Ryan Day reveals Devin Brown will still get some No. 1 reps with after naming Kyle McCord starter

Although Kyle McCord is now the starting quarterback at Ohio State, it doesn’t mean Devin Brown will be stuck on the sidelines. Ryan Day said the hope is to still get Brown into the game at times, but McCord will have the “distinction” of being the starter.

As for what it means in practice, though, McCord will now get more work with the other starters. He and Brown were sharing reps to start the season, and it was fairly evenly split last week.

Even though McCord is the starter, though, Day said Brown will also get some reps with the No. 1s in practice.

“It gives Kyle, first off, piece of mind that he realizes he is the starter and he’s earned that opportunity,” Day said. “Secondly, he will receive more of the reps. Devin will still get reps in practice. He’ll get reps with the 1s. Kyle will get a little bit more than he has the last couple weeks. And I think it’s good for the team to have that distinction, to know that Kyle, right now, is the starter.”

McCord got the start in the Buckeyes’ first two games of the season, but split time with Brown as Day and the staff determined the plan. Ultimately, though, he saw enough from McCord to give him the starting job.

“After reviewing the film, we decided that Kyle’s going to be the starter and make that distinction,” Day said. “We still plan on playing Devin, but we feel like Kyle has really stepped up and deserves to be the starter. So we’re going to go ahead and make that distinction.”

Ryan Day: Kyle McCord has looked ‘poised’ through two games

The level of competition through two games hasn’t jumped off the page, necessarily. Indiana was picked to finish last in the Big Ten East in the preseason media poll, and Youngstown State plays in the FCS Missouri Valley Football Conference.

But the game against Youngstown took place at The Horseshoe after the offense appeared to struggle against Indiana. Day said playing in the stadium is a big deal no matter who the Buckeyes play, but the fact that Kyle McCord handled the spotlight well was another key factor in the decision to make him the starter over Devin Brown.

“I think regardless of the opponent, when you play at Ohio Stadium and you get your second start, you have to see how people are going to react,” Day said. “I thought he was much more poised in this game than the first one, I think that’s natural. So again, we’ll see if we can build on that. But like you said, bigger challenges ahead.”