With just under three weeks remaining until Ohio State kicks off its 2023 season at Indiana, multiple key position battles remain undecided. Ohio State held its 10th practice of fall camp on Monday following the team’s first scrimmage on Saturday, but head coach Ryan Day remained noncommital when discussing how the competitions have evolved at quarterback, offensive tackle, and center while meeting with the media on Monday.

Day was asked early and often about the state of the race between quarterbacks Kyle McCord and Devin Brown, a race that began in the spring and has remained a dead heat throughout the summer. Saturday’s scrimmage offered a significant opportunity for both quarterbacks to push ahead, offering the sort of separation Day has been looking for in order to anoint a starter.

That separation still hasn’t materialized, however, and the clock continues to tick for Day and his staff to decide whether or not they will need to prepare to play two quarterbacks in the season opener.

“That’s something we have to decide this week, probably,” Day said when asked about that possibility. “Are we ready to name someone by the end of the week or does the competition continue into the season? That’s not ideal, but if that’s where we’re at, that’s what we’ll do.”

In evaluating McCord and Brown’s performances on Saturday, Day referenced both positives and negatives he saw from the two quarterbacks. The continued uneven showings beg the question of if either is ready to lead a team with national title aspirations but a difficult road that will need to be navigated in order to achieve it. When asked if he believes his indecision is more a product of having two game-ready quarterbacks who are indistinguishable or a product of uncertainty regarding each of them, Day’s response fell somewhere in between.

“My bottom line is there were some good plays there, but also some plays they want back,” Day said. “So again, we’re looking for consistency there. I keep going back to the fact that I don’t feel like there needs to be extraordinary play. Making the routine plays routinely and taking care of the football, period. I think we have to understand situational football. I think that’s important and then ultimately leading the team down the field.”

As for just how much of a leap forward Brown or McCord will need to take in order for him to avoid having to play both at Indiana, Day said he’s still waiting to see a clear separation before he’s willing to make a decision.

“You’d like a sizable gap to name a starter, for sure,” Day said. “It’s hard to name somebody when there isn’t a significant gap. I’m looking for someone to emerge. There have been good things, there have been things that they want back. I appreciate their competitiveness right now. They’re going at it every day.”

Offensive line still a work in progress

Regardless of which quarterback ultimately starts at Indiana on Sept. 2, they will be relying on an offensive line that will feature three new starters after the departures of both tackles and the starting center to the NFL Draft. Coming out of the spring, Josh Fryar appeared to be heading toward earning the starting position at left tackle, but offensive line coach Justin Frye has done some shuffling during camp with the emergence of San Diego State transfer Josh Simmons.

During last Friday’s practice, which was opened to the media, Simmons slotted in often at left tackle with the first-team unit, with Fryar manning the right tackle position. Asked about Simmons on Monday, Day would not go as far as to say Simmons is leading the left tackle competition but noted there are reasons to believe he may ultimately win the battle.

“I think he’s had some really good practices and has shown he can be the starting left tackle,” Day said. “He has not won that job yet, but he has shown traits that make us believe he can be that guy.”

Simmons’ switch to left tackle is a luxury Ohio State can afford thanks in large part to Fryar’s willingness and ability to move to right tackle.

“He’s kind of gone back and forth as somebody who has flexibility that way,” Day said. “Some guys really struggle moving (positions). Dawand (Jones) struggled doing that. For some guys, it’s not that hard. For Josh, he feels comfortable playing on the right side, and so does Luke (Montgomery). So we’ve looked at who’s going to be the best moving forward for the long-term. We felt like Simmons gave us an opportunity to maybe look at him over there (at left tackle) and then figure it out moving forward.”

Day noted redshirt freshman Tegra Tshabola has also made the move to left tackle as a guy who has shown the versatility to play on either side.

“We felt like if we were going to make that move, we had to make it early on in the preseason, and I think it’s going to be best for the long-term. But we’ll continue to evaluate it,” Day said.

In addition to both tackle positions, Ohio State still needs to identify who will start in the middle of the offensive line. Louisiana Monroe transfer Victor Cutler Jr., Carson Hinzman, and Jakob James continue to compete to be the starting center. Day had little to offer when asked about the position when asked on Monday.

“There was some decent play, but I don’t think we’re ready to identify somebody ahead of the other just yet,” he said.

Reach Dillon Davis at 740-413-0904. Follow him on Twitter @DillonDavis56.