Ohio State’s first day of preseason camp kicked off on Thursday, and the Buckeyes are already dealing with a key injury.

During the final team period of the two-hour practice, starting defensive tackle Eddrick Houston went down with a lower-leg injury and was helped off the field without putting any pressure on his leg. Coach Ryan Day didn’t go into much detail about the injury after practice, saying he hadn’t spoken to the trainers before talking to the media.

Losing Houston for any amount of time would be detrimental to a defensive line that already lacked depth after all four starters were picked in the NFL Draft. A five-star recruit in the Class of 2024, Houston moved to defensive tackle from end last year and quickly became an important depth piece. Entering his sophomore year, he seemed poised to have a breakout season alongside Kayden McDonald, but how much he plays during camp could now be up in the air.

If Houston is sidelined, Ohio State will need to give more reps to Jason Moore, who stepped in for Houston, and backups like Tywone Malone and Will Smith Jr. All three were going to be counted on in the rotation to spell McDonald and Houston, but all are inexperienced.

Ohio State will be back on the practice field Friday, so the next update on Houston will come then. For now, here are a few other takeaways from the first day of camp:

Sayin, Kienholz look stronger and more confident

The first day of camp was never going to do much to change the outlook on the quarterback battle, but both Julian Sayin and Lincoln Kienholz just looked different on the field.

They came back to preseason camp with a similar physical build — Sayin is 6 feet 1, 203 pounds, and Kienholz is 6-3, 215, according to the camp roster — and they looked stronger when delivering the ball. There were some good throws from both on Thursday. The highlight was a nice touchdown from Kienholz and a perfectly placed sideline throw from Sayin to Carnell Tate.

They both had some questionable decisions, but that is expected on the first day of camp. Overall, they looked like they had more power on their throws and were in control of the offense, even if Ohio State kept things basic to start. Freshman Tavien St. Clair is listed at 6-4, 225.

“All three look more explosive, stronger and are moving better,” Day said.

Day said he couldn’t evaluate much this early. Ohio State is likely a while off from naming a starter, though Day did say he hopes to have a starter named before the opener against Texas on Aug. 30.

Kienholz was probably the slightly better of the two contenders, but the goal for both is to start stringing good practices together to make the decision easier.

“You want command of the offense,” Day said. “When you stand in there as a quarterback you want everybody in the huddle to believe in you. You want them to follow your command. That’s a big part of it, then it’s taking care of the football and making routine plays routinely. … If they can do that and lead us down the field to score touchdowns, then they will give us a chance to win.”

Atkinson could be a game-wrecker

One of the first players who flashed to me was North Carolina transfer defensive end Beau Atkinson.

At 6-6 and 265 pounds, he moves well and always seemed to be around the ball in the first team period. He had a tackle for a loss on James Peoples and was reminded by the coaches not to push people to the ground so early. On the next play, he would’ve had a sack on Kienholz if he was allowed to tackle. He also recovered a fumble in the same period.

On the first day, Atkinson was playing opposite former linebacker C.J. Hicks, seeming to indicate he’s on the second team. That’s expected, but if his playmaking continues, it wouldn’t be surprising to see him and Caden Curry split reps at defensive end against Texas. After all, Atkinson led the Tar Heels in sacks despite not starting last year.

Day said the Buckeyes don’t feel like they have to rush Atkinson despite him being a post-spring addition because his own sense of urgency is high enough.

“I think for him, he wants to prove himself,” he said. “He, like a lot of guys, wants to prove himself at Ohio State, because they think if they can make it here they can make it anywhere. He has that mindset coming in and his teammates have rallied around him.”

We will see how Atkinson does when the pads come on, but he had a strong first practice as a Buckeye.

Ohio State receivers making things look easy

Shocker here: Jeremiah Smith is still really good at football. At 6-3, 223 pounds, he looks like he was forged in a lab somewhere.

But beyond Smith, the receiving corps is deep with talent. There were a few drops Thursday, including from Mylan Graham and Quincy Porter in the last team session, but you can live with that on the first day when you see how everybody moves.

Tate had some really impressive catches and made everything look smooth. He looks like an NFL receiver right now. I’m excited to see more of Brandon Inniss, too, and overall Graham and Porter had stellar days. They got in and out of their breaks well and competed well against a physical group of defensive backs.

This group of receivers might be better than advertised, if that’s possible. There’s just a different vibe and look with them as camp begins.

Cornerbacks are being physical early

I loved what I saw from the defensive backs on Thursday, too — especially Aaron Scott.

The phrase “iron sharpens iron” is a cliche, but it’s true here with the defensive backs and the receivers. They gave up plays, as you’d expect, like Devin Sanchez getting beat on the sideline throw to Tate or Scott losing to Smith on a tight slant route. Still, they competed and made some of their own plays.

Jermaine Mathews Jr. had a nice breakup in the first team sessions, as did Scott on Smith. When practice moved inside, due to the weather, things didn’t change. Sanchez had a nice breakup on a late throw from Sayin across the middle.

The biggest question with the defensive backs is how they’ll be rotated. Mathews, Davison Igbinosun, Scott and Sanchez all played outside corner on Thursday with Lorenzo Styles Jr. playing nickel corner. That could change in Friday’s practice. As the Buckeyes search for the best combination, there are plenty of options with a deep unit. It’s still a  position group to be reckoned with even after losing NFL corners Jordan Hancock and Denzel Burke.

No surprises on the offensive line

Ohio State began camp by splitting up its offensive line on different fields, but it wasn’t hard to piece together what the starting rotation may be.

Carson Hinzman was still at center, with Josh Padilla taking center reps on the other field. Luke Montgomery was at left guard, as expected, with Tegra Tshabola at right guard. Ethan Onianwa was the left tackle on the same field with Austin Siereveld at right tackle. It looks as if that will be the lineup to start camp. Day said Siereveld was an “Iron Buckeye” this offseason and had a strong offseason to potentially earn a starting spot.

The most notable player was Onianwa, though, because of how he looked. The Rice transfer lost 22 pounds this offseason, checking into camp at 335 pounds. He seems to be right at home at left tackle for the Buckeyes.

That’s a major benefit for offensive line coach Tyler Bowen, because with Onianwa and Siereveld shining this offseason, this line could be close to solidifying its starting unit sooner rather than later.

(Photo of Eddrick Houston: Mark J. Rebilas / Imagn Images)