Who will Ohio State start at QB with C.J. Stroud hurt?

With C.J. Stroud not starting this week for Ohio State, either Kyle McCord or Jack Miller will get the start in Week 4 against Akron.

A quarterback controversy might be brewing in Columbus. On his weekly radio show Thursday, Ohio State head coach Ryan Day announced that quarterback C.J. Stroud will not start against Akron this week due to a shoulder injury, but that either Kyle McCord or Jack Miller will get the start in place of him.

Going into the week, Stroud was considered one of the better passers in the Big Ten with his 963 yards and eight touchdowns. With him down and the nation’s No. 1 rated prospect Quinn Ewers unavailable to play, the Buckeyes will have to rely on McCord or Miller, neither of who have thrown a pass in the NCAA. Miller did have a 21-yard rushing touchdown last season.

The two have been splitting reps with the ones at practice this week and Day has yet to announce a starter. “These guys have both got reps, both get reps with the ones. We split them pretty good across the board during the week, and they both picked up the game plan,” Day said.

Ohio State football: Quarterback by committee could be the answer

The coach has made it apparent that to the quarterback room that each quarterback would be involved with the team’s success this season, referencing 2014, where the Buckeyes played the quarterback trio of JT Barrett, Cardale Jones and Braxton Miller at some point in the season.

"“We knew going into the season that we’re going to need the whole room, we talked about that coming in, that this was just going to probably be one guy, that we’re going to need everybody,” Day said."

Day said he doesn’t want to leave the starter question in the balance by saying that they’ll rotate two quarterbacks but instead he plans on announcing a started on Friday.

McCord is favored to get the start. He lost the quarterback battle against Stroud in the summer. The Philadelphia native was the sixth-ranked quarterback and 28th-overall prospect in the nation (per 247sports) and has all the tools to be successful in this Ohio State offense.