Many of Ohio State’s players found out Kyle McCord was transferring the same way Ohio State fans did.
Right tackle Josh Fryar said he found out through Twitter. Fellow offensive lineman Donovan Jackson also said he first saw the news on social media. Even Ohio State’s backup quarterback, Devin Brown, was caught by surprise when he heard the news that Monday morning.
“It definitely caught me off-guard, I wasn't expecting anything,” Brown said. “So it was definitely a shock.”
McCord told a smaller group of teammates a couple of days before the transfer portal opened that he was planning to enter the portal, and those Buckeyes told him they supported his decision.
“It was a couple guys in the locker room. He basically told us he was going to explore other opportunities, and we fully respect him,” said defensive tackle Tyleik Williams. “He's gonna make his own decision.”
Not every player who met with the media on Tuesday wanted to talk about the quarterback who was no longer with the program. Fryar said he “didn't know what to think” when he saw that McCord entered the portal, and “that's really all I'm gonna say about it.”
For the most part, though, even the players who were surprised by his decision expressed support for their former teammate even though he’ll now be playing at another school.
“He just chose what was best for him. You know, he's my brother, man. I'm proud of wherever he goes,” Jackson said. “Wherever he chooses, man, I'm supporting him 1,000%.”
Many Buckeyes were sad to see McCord go, including wide receiver Emeka Egbuka, who caught many passes from McCord over the past three years in practices and games. But Egbuka also said he wants and expects to see McCord succeed wherever he ends up.
“Kyle’s one of my best friends. So in that regard, it kind of hurts to see him go. But on the other side, I'm so excited for him,” Egbuka said. “I mean, he's gonna have an amazing future. He's a competitor. Wherever he goes, he's gonna make a direct impact. So I couldn't be more happy for him or excited for him for the step forward. Unfortunately, he won't be able to play with me. So that kind of sucks. He's one of my best friends. I think he's a great quarterback. But I'm just super excited for him.”
Egbuka felt McCord took more criticism than he deserved for his play during the 2023 season.
“People can say what they want about Kyle, we went 11-1, we had a great season,” Egbuka said. “Unfortunately we lost to the team up north. But you can't really discredit the things that he did. We had a Biletnikoff winner, you can't just have that with a terrible quarterback. So there's not too much to be said about the quarterback play. I think it's always going to be top-tier at Ohio State.”
Ohio State defensive end Jack Sawyer also came to McCord’s defense. While McCord drew much of the blame for Ohio State’s loss to Michigan after throwing two interceptions against the Wolverines, Sawyer felt that blame was misguided.
“Me and Kyle are really close on and off the field, and we've developed a friendship that’s gonna last a lifetime. And I really felt bad for him, how he was treated after those games,” Sawyer said. “And I don't think it was fair. I understand that at Ohio State, the quarterback’s expected to win games. And I don't think at all it was his fault that we lost that game in Ann Arbor. So I think it was unfair, definitely. I love Kyle to death, and I wish him nothing but the best. And I just think it was unfortunate the way he ended his career here.”
While Ohio State’s offense wasn’t as prolific with McCord at the helm as it was with C.J. Stroud, Justin Fields and Dwayne Haskins, Sawyer felt McCord deserved credit for how he fought through an ankle injury for much of the season to still lead Ohio State to wins in its first 11 games.
“I think he handled it as best as you could being in that position,” Sawyer said. “At Ohio State, all the eyes are on the quarterback. You're expected to throw for 4,000 yards, 50 touchdowns. It's a lot of pressure, especially when you're a first-time starter, and you're playing on a bad wheel all year, and you're battling through it, you're handling stuff like a professional like he did all season. You know, it's just hard to see. I feel bad for him as a friend, as a teammate. But I know Kyle is gonna have success wherever he goes, and I wish him nothing but the best. And we're always gonna stay in contact.”
“I don't think at all it was his fault that we lost that game in Ann Arbor.”– Jack Sawyer on Kyle McCord
The beneficiary of McCord’s departure in terms of Cotton Bowl playing time will likely be Brown, who’s expected to step into the starting quarterback role for Ohio State’s season finale against Missouri. But Brown said he feels for McCord with all that McCord dealt with during his season as Ohio State’s starter, and Brown said he will take what he learned from watching McCord navigate those challenges into his own opportunity to be the Buckeyes’ top quarterback.
“I mean, Kyle went through a lot,” Brown said. “And I feel for the guy. There was a lot of tough moments. And he grew throughout his career here and built as a leader and built as a player and being able to sit behind him and watch him grow really helped me look back and kind of think of the things I should work on and go from how he was doing his things.”
In an ideal world, the Buckeyes wouldn’t have had their quarterback who started all 12 of their regular-season games – and 13 other scholarship players – enter the transfer portal before the season is even over. But the Buckeyes also recognize that such transfer movement has become the new reality in college football.
“It is hard to see teammates leave when you build those friendships and those bonds up. It definitely sucks to see guys leave,” Sawyer said. “But it's kind of just where college football’s at right now.”
Egbuka says the Buckeyes can’t dwell on those departures, even when one of them is the starting quarterback, when they still have another game to play.
“We all wished Kyle the best when he departed, but there's kind of no time to be sentimental or sad. It's always the next man forward mentality,” Egbuka said. “And as far as who's going to be at the quarterback position, obviously the wide receivers don't really have too much say, that's going to be the coaching staff that does that. But whoever's back there, we know that they have the ability to get the job done.”
