CBS Sports calls Ryan Day a “Loser”
Couldn’t agree more.
Technically, they were referring to the 2023 football season, including losing to Michigan three straight times for the first time in 26 years, and his odd fight with Lou Holtz over his team being called soft.
But I really think his experience as a loser extends to even more aspects of his existence.
December 13th, 2023 at 1:36 PM ^
We are still waiting for that hundred to be hung on us…
December 13th, 2023 at 1:46 PM ^
In due time, Indy Pete. In due time.
*Peeks at the "Points Scored" ledger that has been totaled since his "Hang 100" comment*
December 13th, 2023 at 2:53 PM ^
He's up to 74 points across 3 games since he made that comment. Given that they've been averaging <25 ppg, it might not be until 2025 that he hits that mark - if he lasts that long.
December 13th, 2023 at 3:05 PM ^
It would be fascinating for him to get fired and be shy of 100 when it happens
December 13th, 2023 at 3:35 PM ^
he should hire brian ferentz
December 13th, 2023 at 4:35 PM ^
He clearly meant that he was going to hang 100 points throughout the duration of his coaching tenure. The media immediately made it seem like he meant in one game. Just another conspiracy to make Ryan Day look bad.
December 13th, 2023 at 8:26 PM ^
Maybe he meant 100 consecutive losses to Michigan
December 13th, 2023 at 1:47 PM ^
He meant a hundred spread over 8 games
December 13th, 2023 at 2:08 PM ^
If he lasts that long as Ohio's head coach!
December 13th, 2023 at 3:11 PM ^
It's going to be close but he might make it in 2024
December 13th, 2023 at 4:13 PM ^
Naw - the Michigan D is going to be stellar and no MHJ
December 13th, 2023 at 7:58 PM ^
He mumbled softly "over 4+ games" which was not properly reported!
December 13th, 2023 at 1:37 PM ^
I could give less than a shit about Ryan Day, but he's not a bad coach. 45-6 in four seasons, a lot of schools would die for that.
December 13th, 2023 at 1:49 PM ^
Nothing brings me more joy than the BUT LOOK AT HIS RECORD VS. ILLINOIS AND RUTGERS counterpunch.
I hope the crash landing back to earth wasn't too unpleasant, buckeyes.
December 13th, 2023 at 2:54 PM ^
They haven't fully crashed yet. Look at their recruiting class (even if you subtract QB and WR).
December 13th, 2023 at 2:02 PM ^
I don't think Day is a bad coach but the "45-6" line is a little overrated.
I checked CFP rankings for the last three years (2019 he was piloting Urban's ship and 2020 didn't happen, so I didn't check) to see who his highest ranked win was.
It is a tie between 2021 MSU and 2023 PSU, finishing at #10. It is mostly Day blasting trash B1G programs.
December 13th, 2023 at 2:12 PM ^
In his defense though - Urban got smoked by unranked Purdue and Iowa. Pre-pandemic Harbaugh lost heartbreakers to an unranked Iowa, not-top-ten MSU in '17, and unranked SCAR that same year (literally every other non-2020 loss was to a top 10 team). Ryan Day not losing to bad teams is a bit more of an achievement than people give credit for - winning at big programs isn't automatic. OSU has institutional advantages but so do Texas and USC.
The big problem for Day is Michigan just got a lot better after 2020 - we started beating top 10 teams and even smoking bad teams in a way that we hadn't done before 2020. Harbaugh and co. came in with great game plans in '16 and '17 but didn't have the gumption to pull it out. In the last 3 years the game plan and the talent were good enough to win and twice to dominate.
December 13th, 2023 at 3:24 PM ^
This. Ohio is still operating in full Death Star mode. Michigan is just fucking better right now. We need to accept that, and the #1 ranking. The team has earned it. And they're gonna beat Alabama. Boddicker it!
December 13th, 2023 at 4:39 PM ^
The BIG 10 has been really bad outside of Michigan and OSU during his tenure. That's the majority of his wins.
Wins against ND were against a first year and second year head coach.
Wins against PSU were against Frames Janklin. Nuff said.
Otherwise, losses to any team that is even remotely close in talent level.
Alabama, Oregon, Georgia, Michigan x3.
December 13th, 2023 at 5:28 PM ^
But this is usually the case. Bo and Woody weren't facing off against murderer's row. OU's four CFP appearances came when the B12 was...OU. The same is true for the ACC powers, whether they be Clemson or FSU (or that point in the 2000's when it was VT). Heck, even the vaunted SEC has typically been 2-4 excellent teams and a lot of average for the past 15 years - and they undoubtedly WERE some of the deepest divisions in CFB history.
More than 2-3 top 10 teams is very rare in any league. The 2015-2019 Big Ten having regularly competitive M, PSU, UW and MSU all vying for #2 behind OSU was rare - and Urban didn't lose to those teams, he got smoked by Iowa and Purdue. Yes, the Big Ten got worse outside of Michigan (and PSU treaded water). But this year's Pac12 is not normal. This year's Big Ten west is probably on par with most of the ACC and Big 12. This year's Big Ten East is still one of the strongest assortment of 7 teams - and it had MSU and IU.
GAH why am I defending Ryan Day. He's good not great but good is deceptively hard.
December 13th, 2023 at 8:01 PM ^
Sorry man Harbaugh NEVER has had OSU's talent. Urban did so eff him for losing those laughers. Harbaugh lost to the top end teams early (plus a nightmare vs MSU) but didnt lose the games he was supposed to. With recruiting classes nowhere near what Urban and Day pull.
A monkey could win 9 games a year at OSU the last 15 years with the talent they pull.
December 13th, 2023 at 9:08 PM ^
Harbaugh and co. came in with great game plans in '16 and '17 but didn't have the gumption to pull it out.
We did not lack gumption in 2016. Every 50-50 call going against us was the bigger problem.
December 14th, 2023 at 2:05 PM ^
Gumption was a bad word choice. And yes, about 3 fifty/50 calls at the end of the 4Q and OT going against us, along with a really strange unsportsmanlike conduct on Harbaugh, did tip that game. But also, Speight threw a pick six and his other INT set up OSU in the RZ where they scored their only other TD in regulation - ignore the 50/50 plays and we still gave up 14 points in a 17-17 game because of our offense. I don't know what the word for that is, gumption seems unfair, talent seems too broad. I will never get over the spot (and the PI inconsistencies) but also - we lost that game as much as the 50/50 calls screwed us.
December 13th, 2023 at 2:22 PM ^
Day absolutely should get credit for the 2020 CFP win over Clemson. That was an upset win too (Clemson was favored by 7) - many were expecting OSU to lose decisively, the opposite happened.
December 13th, 2023 at 3:24 PM ^
To be fair, almost the exact same thing was true of Harbaugh until it wasn't starting in 2021. It's not out of the question for Day to right the ship. Granged, Day started with his program in an almost immeasurably better place than Harbaugh, but still.
December 13th, 2023 at 9:09 PM ^
Except that Harbaugh did not exactly succeed a coach with a .900 win percentage.
December 13th, 2023 at 2:05 PM ^
10 wins pretty much baked in to those seasons.
To his credit, hasn’t had the inexplicable loss to Purdue, Norhwestern or MSU of his predecessors
December 13th, 2023 at 2:09 PM ^
I partially agree/disagree with your take. Ryan Day is an above average offensive coordinator based on his pre-HC record. So far, he's an average, at best, head coach. Ohio State's talent advantage, which has existed for decades and decades before Ryan Day was even a coach, virtually guarantees Ohio State 10 wins each year.
Of course 99% of schools would die for 10+ wins each year. That's not Ohio State. As much as I despise their program, I (used to) respect it. Their stated goals are:
(1) Beat Michigan.
(2) Win the B1G.
(3) Play in the CFP.
(4) Win the National Championship.
Ryan Day's performance is below his/their own expectations. Fact. Full Stop. Ryan Day has failed to improvise, coach with timely aggressiveness, and create a team-first culture that can handle adversity. He's become the leader of "The Excuse University." Day's biggest current claim-to-fame is duping his gullible fanbase into online circle-jerking over shiny objects rather than actually engaging in meaningful introspection or self-scouting.
Ryan Day is good for us. Ryan Day Forever!
December 13th, 2023 at 2:55 PM ^
OSU's talent advantage during the Meyer and Day eras is more significant than it was in the Tressel and Cooper eras. "Urbs" took them to another level.
December 13th, 2023 at 2:58 PM ^
Ryan Day is an above average offensive coordinator based on his pre-HC record. So far, he's an average, at best, head coach.
What I've read from the ohio state blogdom is that he is an excellent OC, but that he really needs to give up playcalling duties and shift to full-time head coach. IIRC, that was also one of the knocks on Harbaugh early on, that he was both Head Coach and ultimately the offensive playcaller.
I do wonder how good Day actually can be once he does so.
December 13th, 2023 at 2:11 PM ^
I'm pretty sure that Chris Ash, Kevin Wilson and of the other former OSU assistants could pull a similar record with that team. I'm not sure what he has done as a HC to say that he's a top 10 CFB coach.
December 13th, 2023 at 2:53 PM ^
Maybe. Maybe not. I think we'd all agree that what Luke Fickell did with Cincinnati is more impressive than what Day's accomplished at OSU, but Fickell bombed his tryout as head coach in 2011 (albeit with less built-in talent than Day was given).
December 13th, 2023 at 2:52 PM ^
He can win a majority of his games and still be a loser. Those things aren't mutually exclusive.
December 13th, 2023 at 3:55 PM ^
TT- that's a foolish statement- most schools aren't OSU with their resources and history of success in football.
IMHO at least 10% of current power 5 coaches would have had the same or better record than Day if they had taken over instead of him. The last 2 recruiting classes prior to Day OSU was #2
I think it's better to look at his win record vs top teams.
Most if his win records is beating up on weak B10 teams, weak non-conf. teams, & Penn State
He's 0-6 vs top 5 SP+ teams and is 1-6 vs top 5 ranked teams
Day has lost 2 times when SP+ had OSU at an advantage (Oregon, Michigan 2021)
He's won 0 times when SP+ had OSU at a disadvantage
December 13th, 2023 at 4:04 PM ^
I believe that 45-6 would be fine - if his record against Michigan was 4-0, or 3-1. But, it's not.
December 13th, 2023 at 4:14 PM ^
Stay with the program
December 13th, 2023 at 1:37 PM ^
Ryan Day be like:
December 13th, 2023 at 1:47 PM ^
Nah, temporarily losing to a shitty B1G West team and yelling "What the fuck" is extreeeemely relatable.
December 13th, 2023 at 1:38 PM ^
Let's not forget about whining to the conference commissioner in order to oust the coach you can't beat, then losing to his interim replacement. Absolute loser shit.
December 13th, 2023 at 2:17 PM ^
I do think this is the absolute biggest loser thing. He's very fortunate there's no smoking gun, because if there is "Cryin' Ryan" is going to be his reputation for a LONG time, if not forever in this rivalry. He conspired to get a coach ousted from the biggest games this season - for violations that HIS OWN program was also doing - and then still lost to a 37 year old interim.
December 13th, 2023 at 7:48 PM ^
Getting outcoached by a team without a HC never gets old. And he didn't cover.
December 13th, 2023 at 2:18 PM ^
This should be the lead.
December 13th, 2023 at 2:25 PM ^
You know, people don't talk about this enough.
December 13th, 2023 at 1:42 PM ^
Don’t be so harsh on Day, or he’ll hire a PI firm to dig up dirt on you!
December 13th, 2023 at 1:43 PM ^
When he takes the Patriots job in January he'll move into the winners column.
December 13th, 2023 at 4:06 PM ^
Winners, or Whiners?
December 13th, 2023 at 1:46 PM ^
I’m never one to defend Lou Holtz. There are times I forget he’s still alive. But Day really looked like a tool after that game. I almost felt sorry for him the way he embarrassed himself.
December 13th, 2023 at 2:01 PM ^
Key word here being "almost".
December 13th, 2023 at 1:47 PM ^
You aren't talking about Ryan "Born on Third Base Charmin Soft Can't Win Big Games Dyes His Beard and Fights Lou Holtz's Old ass" Day, are you? Because that is just wrong, man. He's tough.
December 13th, 2023 at 1:48 PM ^
to note: this was not an opinion piece, but a mere factual retelling