Quick Hits: Kyle McCord Says “The Sky's The Limit” For Ohio State's Offense, Emeka Egbuka is “Here to Win Championships” and Jack Sawyer “Goes Hard Every Play”

Quarterback Kyle McCord, wide receiver Emeka Egbuka, offensive lineman Josh Fryar and tight end Patrick Gurd represented the offense, while defensive ends JT Tuimoloau and Jack Sawyer, defensive tackle Ty Hamilton, cornerback Jermaine Mathews Jr. and safety Malik Hartford represented the defense.

Among the many topics discussed at the Woody Hayes Athletic Center on Wednesday, Kyle McCord said "the sky's the limit" for Ohio State's offense, Emeka Egbuka said he's not at Ohio State for individual accolades but to "win championships," JT Tuimoloau said "discipline" has improved Ohio State's defense and Patrick Gurd said "it was awesome" to receive extended playing time vs. Rutgers.

RELATED Lightning Round: Ryan Day Says Ohio State Did Not Share Michigan's Signals With Purdue Before the 2022 Big Ten Championship Game, Wants Buckeyes To Finish Season "The Right Way"

Videos from the nine players’ media sessions and bullet-point recaps of what the players said can be found below.

QB Kyle McCord

• McCord said Ohio State's offense could have faster starts by having "more trust early on." He added, "At this point in the season, we know what we have. We need to use all of those banked-up reps that we have to come out fast. Trust in each other, trust in the work we put in. I think if we do that, we will start firing a little bit earlier."
• "Obviously, you want to score on every drive. the college football level, you have to understand that defenses are good. If they make a big play and set you off schedule, you have to do a good job of managing it and not losing the game." McCord said if an opponent's defense knocks the Buckeyes' offense off schedule, he has complete faith in the Buckeyes' defense to get the team "right back where it needs to be."
• McCord said he feels calmer in the pocket now than he did five or six weeks ago. "Anytime you take two years where you're not starting and getting hit like that, you're not taking those physical hits on your body. It takes a game or two to get back in that rhythm." McCord said "when situations present themselves," his primary goal is to "take care of the ball."
• McCord on his performances in 2023: "I feel like I'm getting better every week. ... Understanding where I need to get better and understanding areas that I don't do well in. It's a process nine games into the year. We're right where we want to be, so I think that's a positive, but at the same time, I feel like there's just so much room for growth, which is exciting."
• On where he and Ohio State can go from here: "No one's gonna hold me to a higher standard than I am. And I know that myself and offensively, this team, the sky's the limit. It's a quest every single day to try to tap into that potential."

WR Emeka Egbuka

• On his recovery from his ankle injury: “I’m proud of the way I handled this injury and I’m thankful for the people who were in my corner during it. You could ask anyone at the facility, I would be here at 7 a.m. and I would leave at 9 p.m.”
• Egbuka said he was trying to get back in the game after suffering his injury against Maryland, but ultimately realized he wouldn’t be able to.
• Egbuka said he was “so determined” to play against Penn State, but Ohio State made the decision to hold him out. He said he didn’t practice at all leading up to that game, but said he was “technically available” for that game and did everything he could to try to be ready to play.
• Egbuka praised Xavier Johnson and Carnell Tate for how they stepped up in his absence, describing them as “nothing short of amazing players who are more than capable of stepping in and having a huge impact. They’ve done a great job over this last month. And they’re gonna continue to do a great job. They’re a special part of this offense and we’re gonna get them involved in any ways that we can.”
• Egbuka said last week was his first full week of practice since he suffered the injury. He practiced in a limited capacity before the Wisconsin game, in which he did not play.
• With multiple other players on the team currently during with ankle injuries, Egbuka said he has “been giving them pointers” about how to approach the rehab process.
• Egbuka said he “felt good” against Rutgers and “there’s really no doubts in my mind if something else doesn’t happen that I’m gonna feel great this coming Saturday, too. Each week has been better than the last.”
• He said he doesn’t feel like he has to reacclimate to playing again. “If I’m on the field. I expect to play at a level no matter what my body feels like … If I’m out there, in my mind, I’m 100%. So I’m going as hard as I can every play, and I’m doing what my team needs me to do and expects me to do.”
• Egbuka felt his limited production against Rutgers (four catches, 29 yards) had more to do with how Rutgers defended him than his health.
• Egbuka says he doesn’t feel any need to make up for lost time now that he’s back in the lineup. “I’m not here to make my name highly touted and win the Biletnikoff and all that type of stuff, I’m here to win championships.”
• Egbuka said he had never missed a game before the three games he missed this season in October. “It kind of sucked, I’m not gonna lie.”
• He said he learned from the experience of having to watch from the sideline. “I was able to support my team in a way that I hadn’t before. Because you have a different role. You have a role in supporting and coaching the younger dudes so that they’re ready for when that moment comes.”
• On the questions about Ohio State’s offensive performance this year: “We’re undefeated. So I mean, if we continue going on this roll, it doesn’t really matter what our offensive production is, because we’ll be looking at something special come the end of the year.”

OL Josh Fryar

• On if he feels the offensive line is taking a step forward: “I think we’re taking the steps needed to be a really good offensive line.”
• On the offensive line staying relatively healthy this year: “I think it’s huge. Obviously injuries are gonna happen, but it’s a next guy up mentality so you always have to be ready when your number is called.”
• On what areas the offensive line has gotten better: “I think the communication. And being comfortable with how you know the guy is going to double team with you and communicate while you’re on the field in the game. Things like that are necessary to win football games.
• On Carson Hinzman’s communication: “I think Carson is taking the next step and needs to continue being a really good center.”
• On what they hope to accomplish in the last few games: “What we’re doing right now, and enhance it. At the same time, I think when you’re on the same page, you’re running the ball and communicating, you want more of that. It’s a drug. You want to see TreVeyon Henderson breaking off 30 to 40-yard gains.

TE Patrick Gurd

• On seeing the most significant playing time of his career last week against Rutgers: “It was awesome. It’s always been a dream of mine.”
• He said his most satisfying play against Rutgers was making a block to help lead TreVeyon Henderson into the end zone for a 9-yard touchdown run.
• On earning playing time as a walk-on: “I feel like I’ve been able to show myself and show that I can help my team when needed, and it’s just good to be able to get on the field and help the guys out when they need me.”
• Gurd said he chose to walk on at Ohio State because he grew up going to Buckeye games with his dad, former Ohio State linebacker Andy Gurd, and “always loved it … When I got the opportunity to, I just felt like it was right choice due to football here and then also the academics.” He said his only scholarship offers out of high school came from MAC schools.
• Gurd said his family is “definitely excited” and “definitely proud” to see him playing more this season.
• He said the biggest things he’s learned from his father are “attitude and effort.”
• Gurd said his freshman year was challenging because it was in 2020 when the season was impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic. He said he started feeling like he could help the team by the end of his sophomore season in 2021, then he started earning playing time on special teams last season.
• Gurd said Mitch Rossi was his “big brother” on the team and “I’ve always looked up to him.” Seeing Rossi play as much as he did as a walk-on inspired Gurd to believe he could earn a role himself.
• On Cade Stover and Gee Scott Jr.: “Love those guys. I’d do anything for them.”
• Asked who’s the most similar player on this year’s team to Chris Spielman, who his father played with, Gurd responded without hesitation: “Tommy Eichenberg.” Why? “He’s tough, and when he’s on the field, he flips the switch.”

DE JT Tuimoloau

• On Jack Sawyer: “If you watch Jack, he goes hard every play. That’s the guy I love playing on the other side of and he just brings that energy. I can feed off it. Having him, Mike (Hall), Tyleik (Williams) and whoever else is in there, especially with Jack, he just brings that mentality.”
• Speaking of Jack Sawyer, Tuimoloau called he and his teammate’s accidental collision against Wisconsin “one of the hardest hits” he’s taken. “It was just kind of a loss of wind and I got up just asking who made the stop. But that’s just how hard we play.”
• So late into the fall, Tuimoloau feels it’s important to be doing the little things right to take care of one’s health. “This time of year everybody’s going to be banged up. I think what matters most is how we take care of our body, what we’re doing outside of the white lines to help out body, mind and soul.”
• On takeaways from the Rutgers game: “Just staying disciplined. Just doing your job, not feeling like you have to do so many things outside your role. But if your job is to hold the C-gap of fill the A-gap, whatever it may be, just playing as one.”
• Tuimoloau said that with the success of Ohio State’s defense this year, Jim Knowles has told the unit that teams will try more trick plays like Rutgers’ double snap/fumblerooski. “I didn’t know what happened. I was under the pile and then I heard the crowd screaming and I’m thinking, ‘Oh it’s our crowd, we probably made the stop.’ Then I get up and he’s running down the field. But I also think that just goes back to being disciplined.”
• In the same vein, Tuimoloau is prepared to see “anything” against Michigan State on Saturday. “They have nothing to lose.”
• On emphasizing discipline: “Discipline doesn’t sound like a big thing you have to focus on, but when you’re out there, you peak outside of one game, you’ll understand that you’ve opened up the other gap next to you. So I think it’s just playing hard, playing physical, playing fast and just knowing your job.”

DE Jack Sawyer

• On walk-on tight end Patrick Gurd earning playing time: “It's awesome. Me and Pat are pretty good buddies off the field. And just to see him keep working and keep his trust in God throughout the last couple of years and finally get a shot to play is amazing. And he's the type of guy who I wouldn't be surprised if he got a scholarship after the season.”
• Asked if run defense is an undervalued part of defensive end play in the public’s perception, Jack Sawyer responded with a confident “yeah.” “I get it, guys in the media and people who just watch the game, they want to see the big sack stats and all those, which is good. But we’re focused on winning games, playing good defense, playing tough, just keep winning. Don't worry about any of the stats, we'll come back up after the season, look at those.”
• On the importance of setting the edge: “If you don’t have an edge set, that’s when explosives happen, that’s when the ball starts running 10, 15, 20 yards downfield before you make a tackle. It’s really important to set edges, not just at defensive end. You set edges as the three-technique or if you’re a linebacker filling a gap.”
• Sawyer is enjoying life back at defensive end after playing the “Jack” position a year ago. “I’m loving playing defensive end again, I’m having a lot of fun. Our defensive line is playing really well. The front seven as a whole is playing really well, so is the back end, our defense is playing really well as a whole and we’re winning games.”
• The success of Ohio State’s defense in the red zone goes back to its new motto of “Give us an inch and we’ll defend it,” Sawyer said. “For whatever reason it is, when we get down there, everyone rises up a little more.”
• On being referred to as a “hard hat” player by Ryan Day: “Every player who plays this game and everybody on this team, we can always find ways to get better. It’s our responsibility to handle our time right, manage our time right and put in as much work as we can to give the best product on the field on Saturday. For me, I’ve just been trying to do anything I can, whether that’s watching extra film, more work with Coach (Larry Johnson), all that stuff.”

DT Ty Hamilton

• On Jack Sawyer: “He’s a great guy. I can’t be more proud of him, just how he’s doing and how he’s relaying it to the defensive line, it’s a team effort. Going out there, doing his thing and having other people come in and do the same thing. Just proud to see all of us doing work in the way we are and him winning off of that.”
• On his fourth-down sack to turn the ball back over to Ohio State’s offense: “It was an amazing feeling, just to do anything to help my teammates, help the team win a game.”
• Hamilton didn’t point to Rutgers as the best game he’s had, rather saying that every game in which he contributes in some way is his best game. “The tackles and sacks will come whatever I do if I’m doing my job. That’s my best game.”
• On how the season has gone for him as a whole: “I feel like it’s gone pretty good. Like I said, if I’m doing thing, doing my job to help the team win that’s a successful season for me.”
• On Hero Kanu: “Hero’s doing a good job. I can’t knock him for anything he’s doing, he’s doing real well. He’s practicing hard. When he gets his time to shine he does good.”
• On the team expanding its defensive line rotation as the season continues: “It just goes to show, you keep working hard and persevering in practice and doing everything that you possibly can do in practice it shows on the field. I’m just proud of any of the guys that come in and help us win the game.”

CB Jermaine Mathews Jr.

• Mathews said Rutgers testing him deep on the first play of the game gave him an opportunity to make a play early and he knew they’d likely want to test him as a freshman cornerback.
• On his recruiting camp where he earned his Ohio State offer: “I remember it like it was yesterday. It was super hot like we were in the South. They were working us hard, I didn’t know if I was going to get through it either. But I just kept pushing. Competing is what I do.”
• Mathews said his competitive drive dates back to his childhood because he always “hated to lose,” so he tried his best to win everything he did.
• Mathews said having the opportunity to play this early as a freshman allows him to “feel out” his first couple games and felt they were a test to see where he was at as a player.
• After playing in a few games, Mathews said he’s become more confident as a player.
• Mathews said he’s super excited to play in his first home night game and to wear Ohio State’s gray jerseys.
• Mathews said he feels he goes against some of the best (receivers) in the country in practice and that gives him confidence. “I feel like no one else can equate to that.”

S Malik Hartford

• On being benched after one series in his start against Youngstown State: “Coach Knowles thought he did what was best in that situation and what was best for the team, and I just gotta play through it.”
• On earning the opportunity to start in just his second game as a Buckeye: “I feel like I put myself in that position. I worked hard to get there. And then when I got to the moment, I didn’t play as well as I thought I should have.”
• Hartford says he feels more comfortable on the field now. “I kind of settled in a little more being in the game environment a lot more.”
• Hartford thought he “played alright” against Rutgers. He played the final 31 snaps of the game at safety after Josh Proctor took a shot to the head and left the game.
• Hartford said he thinks it’s a “great opportunity” to be getting to play significant snaps as a freshman. “But I just have to go in there and do my job and play for the team, play for my brothers.”
• Hartford said the biggest thing he’s learned from playing as a freshman is “the game speed is a lot different” than it was in high school. The opposing players are also a lot bigger, “so I have to get used to playing in my body frame and being physical.”
• Hartford said he weighed 170 pounds when he arrived at Ohio State and worked his way up to 194 pounds, though he now weighs closer to 190 pounds.
• Hartford said practices have been harder than the games. “I mean, you’re playing against receivers that are first-rounders. And it’s a lot more physical in practice.”
• Hartford said Lathan Ransom, Josh Proctor and Sonny Styles have helped him get acclimated as a freshman. “Those guys, they’ve been here before. They know the system. And they took me under their wing.”