Ohio State coach Ryan Day reaffirms standard on transfer portal

COLUMBUS — Ryan Day has made his stance on the transfer portal clear.

It’s a need and situational basis for the Ohio State coach. Not every name in the portal gets contacted or even looked at by the Buckeyes, and even so, there’s been success.

Former running back Trey Sermon carried Ohio State to a Big Ten championship in 2020. Current placekicker Noah Ruggles gave it security on special teams. Former offensive guard Jonah Jackson was a First-Team All Big Ten selection in his one season in Columbus.

Of course, the biggest example under Ryan Day is former quarterback Justin Fields who left Georgia for Ohio State. Under Fields, the Buckeyes went 20-2 and made the College Football Playoff both seasons.

Day uses the portal to the advantage of Ohio State, not the other way around.

“There are situations where you need someone to step in and fill a hole,” Day said Monday. “[That’s] typically the way we’ve done it.”

Holes don’t necessarily mean starting positions, however. It could be an issue of depth. Or it could be a variation in talent to fill the scheme, a missing component. Sometimes even a transitionary player with coaching changes.

Two players Ohio State brought in from the portal this offseason are safety Tanner McCalister and linebacker Chip Trayanum. The defensive duo came from Oklahoma State and Arizona State, and give Ohio State both depth and experience.

Since he played for defensive coordinator Jim Knowles with the Cowboys, McCalister knows the system inside and out. He gives the Buckeyes experience in a new system and depth at a necessary spot as well.

“It was great to have Tanner come in, we didn’t have a lot of depth at nickel and now he and Cam [Martinez] are there and that’s good [for us].”

Ohio State won’t be like other programs in the country that use the portal as a secondary recruiting ground. It maintains a standard of development and honors the players who have been in the building.

But it won’t turn a blind eye to the portal, and this season will be another version of why Day makes the right selections yearly.