The Ohio State football team kicked off spring practice this week. All eyes will be on the pending quarterback battle between Kyle McCord and Devin Brown to see who will take over for the departed C.J. Stroud. These will be big shoes to fill as Stroud set all sorts of records at OSU. And if Devin Brown were to win the job, he’ll have a big jersey to fill as well.
Brown came to practice with a different look than his No. 15 from last season. Instead, the Utah native will sport No. 33 this year. Seems like an odd choice for a quarterback. Typically, the guys under center wear single digits through the teens. However Brown wanted to honor a hero from the past… Slingin’ Sammy Baugh
Baugh wore No. 45 while in college at TCU and then switched to No. 33 in the pros with the Washington Redskins (now Commanders). Baugh was the first quarterback to make it to Canton in the Hall of Fame class of 1963.
#33 The OG QB number. 1st QB in Canton. HOF class of 63. Slingin’ Sammy. pic.twitter.com/SBJ50qzcEb
— Devin Brown (@dbrownqb33) February 25, 2023
At the end of practice, Brown shared with reporters why he decided to make the change.
“The reason behind it was Sammy Baugh. He was the first quarterback inducted into the (Pro Football) Hall of Fame in 1963 with the Washington Football Team, so he’s a legend,” said Baugh. “That’s the original quarterback number, in my opinion. I want to rock the original quarterback number.”
Brown would go on to say that he remembered his dad talking about Baugh in his youth. So he started wearing No. 33 and stuck with it even through high school.
Ryan Day has said one of his criteria for a starting quarterback is one of leadership. It certainly seems like Brown likes to think outside the box and does so with confidence. Now we just need to see if that kind of swagger can translate to on-the-field production.
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