Big Ten Football Media Days are currently underway at Lucas Oil Stadium in Indianapolis, Indiana. During the festivities, Ohio State Buckeyes head coach Ryan Day joined the Big Ten Network crew on set to share his thoughts on the program as it prepares for fall camp.
Ohio State is consistently ranked among the top in recruiting, which means the roster is loaded with talent. Day and his coaching staff also played a major role in the NCAA transfer portal this year, catching the attention of former Buckeyes head coach Urban Meyer. Meyer called Ohio State’s 2024 roster the most talented one he’s ever seen. Day says he’s not the only legendary Buckeyes coach who holds that belief.
“He and Coach Tressel know what talent is. They’re great coaches and they’ve led great teams,” Day said. “They’re excited to see us be aggressive and field a great team. We all know talent alone isn’t enough, but it’s exciting that Buckeye Nation has supported this entire program and given our players what they need to come back. And then we’ll add a few more pieces. So it’s exciting.”
Coach Day fully respects Meyer and Tressel’s input. But after six years as head coach at Ohio State, Day believes the high praise from the two legendary Buckeyes head coaches is driven by excitement. Day knows he needs to harness that excitement and talent to have a successful 2024 season. Day hopes the season will end with Ohio State hoisting the national championship trophy.
While Day wasn’t overjoyed by the accolades from Meyer and Tressel, he took the opportunity to acknowledge Buckeye Nation for rooting for his players. The Ohio State coach also shared some personal thoughts on what this season means to him and made it clear he’s excited about the possibilities in 2024.
“I think we’re all excited about the possibility and the opportunity, that’s how you really have to look at it,” Day said. “Everybody wants to talk about pressure and stuff like that, but that’s not really what matters. It’s really the opportunity. How many times in your life do you get to put together a roster like this and a coaching staff like this and chase your dreams? That’s really what this team is about. A lot of people can approach it in different ways, but I think we’re all excited about what this team can be.”
Day and the Buckeyes just finished the 2023 season, narrowly missing out on the College Football Playoff, losing to Missouri in the New Year’s Six bowl game. This season, Ohio State is part of an expanded playoff berth and is on track to finish the year as Big Ten and national champions. And, as Meyer and Tressel pointed out, the Buckeyes have the talent to do so. Now Day must inspire his team to success in 2024, starting with the season opener against Akron on Aug. 31.
