Going into preseason camp, Ohio State head coach Ryan Day has not named Kyle McCord or Devin Brown the Buckeyes' starting quarterback for the 2023 season.
However, that hasn't kept sportsbooks from releasing odds on Ohio State's quarterback battle with two weeks until preseason practices start on Aug. 3. BetOnline, which also released lines for competitions at Alabama, Auburn, Georgia, Michigan State and UCLA, believes McCord has the title of QB1 all but locked up.
The sportsbook gives McCord -500 odds to be named Ohio State's starter in 2023, while Brown's odds see a steep decline and are listed at +300 to win the battle.
Whoever wins the competition will step into massive shoes left behind by Ohio State's previous three starters – C.J. Stroud, Justin Fields and Dwayne Haskins – as each player was named Big Ten Offensive Player of the Year, a Heisman Trophy finalist and became top-15 NFL draft picks in their respective classes.
On May 30, Ohio State quarterbacks coach Corey Dennis said the Buckeyes' next quarterback has a high bar to live up to but believes neither McCord nor Brown has shied away since Stroud departed from the program in January.
“They understand. They're all competitive guys. They see what it takes. They saw the effort that C.J. put in. They know what it takes to be a great quarterback,” Dennis said. “There's definitely a standard that those guys want to uphold for themselves, for sure.”
If McCord and Brown didn’t have the talent to meet that standard, they wouldn’t have been top-50 overall prospects in 2021 and 2022, respectively. Whether they will be ready to meet that standard this year remains to be seen, but Dennis believes both can be Ohio State’s next great talent under center.
“At the end of the day, with both of those guys, they wouldn't be at Ohio State competing for the starting job if they didn't have elite traits and characteristics – both of them,” Dennis said.
BetOnline’s National QB Battle Odds
Ohio State Week 1 Starting QB
- Kyle McCord -500
- Devin Brown +300
Alabama Week 1 Starting QB
- Ty Simpson +105
- Tyler Buchner +140
- Jalen Milroe +300
Auburn Week 1 Starting QB
- Robby Ashford -140
- Payton Thorne +100
Georgia Week 1 Starting QB
- Carson Beck -700
- Brock Vandagriff +400
Michigan State Week 1 Starting QB
- Noah Kim -200
- Katin Houser +150
UCLA Week 1 Starting QB
- Ethan Garbers -140
- Dante Moore +100
