Ohio State QB Kyle McCord: 5 things to know about OSU’s starter

The first-year starting quarterbacks who will take the field during Saturday’s Penn State-Ohio State football game could easily be on opposite sidelines.

Kyle McCord, a former five-star recruit who played high school football in Pennsylvania, now starts for the Buckeyes. And Drew Allar, a five-star prospect during his prep career in Ohio, is currently under center for the Nittany Lions. This reunion of sorts will mark McCord’s second start against a top-10 team, though first against a ranked Big Ten opponent. Ohio State already defeated a top-10 Notre Dame squad earlier this season.

Buckeyes coach Ryan Day is confident McCord will seize the moment again.

“I think the good thing is again, for somebody who’s been in the system for a couple years, they’ve been through preparation before they’ve been through game planning situations, they’ve seen the games live,” Day said of McCord at a press conference this week. “You know, I think a lot of our guys understand what this game is going to be and the intensity.”

McCord has the Buckeyes out to a 6-0 start to his first year as the top QB in Columbus. The junior has thrown for 1,651 yards and 11 touchdowns compared to only one pick this season. But a test with Penn State’s No. 1 overall defense, in terms of yards allowed per game, awaits.

No. 3 Ohio State hosts No. 7 Penn State at noon ET on Saturday in a game that will help decide the Big Ten East’s representative in the conference championship game.

Here are five things to know about McCord before kickoff.

PSU Analyst Was His High School Coach

The Penn State football program is more than familiar with its opponent’s QB.

McCord went to high school at St. Joseph’s Preparatory School in Philadelphia, about 200 miles away from State College. The QB from Mt. Laurel, New Jersey — located across the Delaware River from Philly — was recruited by Penn State before eventually heading to Columbus. But the connections don’t end there. Gabe Infante, currently a defensive analyst for the Nittany Lions, was McCord’s head football coach in high school.

“We know a lot about him,” Penn State head coach James Franklin said of McCord this week. “We had a ton of respect for him out of high school and continue to. Think he’s going to be a challenge for us on Saturday… He’s doing what he needs to do for them to be successful offensively and win games.”

High School Teammates With Marvin Harrison Jr.

Before Marvin Harrison Jr. was McCord’s top receiving target with the Buckeyes, the two juniors formed a dynamic duo at St. Joes.

McCord set city and league records for career passing yards (6,887) and touchdown passes (88) during his prep career. Harrison was a big reason why. The 6-foot-4 wide receiver set Philadelphia Catholic League records with 2,625 receiving yards and 37 touchdowns in high school. The high school teammates were both highly rated recruits before coming to OSU.

“When we first started playing with each other my sophomore year of high school, it’s something that we always talked about,” McCord told reporters in the spring about his desire to play with Harrison in college. “And obviously it’s crazy the way everything worked itself out.”

Harrison earned All-American honors after catching 77 passes for 1,263 yards and 14 touchdowns last season. The 21-year-old is widely considered the top wide receiver prospect, and one of the best players overall, in the 2024 NFL Draft.

In Same OSU Recruiting Class As Quinn Ewers

McCord was one of two highly sought-after QBs in Ohio State’s 2021 recruiting class. The other? Current Texas starting quarterback Quinn Ewers.

Ohio State’s overall class that year was ranked No. 2 in the nation, according to 247 Sports. Ewers was a big reason why. The recruit out of Texas was the nation’s top overall prospect at the time. Ewers was previously part of the 2022 class before he reclassified and enrolled early.

McCord, meanwhile, was also among the six five-star recruits at that position in 2021, per the Columbus Dispatch. Caleb Williams, USC’s reigning Heisman Trophy winner, and Michigan’s J.J. McCarthy were among the others. Ewers ended up transferring after his freshman season in Columbus and has spent the last two seasons starting under center in Austin.

Allar was in the recruiting class after McCord. Day said this week that by the time Ewers reclassified out of the class of 2022, Ohio State couldn’t pursue Allar because he was already committed to Penn State.

Backed Up C.J. Stroud For Two Seasons

McCord has a pretty good example to follow during his first two seasons at Ohio State. The 21-year-old signal-caller spent his freshman and sophomore seasons backing up Buckeye starter C.J. Stroud. Over two seasons as Ohio State’s starting QB, Stroud threw for a combined 8,123 yards and 85 touchdowns.

Ohio State won the Rose Bowl with Stroud during the 2021 season, then came up just short against Georgia in the College Football Playoff semifinals during his junior year.

Stroud was a two-time Heisman finalist. The Houston Texans selected him with the No. 2 overall pick in this year’s NFL Draft, and Stroud is currently a frontrunner for Offensive Rookie of the Year honors. Stroud, who has nine passing touchdowns through six NFL games, set a league record with 192 career pass attempts before throwing his first interception.

“I come from Ohio State,” Stroud said at a Texans press conference earlier this season, highlighting the Buckeyes’ win over Notre Dame. “Go Bucks. You know, got the dub last night, hard-fought win. Shout out Kyle McCord, my dog. All them boys on the defense, you know.”

Made Ohio State History in 2021

With Stroud’s departure to the NFL, McCord entered the 2023 season as the most experienced QB on Ohio State’s roster. But that didn’t mean he had much in-game experience.

The 6-foot-3 QB had thrown for 606 yards, three touchdowns, and two picks overall in limited snaps before earning the starting spot this season.

McCord’s only start before this season came as a freshman in 2021. Stroud was sidelined with an injury for Ohio State’s game against Akron. McCord filled in and threw for 319 yards, two touchdowns, and an interception in a 59-7 Buckeyes win. With that start, McCord and running back TreVeyon Henderson became the first QB-RB true freshmen duo to start in the same game in program history.