The Ohio State Buckeyes, namely Ryan Day, faced tons of pressure over the last few years. Calls for his job mounted before he won the first-ever 12-team College Football Playoff, which means he now has very little pressure as the Buckeyes aim for a repeat.
Insider: Pressure is off for Ryan Day, OSU as title defense ramps up originally appeared on The Sporting News
The Ohio State Buckeyes did a couple of things by winning the 2024 national title. They answered all questions about Ryan Day's ability to coach (except maybe against Michigan). They reinserted themselves into the conversation after a decade without a title.
Now, they don't have as much pressure, despite there being pressure to repeat as there is on every single champion across every single sport every single year. Because they finally won one, Day is now free to coach with much less caution, which might be good.
The Buckeyes come in ranked second in the AP Coach's Poll, which is very good for their chances at repeating. Despite losing talent, this is still a major title contender. "Can Ohio State win back to back national titles? They’re ranked in the preseason polls with a narrative that yes, they could do so," On3's Nick Kosko said of their ranking.
The Buckeyes have talent and a good coach who finally isn't coaching with a monkey on his back. "Ryan Day can coach freely now that he has that elusive first title. Stars like WR Jeremiah Smith and DB Caleb Downs lead this group. TBD on new quarterback Julian Sayin or Lincoln Keinholz to continue the trend of high level play under center," Kosko added.
The Buckeyes faced extreme pressure over the last few years to win a title. So did Day, who saw plenty of calls for his job to be taken. He answered those and passed with flying colors finally, so now without anyone in his ear complaining, he might get the Buckeyes to a whole new level.
Category: General Sports
