During this offseason, the Ohio State Buckeyes had an intense quarterback battle between Devin Brown and Kyle McCord to replace the big shoes of C.J. Stroud, but we finally have our answer.
McCord gets the nod in the first game against Indiana.
Ryan Day has announced that Kyle McCord will start for Ohio State in Week 1 against Indiana pic.twitter.com/cSNC8iGkvr
— PFF College (@PFF_College) August 29, 2023
This battle comes after Stroud left the program for the NFL and became the No. 2 overall pick by the Houston Texans.
"I think that's significant that we have two guys that we feel confident playing in the game," Ohio State head coach Ryan Day said. "This is something that's a little uncharted territory for me, but you just go on what you see every day in practice. I think that Kyle's consistency the last couple of weeks has allowed him to be the starter."
Despite McCord being named the starter, Day also mentioned that Brown's play this offseason earned him opportunities to see the field. Day cited McCord's ability to step up and play consistently during practice.
BREAKING: Ohio State Named Kyle Mccord the Starting QB for the opener at Indiana
Devin Brown will also play in the Indiana Game Ryan Day Stated pic.twitter.com/T6siLP2izJ
— Recruiting Edits (@614EditzDSGN) August 29, 2023
"I think the first thing is you just have to go watch them play in the game. And it's one thing in practice, you see certain things. But to get tackled and to move the team down the field," Day said. "Finish off drives, do well on third down, do well in the red zone. That's going to continue to play itself out during the season, and there's been teams that have done this similar before."
Both McCord and Brown have played very little college football, and Day has told them to lean on each other throughout what could be a roller coaster of a season.
"I just don't have a crystal ball on this, and I'm not sure how it is going to shake out," Day said. "But, I think what we're doing is fair based on what we see in this preseason."
Throughout this offseason, Day wanted to see one guy emerge beyond the other, but McCord was good enough. However, if McCord struggles, Day is comfortable turning things over to Brown if needed.
McCord is a junior this season. He's thrown 58 passes throughout college and completed 41 for 600 yards. He's 6-foot-3 and is more of a pocket player, so Stroud had some similarities. Of course, he'll be helped out massively by star receivers Marvin Harrison Jr. and Emeka Egbuka.
Here's every one of Kyle McCord's career completions. ?@kylemccord16 x @OhioStateFB pic.twitter.com/tkeQaM9kjl
— Ohio State on BTN (@OhioStateOnBTN) August 29, 2023
"Now, it's time to go play in games, though, and we certainly have seen enough in practice to believe that both guys can perform in a game," Day said. "Now it's time to go put it on the field. And when you're in the game, you really get an idea of what is going on. In practice, you try to give controlled setting and you try to make them as game-like as possible. But, again, now it's time to go play."
