Junior quarterback Kyle McCord rushing for eight yards in the first half of Ohio State’s 23-3 win over Indiana Sept. 2. Photo credit: Caleb Blake | Lantern Photo Editor
The No. 3 Ohio State Buckeyes answered many questions in their season opener, from their ability to protect the quarterback to stopping big plays down the field, in a 23-3 win against Indiana Saturday afternoon.
But one significant area remained in the air afterwards, the play of the starting quarterback.
Junior quarterback Kyle McCord showed flashes of potential throughout the game, while his challenger sophomore quarterback Devin Brown received limited playing time. Although the Buckeyes won by 20 points, head coach Ryan Day said he expected more plays from his offense in the end zone.
“I did anticipate some of this,” head coach Ryan Day said. “Saw it going a little way it did, but I thought we’d get more points. I thought we would convert some of those. We’re used to doing that here.”
McCord and Brown both saw action against the Hoosiers, however, their performance didn’t come close to the offensive firepower many Buckeye fans expected to see on a given Saturday afternoon.
Both quarterbacks struggled early on to put points on the board, which kept the Hoosiers in striking distance for most of the game. However, McCord took most of the snaps behind center as he played over three quarters.
In his first drive of the game, McCord led the Buckeyes 80 yards down the field in 11 plays. The drive consisted of a mix of passes to senior tight end Gee Scott Jr. and appearances by running backs TreVeyon Henderson and Miyan Williams.
The following possession, the Hoosiers forced a quick three-and-out, but McCord reentered the game looking to put Ohio State back on the board.
What looked to be a promising drive turned into a disaster for the Buckeyes as McCord threw an interception at the 22-yard line with 10:18 remaining. It marked Ohio State’s first turnover of the season, which gave the Hoosiers and their crowd of 40,000 fans a boost of momentum.
“He did make a play with his feet on one of the play actions,” Day said. “I thought that was good. I know he wants to have a couple of reads back, couple of things back, but until you really watch the film it’s hard to really evaluate exactly how the overall body of work was in the game.”
The sophomore Brown entered the following drive, but it was short-lived after two runs from Williams and a 3-yard rushing attempt from Brown led to minimum yardage. It would be the sophomore’s last drive on the field until the 1:46 mark in the fourth when the Buckeyes led by 20 points.
The decision to play Brown for only three snaps surprised most viewers as the young quarterback went neck to neck with McCord in fall camp. Day said he would have liked to play Brown more but was worried the offense wouldn’t gain a rhythm as they were already struggling on third downs.
“We expect on third and three, third and two, third in one to convert 80 percent of the time,” Day said. “When we’re not that puts us completely out of wack, and that happened today. And that can’t happen moving forward.”
Day said he thought there were some good things in the second half, but the Buckeyes have to play better situational football in order to win. He added that finishing in the red zone, completing third downs, and gaining short yardage are just some areas where improvements need to be made.
Day said McCord played well in the third quarter, making some nice throws to senior tight end Cade Stover and junior wide receiver Marvin Harrison Jr. He finished the game with 239 yards, going 20-of-33 on pass attempts.
Despite Brown’s limited performance, Day said moving forward, he would still like to play Brown.
“You know, one goal was to get a win today,” Day said. “Didn’t know exactly how it was going to play out, but we got the win but know we got to get better.”
