

\n\t\u201cHe certainly has gotten better, and he\u2019s going to have an opportunity to play himself into a starter role here. Now whether he does and takes the next final step or two, we\u2019ll have to see, but he\u2019s certainly going to be in the conversation.\u201d\u2013 Ryan Day on Ian Moore\u2019s performance this spring\n<\/p>\n

\n\tOhio State offensive line coach Tyler Bowen said Moore was \u201cclose\u201d to being a starter for the Buckeyes last season and that he\u2019s continued to improve this offseason.\n<\/p>\n

\n\t\u201cHe was a guy that we counted on to be the first guy in the game (off the bench), and I think Ian’s continued to make growth this offseason, and we’ve got to continue that through the summer and fall camp,\u201d Bowen said.\n<\/p>\n

\n\tRELATED Quick Hits: Tyler Bowen Wants Ohio State Offensive Line to Be the \u201cToughest, Most Rugged Group\u201d On the Field, Carson Hinzman Expects \u201cExplosiveness\u201d in the Run Game<\/a>\n<\/p>\n

\n\tAmid all of that praise, Moore is keeping his focus on where he still needs to improve. While Moore believes he is one of Ohio State\u2019s five best offensive linemen and is working hard to prove that every day, he also knows the competition will continue throughout the summer and that he must continue to hone his craft to secure a starting job.\n<\/p>\n

\n\t\u201cI always like to think that I should be out there, but it doesn’t matter if someone else makes a push during summer and I get worse,\u201d Moore said. \u201cSo you can’t really think you’re the best, you just got to keep going out there and working.\u201d\n<\/p>\n

\n\tGetting to the precipice of earning a starting job hasn\u2019t come easily for Moore. Thinking back to last spring, Moore said his mental health was \u201cprobably the lowest it’s been in a minute\u201d as he faced the challenge of competing for playing time for the first time after redshirting in 2024. But Moore said he started to find his confidence around the middle of last season, and that confidence has only continued to grow as he\u2019s started winning more battles against Ohio State\u2019s defensive line in practice.\n<\/p>\n

\n\t\u201cI think that we have the best defense in college football, and I believe that down to every fiber in my body. So every time I go out against somebody else, it’s really, I’m not worried about them, I’m worried about practice tomorrow because I’m about to go against (Kenyatta Jackson Jr.), I’m about to go against (Beau Atkinson),\u201d Moore said. \u201cI mean, we\u2019ve got coaches out here that are telling them to do stuff that I’ve never seen before. And you just got to adjust every day.\u201d\n<\/p>\n<\/p>\n

\n\tMoore says he finds new things to work on in his game every day as he works toward being as prepared as possible for a potential starting job this season. But he\u2019s also learned that when it\u2019s time to take the field, his focus needs to be on just playing every play rather than nitpicking every mistake he makes.\n<\/p>\n

\n\t\u201cEveryone’s always got micro things, but you also got to learn just to play football,\u201d Moore said. \u201cLike run off the ball, get off the ball, punch somebody, headbutt somebody, whatever it takes.\u201d\n<\/p>\n

\n\tAtkinson\u2019s seen the benefits of that mental shift in Moore as he\u2019s gone head-to-head with the Buckeyes\u2019 current left tackle in practice.\n<\/p>\n

\n\t\u201cHe’s definitely been playing a lot more physical and attacking,\u201d Atkinson said. \u201cIf you try to play passive, it just doesn’t really go that well. So I think the confidence has been a huge help to him in trying to take that next step.\u201d\n<\/p>\n