Five Takeaways From Ryan Day's Press Conference After Beating Rutgers

Here are the most important items to know after Ryan Day addressed the media at Rutgers.

Author:
Brendan Gulick
Oct 2, 2021 7:53 PM EDT

Ryan Day just watched his Ohio State team dismantled Rutgers 52-13, thanks to 45 points before half time. The Buckeyes started fast and cruised to a second straight stress-free victory.

Here are the most important items to know after Ryan Day addressed the media at Rutgers.

C.J. Stroud Let It Rip

Day was really happy to see what redshirt freshman C.J. Stroud did this afternoon, after he torched the Scarlet Knights' defense for 330 yards and five scores.

"I thought it showed during the week, and who knows maybe it gave him a little perspective during that game standing on the sideline last week," Day said. "It was encouraging to see him play the way he did.”

Day made it clear this the kind of play that he's seen from Stroud in practice and why he won the starting job before the season began.

TreVeyon Henderson is Okay

TreVeyon Henderson burst through the Rutgers defense untouched for a 44 yard touchdown on his first carry of the afternoon. He ran the ball eight times for 71 yards and that TD, but he didn't return after getting dinged up in the second quarter.

Day said going into the locker room that he thought the true freshman running back was fine and he said postgame that TreVeyon was cleared to play in the second half but that he chose to keep him out.

Toughness, Personified

Day said that the team talked an awful lot about toughness during the week. You also got that sense from C.J. Stroud, when he kept referencing that the whole country was counting them out and that it truly was Ohio against the world. Stroud also stressed how important "the brotherhood" is, saying that it isn't just a catchy term but that those guys all pray for each other and would do anything for one another.

I'm not sure if the whole country is counting our the Buckeyes, but those rallying cries within the walls of the Woody Hayes Athletic Center sure got the team to play well. Day said several times he thought their toughness shined through today better than it has at any point this season so far.

Big Ten Road Victories

Day acknowledged the importance of winning on the road in conference play, especially considering the circumstances the team has been dealing with so far this year. This is the youngest team the Buckeyes have had in at least 20 years, the first half schedule was challenging for a group with such little experience and Day said he feels they are stronger because of it.

Team Is Improving

Day said this was the first week that he really felt like practice was indicating the team was taking a major step forward.

"A month ago, we were a much different team now … we saw some glimpses of that tonight."

He also talked about all the young guys that had zero career starts and how they really aren’t "young" anymore because they've played five games. Now they know what to expect and the staff is figuring out who can give them meaningful minutes behind them.

"We just didn’t have that last year," Day admitted.

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