Ryan Day Hints at One Aspect That Will Make Ohio State Spring Football Game Different

The Ohio State Buckeyes are five days away from taking the field in front of an audience for the first time since their Cotton Bowl loss to the Miami Hurricanes.

Except this time, it will be against themselves in their yearly spring football game as they wind down spring practices. Coach Ryan Day told reporters Monday how much he is looking forward to the occasion, but there will be a slight adjustment for this year's iteration.

According to Brandon Little of A to Z Sports, Day said the Buckeyes' pratice will feel kike a real game with tackle-football elements as opposed to touch-and-go. Day said outside of a "thud" period, it will be all systems go come Saturday afternoon.

Day said that despite winning a national title in 2024, there tends to be a regular target on his back every season. Two CFP losses stand out, but it's one Day said he wishes he could redeem.

"It can't come down to one call," Day told Cam Heyward regarding the 2022 Peach Bowl on the "Not Just Football" podcast. "You know, either of those games [Georgia or LSU], you think about the shot on Marvin [Harrison Jr.], which would have been a huge play that they didn't put the flag on where if that was a personal foul, we score and go up to two scores and that game's over or the multiple calls that happened in the '19 game. But, like, nobody cares. We can't leave it up to one call. We have to leave no doubt."

Tracing it back to the present, Day is facing a similar dillema where he will have to try and redeem himself once more. Although Day's team has experienced the mountaintop, it's one of those goals that has become a standard in Columbus instead of just an expectation.

Day recognizes his shortcomings of the past. With wide receiver Jeremiah Smith returning for his junior season and Julian Sayin staying put as the team's starting quarterback, the chips are on the table to make the season an immediate success.

Key games loom against the Texas Longhorns, Indiana Hoosiers and Michigan Wolverines. Assuming the rest of the schedule stays status-quo, the Buckeyes could find themselves playing for a Big Ten title, a CFP berth and something much bigger than themselves: validation.

Validation to win. Validation to dominate, and a reminder that the Big Ten goes through the Buckeye State nearly every year.