Ryan Day as Urban Meyer’s replacement looks better by the day. Says former AD Gene Smith: ‘We needed that’

ATLANTA — Watching Ohio State this last month in the College Football Playoff was like watching an aircraft carrier turn on a dime. How can one coach be so vilified and then legendary in the same seven-week period? Ain’t that America — or Ohio State. 

Maybe both. 

“Everyone is saying you’re wonderful and you’re really not,” former coach Jim Tressel surmised after Ohio State won its ninth national championship with a 34-23 win over Ohio State. Tressel, of course, was speaking from experience through the lens of what current coach Ryan Day and his family go through on a weekly basis in Columbus. “The next day they’re saying you’re horrible and you’re really not.”

“That’s what happens when you’re the Ohio State head coach,” defensive back Denzel Burke said. “We’re the most hated program but the most loved program.”

Yes, sometimes in the same holiday season. 

It goes deeper than that. Gene Smith is the now-retired AD who elevated Day — a young offensive coordinator with no head coaching experience — after the tumultuous last days of Urban Meyer. Day, whose first full season was in 2019, has made the CFP four of six seasons and is 70-10 all0-time. 

Afterward on the field, Smith explained his reasoning while taking what seemed like a veiled shot at Meyer.

“This is a great program with great culture and good kids. That hasn’t always been our case,” Smith said. “You don’t see these kids getting in trouble. You don’t read abut the police anymore. All that is done …

“[Day] had a high football IQ … He really cares about the players. We needed that.”

Among FBS coaches with a minimum of 50 games under their belt, Day is now second only to Knute Rockne in winning percentage. He could stay and build an empire in Columbus, if he wants…

Source link : https://www.cbssports.com/college-football/news/ryan-day-as-urban-meyers-replacement-looks-better-by-the-day-says-former-ad-gene-smith-we-needed-that/

Author : Dennis Dodd

Publish date : 2025-01-21 07:51:00

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