Ryan Day might have led Ohio State to a national championship, but it’s clear he still doesn’t understand what it takes to win “The Game.”
Yes, Day has led Ohio State to a win over Michigan before. However, this is a different Wolverines program.
Don Brown is no longer the defensive coordinator, and Michigan is now the one living rent-free in the minds of Ohio State.
For nearly two decades, that was Ohio State. Jim Tressel, and then Urban Meyer, who famously went 7-0 against Michigan, owned the Wolverines. Owned the rivalry.
But there is a price to pay, and that’s what Day doesn’t get.
Like Jim Harbaugh when he first arrived at Michigan, Day has essentially treated Michigan as just another game.
When asked this week at Big Ten Media Days what the Buckeyes need to do to beat Michigan, Day responded: “Score more points than them,” via Ari Wasserman of On3.
In a way, that’s fair. Ohio State doesn’t need to overthink, something they did in 2024. It’s also a lot different from Jim Harbaugh saying, “We are going to beat Ohio (State) or die trying.”
That was in 2021, right after Harbaugh took less money to remain Michigan’s head coach. He was on the hot seat, and the reason was that he couldn’t beat the Buckeyes.
Harbaugh, like Day, tried to treat “The Game” like just another game. Standing across from the maniacal Meyer, that strategy was never going to work.
So Harbaugh adapted. Michigan started the “Beat Ohio” drill and focused on dominating in the trenches. After all, the team that wins the rushing battle usually wins “The Game,” or at least it has every season dating back to 2001.
That’s why Ohio State was trying to pound the rock last season against one of the best defensive tackle duos in Michigan history instead of throwing it to Jeremiah Smith.
Although the inability of the offensive line to block the Wolverines didn’t help.
Looking ahead to the 2025 edition, the Buckeyes are once again considered the more talented team. They are the defending national champs and have the two best non-quarterbacks in college football — Smith and Caleb Downs. Ohio State should win. But it should have won last season, as three-touchdown favorites.
The biggest difference between the two programs is their attitude toward the rivalry. Michigan is built to beat Ohio State, because the Wolverines figure that if they can beat the Buckeyes, they can beat anyone else.
Michigan designed its defense to beat Ohio State. It works every single day to beat the Buckeyes.
OSU used to be like that. It was under Meyer. Things changed under Ryan Day, and his answer at Big Ten Media Days only reinforces the fact that he still doesn’t get it.
The Buckeyes proved they can win a national championship last season. But can they beat Michigan?
That remains to be seen.
