Ryan Day Discusses Disappointment in Telling Team Michigan Game Has Been Cancelled
This has been a really tough year for the Buckeyes, but no setback hurts more than this week with the Michigan game being cancelled.
Nonetheless, Ryan Day had his weekly radio on 97.1 The Fan in Columbus and he shared a few thoughts from earlier this week, including how he addressed the team under really tough circumstances.
How he told the team about The Game being cancelled
"Well I've said it before and I wasn't trying to be funny, I'm just being real - I'm pretty tired of giving the team bad news ... the response we have from the team is pretty remarkable ... they've become used to this flexibility and things changing ... I just really feel in my heart that this is going to pay off for us somewhere down the line."
How is the team handling the tough news?
"You don't just get that kind of news and move on, it really hurts. There's so much invested in that game throughout the year. We play that game every day in our building, we honor this game, it's a daily thing ... but we have to move on quickly ... the only thing you can do is just to maximize the day ... that wasn't easy for this team early on, but I think we've gotten better at it ... We are obviously really disappointed we aren't playing these guys."
On telling the team they would be in Indianapolis for the Big Ten Title Game
"That was good to be able to give them some good news. It was a deep sigh of relief knowing we have a chance to play in the Big Ten championship game ... We have an opportunity to go for No. 4 here - we've only played 5 games. It's a goal accomplished to be back in Indy, but on to the next one."
On the way they played against Michigan State
“To see them play and rally the way we did was pretty special. Lot of guys had to step up in a big way, I'm so proud of them ... I think the way that we won that game had people on notice throughout the country. I think that's why you see the fact that we're still ranked in the top four in the country.”
Here are a couple of other notable things that Day said during his appearance:
- Greg Mattison, Matt Barnes and Corey Dennis, the three Ohio State assistant coaches who were out at Michigan State, have returned to practice and will be back for the Big Ten championship game.
- Ohio State will have a socially-distanced team meal at the Woody Hayes Athletic Center during the Northwestern-Illinois game Saturday.
- Day said he was really impressed with how Justin Fields competed last week at Michigan State. He recognized that most plays weren't clean, which wasn't a surprise with such a different looking offensive line, but Justin's athleticism and toughness really stood out to him. He pointed out the play where Trey Sermon ripped off a long touchdown run and Fields caught him from behind to help make a block near the end of the play.
- Speaking of Trey Sermon, Day said, "It was great to see him have a bit of a breakout game. He's a great young man." He noted that it didn't come together for him quickly after transferring in from Oklahoma, but he sure looks good now.
- The last two semesters, the Buckeyes have a team GPA of 3.0. That's something Ryan Day is really proud of - 40 OSU football players are among 120 Buckeye fall sports athletes who have earned Big Ten All-Academic honors, which requires a minimum 3.0 GPA. Harry Miller, a pre-mechanical engineering major, had a 4.0.
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