Ohio State loses starting QB to transfer portal weeks before Cotton Bowl
The No. 7-ranked Ohio State Buckeyes’ odds of beating the No. 9-ranked Missouri Tigers in the Goodyear Cotton Bowl on Dec. 29 took a bit of a hit on Monday morning after starting quarterback Kyle McCord announced he had entered the NCAA transfer portal.
McCord threw for 3,170 yards, 24 touchdowns and six interceptions while leading Ohio State to an 11-1 record. That lone loss came in a 30-24 loss to No. 1-ranked Michigan two weeks ago. He was named the full-time starter in Week 3 after splitting time with Devin Brown in the first two games of the year against Indiana and Youngstown State.
McCord's announcement comes a day after head coach Ryan Day declined to commit to the quarterback moving forward.
Though head coach Ryan Day downplayed the possibility prior to McCord's announcement, the quarterback's departure opens the door for OSU to grab one of the high-profile QBs in the transfer portal, including Washington State’s Cam Ward, Duke's Riley Leonard, Kansas State’s Will Howard, Oregon State’s D.J. Uigalelei or Coastal Carolina’s Grayson McCall.
“Right now, we’re not actively out there searching for anything, other than we’ll see what the next month brings — in all positions,” Day told reporters on Sunday regarding adding a transfer quarterback, via Cleveland.com.
Brown, a 6-foot-3 sophomore, has played just 72 snaps, completing 12-of-22 passes for 197 yards, two touchdowns and an interception in limited action this season. Because of his mobility, Brown was used in certain goal-line packages to give Ohio State different looks earlier in the year.
At one point the third-string QB, Brown stuck it out in Columbus and didn’t transfer when he fell down OSU’s depth chart. Now, he’s the presumed front-runner to replace McCord as the Buckeyes QB1 against Missouri in the Cotton Bowl, and he has a chance to use the bowl game to audition for the Buckeyes starting job in 2024.
The Buckeyes have options beyond Brown, should Day look to switch things up. Freshman Lincoln Kienholz attempted five passes, completing four for 25 yards, during the year and could factor into Day’s decision.
Incoming freshman Air Noland, a five-star QB recruit and the No. 34 overall player in the 2023 class according to the 247Sports composite rankings, could also be in play for the job next season. He would become just the fifth true freshman QB to star for Ohio State.
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