Anonymous Big Ten coach feels calls for Ryan Day's job prior to national championship were 'absolutely ludicrous'

An anonymous Big Ten coach showed his support for Ohio State head coach Ryan Day in Athlon Sports’ 2025 College Football Preview magazine.

Day, who won his first National Championship at Ohio State this past season, has had to fend off critics for years after disappointing losses in the 2019, 2020 and 2022 editions of the College Football Playoff.

“The resilience of [Ryan] Day and his staff is really, really remarkable,” the coach said. “I don’t think they get enough credit from the public for how they managed the playoff run after losing to Michigan. The calls for his job were absolutely ludicrous. Do they need to beat Michigan? Yeah, sure. But this program is at the very top of the sport because of the head coach.”

Chatter around the college football world about Day’s job grew after Ohio State’s fourth consecutive loss to rival Michigan on November 30, 2024, which knocked the Buckeyes out of the Big Ten Championship Game. They however would go on to win four consecutive games (Tennessee, Oregon, Texas and Notre Dame) to win the first ever 12-team College Football Playoff.

“Year in and year out, this is the most talented program in the league and one of the most talented in the nation,” the anonymous coach continued. “The question every season is just if they can arrange that talent the right way.”

Heading into the 2025 season, Ohio State has re-loaded once again and will attempt to repeat as National Champions for the first time in program history. Led by returning superstars sophomore wide receiver Jeremiah Smith and junior safety Caleb Downs, the Buckeyes boast the fifth ranked recruiting class and 10th ranked Transfer Portal class.

“Whoever wins the quarterback battle has one of the best receiver rooms in the country,” said another anonymous coach.

The position battle between sophomore quarterback Julian Sayin and junior quarterback Lincoln Kienholz has been an intense one, but they are certainly set up nicely to succeed. As the anonymous Big Ten coach mentioned, the receiver room is loaded with players such as the aforementioned Smith and junior Carnell Tate.

As a freshman last season, Smith totaled 1,315 receiving yards (fourth in NCAA) with 15 receiving touchdowns (T-second in NCAA). Tate had a great sophomore campaign as well, as he hauled in 733 receiving yards and four touchdowns as the Buckeyes’ third receiver.

Ohio State will open the 2025 season on August 30 in a 2024 College Football Playoff rematch at Ohio Stadium against Texas.