Ohio State Football: 3 bold predictions vs. Indiana in 2023 opener
By Eric Boggs
Ohio State football opens its 2023 season on the road Saturday as it travels to Bloomington to take on the Indiana Hoosiers. The Buckeyes have a 27-game winning streak over the Hoosiers, which is the longest in Big Ten history. That last time, Indiana beat Ohio State, John Cooper was roaming the sideline in Columbus as head coach.
The Buckeyes are coming off two consecutive losses to end the 2022 season, losing a second straight year to rival Michigan and then they lost a heartbreaker to eventual college football champion Georgia. That was the first time Ryan Day had ever lost two games in a row.
Day enters this season with a 46-5 overall record through his first four seasons as head coach of the Buckeyes.
Four of those 46 wins have come at the expense of Indiana. All of those wins have been by 40-plus points except in 2020, when the Hoosiers made it interesting before the Buckeyes won 42-35. Day will be breaking in a new starting quarterback for the first time since 2021 when eventual first round draft pick C.J. Stroud was named the starter.
This brings me to my first bold prediction.
1. Both Kyle McCord and Devin Brown will throw touchdown passes
Earlier this week, Ryan Day announced that redshirt sophomore quarterback Kyle McCord would get the start against Indiana. He went on to say that redshirt freshman Devin Brown will also get to play in the game because he has earned that right after what was a major quarterback battle in Columbus.
Many believe that the battle isn’t over and that Day wants to see both of them play when it counts before he makes his final decision.
Since both are going to get their opportunities in game one, I fully expect both quarterbacks to throw touchdown passes.
That prediction might not seem too hard or all that exciting, but will it lead to McCord solidifying himself as QB1? Or will it lead to Brown possibly getting an opportunity to start next week in the Ohio State’s home opener?