Ryan Day advises Ohio State men's basketball coach Jake Diebler on transition from assistant to HC

With Jake Diebler named the new Ohio State basketball coach, football coach Ryan Day had some advice for the first timer.

Diebler made the transition from assistant coach to interim head coach to permanent. Now, he has the Buckeyes in the NIT and the future looks brighter than it did midseason.

Day came away very impressed with his athletic department colleague. The football coach was in the same boat, going from assistant under Urban Meyer and then to head coach for the first time once the latter retired.

“Congratulations to (Jake) and his family,” Day said. “I was able to go over the press conference and thought he did a great job stepping in a tough spot this year and excited to see what that looks like going forward. But I think what you have to do is you just have to trust who you are. You have to learn from your experiences. And you know, you aren’t starting from scratch. I think that’s the thing as I look back on that experience for me. You know, there were guys on staff that were already here. 

“But then there were other things you had to change. There were already players there in place that you had to continue what was working, but you had to identify the things you had to improve on.” 

Day advised Diebler to do things his way, but also be mindful of what’s already in place. Being successful with the delicate balancing act can lead to a lot of success.

If Diebler can prove those things as he moves through his career, he’ll be a great leader and head coach for the basketball program.

“And so enhancing the things that are going well, but fixing the things you need to fix are important,” Day said. “And I think every year I learned more and more about what the right things that need to get fixed and what are the right things that need to be enhanced. Not everything needs to be changed, but certain things do. And then having the courage to make those changes year in and year out, fall through and be strong is important, but ultimately it comes down to relationships. 

“And building relationships with your staff, giving them great direction as a leader. You know, you’re not an assistant coach anymore. You’re the head coach. So your role has changed. And it’s important to make sure you’re communicating at a high level, giving direction to everybody and then making sure everybody’s accountable to do their job at a high level.”