In previous years, all the pressure was on the Michigan Wolverines entering the college football season. Now that Jim Harbaugh has managed to defeat Ryan Day and the Ohio State Buckeyes twice in the past two years by a total of 37 points, the pressure has reversed.
While in a sense, the same amount of desperation exists for both Big Ten schools, as neither has been able to win the College Football National Championship, the expectations are higher for the Buckeyes, who have won one fewer championship trophy than Michigan in their rich history.
But the Buckeyes have won two titles dating back to 2002. The Wolverines haven’t won since 1997, and before that, they experienced a 49-year championship drought. Needless to say, the Buckeyes have passed their Big Ten rivals in today’s game.
Yet, that’s not what the recent head-to-head history suggests, with the Wolverines knocking off the Buckeyes, giving Ohio State their only regular season loss in each of the past two years. Now, with coach Day heading into his fifth season leading the Buckeye State, he says the pressure now isn’t any different than when he initially signed up for the job.
“The expectation here every year is the same. Win the rivalry game, win the Big Ten and win the national championship. We fight like heck to do that and we’re right there. You can feel it, you can taste it, and that’s motivated the guys this offseason. When you get that close and you don’t get there, you didn’t get it done. And it certainly does motivate.”
Ohio State Buckeyes coach Ryan Day on pressure/expectations
While the players on his roster continue to change, with athletes such as C.J. Stroud, Paris Johnson, and Jaxon Smith-Njigba moving on, Day has a new group of recruits to mold into future NFL stars. But before they can think about taking their talent to the pros, they need to take care of business here first, and there is no bigger game on the schedule than the Nov. 25 matchup in Ann Arbor.
As far as his aspirations to win the CFP Championship, Day says, “We don’t have a choice. The expectation is that you do.” With QB Kyle McCord competing with Devin Brown for the starting role as they search for Stroud’s replacement under center, there is plenty for Ohio State to prove later this fall. That definitely includes coach Day, who’s just 1-3 in CFP semifinals matchups with the Buckeyes so far.
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