What Ryan Day said about the Ohio State QB situation, OSU's shaky offensive line, and more

Ohio State’s 23-3 victory over Indiana in its season opener Saturday was less than scintillating, at least on offense.

The Buckeyes managed only one touchdown after its opening drive and converted only 2 of 12 third-down chances. The defense’s stout performance against a suspect IU offense kept the game from becoming truly in doubt.

If Saturday’s home opener against Youngstown State is ever in doubt, then there are genuine issues. That’s unlikely to happen. But the Buckeyes know they need to show much offensive improvement this week.

“I wish it was cleaner across the board,” coach Ryan Day said Tuesday in his weekly press conference. “It wasn’t. But we got the win and now we identify the things we need to get better at and see what it looks like this week.”

More: Clunky OSU offense a concern, but defense shined and openers are often tricky | Analysis

Here are the main takeaways from Tuesday’s press conference with Day and defensive coordinator Jim Knowles:

McCord remains the starting QB

As expected, Kyle McCord will get the start again this week at quarterback. The junior certainly didn’t play poorly enough to lose the job to redshirt freshman Devin Brown. He also didn’t do enough to cement his status.

McCord completed 20 of 33 passes for 239 yards with one fourth-down interception.

“I think we both felt the same way,” Day said of McCord’s performance. “There were some good moments, good throws, and some other things that you wish you had back. When you look back at first-time starters here in the past, that was probably similar.”

More: Overlooked: 5 plays you might have forgotten that helped Ohio State beat Indiana

Devin Brown played only two series, both three-and-outs, in the middle of the second quarter and then the final one of the game. Day said he intended to have Brown play more, and expects that to happen against Youngstown State.

“You watch Devin (in practice) and he deserves to play,” Day said. “He played that way throughout preseason camp… Maybe there’s more clarity moving forward, but until we get to these games, it’s really hard to do that.

“I’d love to say, yeah, Kyle’s the starter and Devin’s not going to play, but that’s not the case. It’s not fair to him, either. It’s not fair to the team. I do not have a crystal ball. I don’t know what it’s going to look like. I wish I did. I know everybody wants to know what it’s going to look like, but we’ll just keep grinding on this thing and keep trying to find wins because we know it’s a long season. Ultimately, we have to find out what’s best for our team.”

The offense line needs to improve

As camp progressed, the Buckeyes expressed growing confidence in their new-look offensive line. That was not borne out by Saturday’s performance.

Blocking in the run game was particularly inconsistent.

“We’re not going to go into crazy details on it all, but I felt they needed to play better in the run game,” Day said. “I think we were only 50% efficient overall on first and second down running the ball. That’s not good enough.”

He said that Indiana gave Ohio State some looks the Buckeyes didn’t expect, but added that wasn’t an excuse.

“I don’t think we handled it as well as we could have,” he said.

Only one lineman, right tackle Josh Fryar, earned a “champion” grade, though he said redshirt freshman Carson Hinzman had an encouraging debut.

“For the first road game at center, with everything going on, I thought he called a decent game,” Day said. “There were a couple of things that were a little funky in there, but overall he was OK.”

Left tackle Josh Simmons, a transfer from San Diego State, was the third new starter besides Fryar and Hinzman. It was not a stellar debut.

“He did some good things,” Day said. “You could see the athleticism, but just not consistent enough for what we need.”

Simmons, Fryar and Hinzman are new starters.

“I don’t see anything on the film that isn’t correctable, like guys just getting flat-out beat or not good enough,” Day said. “That is the most encouraging thing.

“I would have liked to have seen better execution, but the things we’ve seen there are all correctable.”

Encouraging start for the defense

Indiana had few playmakers on offense, so Ohio State’s true tests will come later, but it’s hard to quibble with allowing only three points and 153 yards.

The Hoosiers used a triple-option scheme extensively. Asked how many snaps against a triple-option the Buckeyes practiced for in the preseason, Knowles replied, “Five plays, and that’s stretching it.”

Knowles said he scrambled in the press box to make the adjustments and his players reacted well to them.

“The communication was good and guys were really locked in and helping each other, talking it out,” Knowles said. “They understand the system so when I said something, they got it. I was happy with how it went.”

The only thing that frustrated Knowles was a couple of third-down conversions Indiana made that he believes OSU should have stopped. But he was pleased that IU had only one play that went for 20 yards or more, a 24-yard pass in the second quarter. After OSU’s inability to prevent big plays against Michigan and Georgia at the end of last season, that was encouraging.

“We have a long season and some highly competitive opponents, but there are indications we’re moving on the right path,” Knowles said.

Proctor solidifying starting safety job

Sixth-year senior Josh Proctor prevailed in a tight three-way battle with Syracuse transfer Ja’Had Carter and freshman Malik Hartford for the third safety position.

Proctor has always had all the physical tools needed to excel but lacked consistency. He lost his job last year after missing a tackle early against Notre Dame.

But he played well against IU. He darted up to make a tackle in the IU backfield early and broke up a fourth-down pass late in the second quarter.

“He’s been consistent, and that’s something that’s always been a focus for Josh – his consistency,” Day said. “No one ever really questioned his effort. He needs to be a major contributor for us.”

So far, he has been. Hartford played well in a backup role Saturday. Carter didn’t play.

“I think you’ll see those other guys play, but Josh right now has earned the right on the field to be the starter,” Day said.

The fullback who isn’t a fullback

Chip Trayanum saw time as both the lone running back and as a fullback in the I-formation. The 5-11, 233-pound senior helped spring Miyan Williams on OSU’s first touchdown.

Playing behind TreVeyon Henderson and Williams, Trayanum led OSU in rushing with 57 yards in eight carries. He also had a 12-yard catch out of the backfield to convert a third down.

“He can do everything,” Day said of Trayanum. “He’s big and strong. He blocks as an insert fullback. I say fullback. He’s not a fullback. He’s just a big running back, and there’s a lot of things you can do with that.”

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This article originally appeared on The Columbus Dispatch: What Ryan Day said about OSU QB situation, offensive line issues