Ryan Day shares non-football factors that led him to picking Kyle McCord as starter

After their Week 2 victory over Youngstown State, Ohio State head coach Ryan Day made a decision on who would be the Buckeyes’ starting quarterback going forward. Day elected to go with junior quarterback Kyle McCord over sophomore Devin Brown.

Both McCord and Brown have the physical makeup and skills to lead the Ohio State offense. But what ended up being a strong deciding factor for Day was how they handled the non-football component of the position. As Ohio State prepares for their Week 3 matchup against Western Kentucky, the Buckeyes head man shared what non-football things went into his decision to make McCord the starter.

“I think the team and the players having faith and belief in him, sing his leadership and thing what he does around the woody with some of the players,” said Day. “I think he’s done a nice job before games and in the offseason of having a voice, and that’s been good. He’s put a lot of work in by himself in the film room. So those are all good signs as a quarterback.”

McCord has gotten much of the snaps at starting quarterback in Ohio State’s first two games. In the early part of the season, the junior quarterback has completed 34 of 53 pass attempts for a 64.5 completion percentage, three passing touchdowns, and one interception.

While McCord’s work on the field is impressive, it’s his ability to also impact the team outside of games the Day loves about him. And that has helped him solidify his spot as the Buckeyes’ starting quarterback for the 2023 season.

Day says Josh Proctor will ‘play a lot’ against Western Kentucky

Ohio State safety Josh Proctor missed last weekend’s game against Youngstown State. However, Ryan Day says he will be back when the Buckeyes face Western Kentucky this weekend.

The sixth-year senior had four tackles, a tackle for loss and a pass breakup in Week 1 at Indiana, prior to going down with an injury.

He was replaced in the lineup by freshman Malik Hartford last week, but Proctor is set to regain his starting spot this weekend.

“He’ll be available and he’ll play a lot,” Day said. “He’ll be there [at free safety], and we’ll still rotate guys. But Joshua will be there and he’ll plan on starting at this point.”

Josh Proctor has appeared in 43 games during his time at Ohio State after signing with the Buckeyes in the class of 2018. He has started 10 games.

Last season, Proctor appeared in 11 games and made four starts. He totaled 21tackles and a pair of pass breakups as the Buckeyes came just a few points away from reaching the national championship game.