The Ohio State Buckeyes are currently in the middle of a competition between quarterbacks Kyle McCord and Devin Brown to determine their next starter following the departure of C.J. Stroud. And as head coach Ryan Day makes that decision, former Ohio State head coach Urban Meyer discussed how he chose a starting quarterback during his coaching days.
During an appearance on The Hard Count with JD Pickell, Urban Meyer revealed that the most important thing he wants to see from a quarterback is simply his ability to drive his team down the field, get first downs, and score touchdowns.
“I want to see — a quarterback’s job, how he throws it, his completion percentage, does he take care of the ball, those are all very critical — but does he score touchdowns? Does he get first downs and does he get touchdowns,” Meyer said. “That’s all I cared about. Now I would always have a category two, three, four five. And that would be completion percentage, accuracy on the short, medium and long throws, etc. — those are all tangibles. The other tangible is that ‘Does he score points and move the team?’”
While the throwing mechanics and stats might be important, Meyer said a player’s ability to lead drives tells you everything you need to know about the player.
“Because that takes everything into consideration,” Meyer said. “That takes leadership. That takes toughness. That takes the ability to extend plays and get first downs, which I think are the most important quality in a quarterback.”
But this time, it won’t be his decision. It will be Day’s.
[On3]
