Rece Davis reveals his biggest concern with Ohio State football in 2023

One major issue within the Ohio State football program gives Rece Davis great pause.

Although the Ohio State football team should be one of the very best across the entire Power Five, this year is going to be different, and Rece Davis knows this.

The host of ESPN’s College GameDay provided some insight to On3 on what he thinks could happen in the Big Ten this year. While he and I and everyone who follows college football knows how well the Buckeyes recruit under Ryan Day, we all keep coming back to that one thing: Who is going to be their starting quarterback? It may be Kyle McCord over Devin Brown, but it is an issue.

Not since C.J. Stroud took over for Justin Fields has Ohio State been this unproven at quarterback.

"“You’re not on scholarship to play quarterback at Ohio State if you’re not talented and you’re not capable. But they’re not proven at that spot yet. That’s my pause for them. But Ohio State is certainly capable of going back to the playoff. I want to see quarterback play from them.”"

Davis was quick to point out the Buckeyes have to face Notre Dame in South Bend in the non-conference, in addition to taking on arch rival Michigan in the Big House this season as well.

Rece Davis has great apprehension about the Ohio State quarterback situation

No doubt about it. Day is facing a ton of pressure this season. Ohio State has lost to Michigan two years in a row and haven’t won the Big Ten since 2020 because of it. Factor in the heartbreaking, last-second loss to Georgia in the Peach Bowl, as well as Penn State certainly on the uptick under James Franklin, and you can understand why there is cause for concern with this Ohio State team.

Look. I think Ohio State’s pass rush is going to be absolutely filthy. I also expect for the Buckeyes to once again have the best wide receiver room in the country. While they are playing with a rare boulder-sized chip on their shoulder, their two biggest threats in-conference are not going away. Also, keep in mind that they didn’t just lose Stroud. Kevin Wilson took over at Tulsa this offseason.

For as much as we all love Brian Hartline as a recruiter and as a wide receivers coach, this is a new realm for him as their offensive coordinator. While defense was largely the issue that held Ohio State back the last few years, it was Wilson’s offense he was running for Day that kept the team afloat through a period of transition. Will too much attrition and change undermine this program?

Are the Buckeyes a playoff-caliber team? Most definitely. Are they a serious contender to win it all? To some degree, yes, but they are on the lower end of the spectrum in that department. To be fair, only six-to-eight teams can win it all in a given season. Ohio State is probably closer to five than it is to one. There is nothing wrong with that, so prove me wrong, but I also have concerns…

What this is really going to come down to is for either Brown or McCord to play up to their lofty potential from the jump this season. We have seen plenty of first-year starting quarterbacks flourish all over the country, so that would be nothing new. However, it is hard to see Ohio State coming out of the Big Ten if they are not being elevated by whoever their starting quarterback is.

Frankly, this is going to remain a major concern until we see one beat out the other in fall camp.