While a fourth-straight loss to Michigan does not jeopardize Ohio State’s chances of making the College Football Playoff, it has prompted new concerns about Ryan Day’s future as Buckeyes head coach, a debate that the school’s athletic director wants to end before it begins. “Our full focus right now is on the College Football Playoff and making a strong run,” Ohio State athletic director Ross Bjork told The Columbus Dispatch.
“We have a lot to play for. We have a fantastic team made up of brilliant players and exceptional young guys. Coach Day does an excellent job leading our program. “He is our coach.”
Bjork went on to say: “Our program is built to last, and Coach Day has done that.” “He has put us in a terrific position… There will be time to analyze what happened throughout the game, but you need to get back to work.
When you focus on broader goals and the bigger picture, you just have to keep working, and that was his attitude when I spoke with him.” Day previously remarked that losing to Michigan was the worst thing that had happened in his life, second only to his father’s death, and the impact of another defeat was obvious as he met with media after the game.
And to his players, who physically challenged their Michigan counterparts as they attempted to plant a M flag on the 50yard line at Ohio Stadium, sparking a violent melee that resulted in police intervention and a $100,000 punishment imposed by the Big Ten on both schools.
Day joined the Ohio State team in 2017 as offensive coordinator under head coach Urban Meyer, and he served as interim coach during Meyer’s suspension in 2018, succeeding him as coach from the 2019 season to the present. Day is 63-10 overall as Ohio State’s head coach, with a 45-5 record against Big Ten opponents, but 40 percent of his defeats have come against the Buckeyes’ archrival.
Ohio State has advanced to the College Football Playoff in 2019, 2020, and 2022 under Day’s supervision, but has yet to win a national championship. Alabama, Georgia, and Clemson have all defeated Day in College Football Playoff games, while Oregon has two victories over him, and Missouri defeated his Oregon State squad in the 2023 Cotton Bowl. According to FanDuel Sportsbook’s lines, Ohio State is third in the nation with +450 odds to win the national title.
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