Ohio State QB Devin Brown injured in 1st half of Cotton Bowl against Missouri

ARLINGTON, Texas (AP) — Ohio State quarterback Devin Brown suffered an apparent left ankle injury in the first half of the Cotton Bowl on Friday night, when he started in place of Kyle McCord, who transferred.

Brown appeared to get hurt when he was sacked on a third-down play late in the first quarter. He returned when the Buckeyes got the ball back, but true freshman Lincoln Kienholz took over midway through the second quarter while Brown spent rest of the half pedaling on a stationary bicycle behind the Ohio State bench.

When the second half started, with the seventh-ranked Buckeyes leading Missouri 3-0, Brown was on the sideline without his helmet. His ankle appeared to be heavily wrapped and he had an obvious limp when walking among teammates.

McCord started every game during the regular season, but has since left the program to transfer to Syracuse. He had beaten out Brown for the starting job in a tight preseason competition.

With McCord gone, Brown took over as the starter after not playing since Oct. 21.

Brown was 4-of-6 passing for 20 yards and sacked three times. Each team had punted six times in the first half while combining for only 188 total yards (112 for Missouri and 76 for Ohio State).

Kienholz had appeared in only two games before coming on in the Cotton Bowl. He and Brown are expected to be in a quarterback competition this spring, along with five-star prospect Air Noland.