Buckeye recovering? Ryan Day still believes the team can win it all

Ohio State coach Ryan Day said Wednesday that despite the loss to Michigan, the Buckeyes have a team capable of rebounding and winning the national championship.

“It’s all ahead of us,” Day said. “And we have a lot of players who are good enough to do that.”

The unranked Wolverines won their fourth straight in the rivalry on Saturday, defeating Ohio State 13-10 in the Horseshoe. According to ESPN Research, the Buckeyes were favorites by 20.5 points, the second-largest margin in the series since 1978.

Despite the upset, Ohio State (10-2) remains virtually guaranteed to make the playoffs, falling just four spots to No. 6 in the selection committee’s latest rankings. The Buckeyes are also expected to host their first-round playoff matchup.

“As much as (the loss at Michigan) hurts, we get a chance to play for the national championship,” Day said. “Think about the teams that are in the (NFL) wild card. They get the first win and can get some momentum and win the whole thing.”

As head coach at Ohio State, Day has a 47-1 record against other Big Ten opponents, but just 1-4 against the Wolverines.

Day said he and his coaching staff deserved some of the blame after the Buckeyes failed to score in the second half of a game for the first time since 2011.

Jeremiah Smith, the Big Ten freshman and receiver of the year, had just one catch for three yards on just two targets after halftime, both coming in the third quarter

“If you look at the offensive side of the ball, it wasn’t a good day,” Day said. “Overall it wasn’t a good day on offense. And some of that had to do with training and game planning. There’s no question that we could have done a better job getting the ball (the receivers on the perimeter). …Ultimately, it comes down to me as a head coach, whether it’s having the right people in the right place, the Recruiting part of it, on the plan, on the coaching, that’s on me.”

Day said he expects to be back in Columbus in 2025, adding that he believes he is still the right coach for the job.

“I think the culture is as strong as it’s ever been (at Ohio State). … I think we have great players. I think we have great coaches,” Day said. “It was a bad day. So we have to keep going – and the mindset is to win the whole thing now.”