Ohio State Football: Three position battles to watch
By Ryan Stano
![Aug 3, 2023; Columbus, OH, USA; The Ohio State quarterback position is unsettled this year: competing for the job is (from left) sophomore Devin Brown (6), junior Kyle McCord (33), freshman Lincoln Kienholz (12) and senior Tristan Gebbia (13). They were doing drills during the first football practice of the 2023 season at the Woody Hayes Athletic Center. Mandatory Credit: Doral Chenoweth-The Columbus Dispatch Aug 3, 2023; Columbus, OH, USA; The Ohio State quarterback position is unsettled this year: competing for the job is (from left) sophomore Devin Brown (6), junior Kyle McCord (33), freshman Lincoln Kienholz (12) and senior Tristan Gebbia (13). They were doing drills during the first football practice of the 2023 season at the Woody Hayes Athletic Center. Mandatory Credit: Doral Chenoweth-The Columbus Dispatch](https://images2.minutemediacdn.com/image/upload/c_fill,w_720,ar_16:9,f_auto,q_auto,g_auto/shape/cover/sport/096de7f660b9fbe0dab35fa01cfe340b0e00ad79649439a42a224bfbbdbf1ea0.jpg)
The Ohio State football team is getting deeper into Fall practice now that there are only three weeks until the first game. That first game is a road Big Ten matchup, so it’s no cakewalk. The Buckeyes are going to need to be ready to play the Hoosiers.
Even though we are under a month until the first Ohio State football game, there are still some position battles that are taking place. These battles are some of the most important battles in the country to pay attention to because they could affect the entire CFP picture.
There are three in particular that are the most intriguing to watch right now. What’s interesting is that they are all on the offensive side of the ball because the defense seems fairly set in stone at this point, although there is a battle at the cornerback position.
We start with the most important battle of them all: quarterback.
1. Who will the starting quarterback be for the Ohio State football team?
Quarterback is the most important position on the field. One could argue that the starting quarterback at the Ohio State football program is the most important player this year in all of college football because of the talent the Buckeyes have at wide receiver.
Someone needs to get those guys the ball. They are the ones with the most big-play potential on the team. Ryan Day hasn’t given an indication of who is ahead in the battle between Kyle McCord and Devin Brown, but it seems like McCord has the slight edge right now.
Day did say he wanted to name a starting quarterback by the end of this week. We’ll have to see how each of them plays in practice to see who solidifies that starting spot. Again, I’d be very surprised if it wasn’t McCord, but Brown is still very good.
The next position battle to keep watching intently is who is going to be blocking for one of these guys.