Inside Ohio State’s offensive plan vs. Miami’s lockdown defense in the Cotton Bowl

As Ohio State prepares to face Miami in the Cotton Bowl, their offensive plan remains a top priority against a Hurricanes defense that didn’t allow Texas A&M into the end zone in the first round of the College Football Playoff. And for this game, Brian Hartline will not serve as the primary playcaller.

“In this game, I kind of wanted to take that off of Brian’s plate as we head into the playoffs,” Day said about primary playcalling, noting that Hartline will be coaching the receivers moving forward.

Immediately following the Big Ten Championship, Day confirmed that Brian Hartline called their offense and would continue to call the plays through the playoffs. He has since slightly adjusted the plan, recognizing that this is brutal timing with Hartline’s new head coaching job with USF aligning with Ohio State’s playoff run.

How will the Buckeyes prepare their offense as Hartline prepares his exit?

Play calling will become a group effort, with Hartline still included, as well as tight ends coach Keenan Bailey.

“Keenan will be very much involved,” Day said. “Everybody will be involved with the play calling. Ultimately it’ll be my decision what calls go into the game.”

Ohio State Buckeyes tight ends coach Keenan Bailey, right, and head coach Ryan Day walk along the sideline during the Big Ten Conference championship game at Lucas Oil Stadium in Indianapolis on Dec. 6, 2025. Ohio State lost 13-10. | Adam Cairns/Columbus Dispatch / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

When establishing a plan of attack, Ryan Day acknowledged the disruptive nature of the Hurricanes defense and the way they bring blitzes from all over that are hard to track.

“Really, really talented across the board, back end, front end,” Day said. “I mean, NFL players all over the field. So it’ll be a huge challenge for our offense, which our guys are excited for.”

Day noted Miami’s seven sacks against Texas A&M. Meanwhile, this was an area where the Buckeyes struggled in their last outing against Indiana, when Julian Sayin was sacked five times — his most in a game all season.

As for correcting what went wrong against Indiana, Day again pointed to offensive execution and situational football.

“We didn’t do a good enough job on third down in the red zone,” Day said. “We didn’t establish the run well enough, took too many sacks and didn’t play good situationally.”

Day and his staff used the extended layoff to put together a very specific practice plan, ensuring there would be no disadvantage to facing Miami fresh off their first-round win. After offensive breakdowns surfaced against Indiana’s No. 2-ranked defense, the time off has been spent reworking details.

“You have to sit on that loss for a while, and that’s not fun, but it does wake us up early in the morning and keep us here late at night and making sure that we’re doing everything we can, because the issues are always there. And against good opponents, they get brought to the forefront.”

That Dec. 6 loss doesn’t sting any less, but is fueling the Buckeyes moving forward.

“Everybody’s pissed off,” Day said. “Everybody just wants to get it right.”