The Ohio State Buckeyes have won their 9th National Championship beating Notre Dame 34 – 23. This is Head Coach Ryan Day’s first ever national championship, and it couldn’t have come at a better time for him.
Coach Day was on the hot seat after losing to Michigan for a 4th straight time, but he rebounded at the right time propelling his team to take on and win the hardest road to a National Championship ever.
In the first year of the expanded college football playoffs this is undoubtedly the hardest road to a title ever. Ohio State had to beat No. 9 seeded Tennessee, the No. 1 seed Oregon, No. 5 seeded Texas, and finally for it all they beat No. 7 Notre Dame. Also, during the regular season they beat No. 10 Indiana and No. 6 Penn State.
Ohio State has a history of being the first team to win the Championship when the playoff format changes. Back, in 2014 the Buckeyes won the Championship in the first ever 4 team playoffs. And now, the Buckeyes have won the first ever 12 team playoffs.
The team had the most loaded roster in the nation, and coach day was able to assemble the team on the heels of their monstrous NIL funds. With the OSU Athletic Director bragging that the Buckeyes’ roster received “around $20 million” in NIL compensation for this season, a number described as “jaw-dropping” and shocking. (Sherman)
These funds allowed Ryan Day to build a superstar roster featuring transfer additions of Quinshon Judkins who had a massive National Championship. Also, starting offensive lineman Seth McLaughlin and Josh Simmons who both were unfortunately hurt. And Davison Igbinosun who started at cornerback all year. Last but not least, Starting Quarterback Will Howard.
Furthermore, on Will Howard he had one of the best Ohio State quarterback seasons of all time posting over 4,000 yards passing, 35 TD’s and 7 TD’s rushing. He also had the best quarterback rating out of anyone in the country. The steady play at QB really helped the Buckeyes get over the hump and win the title.
Howard had this to say about his incredible journey: “It’s crazy to look back at all the things that have happened in my career,” he said. leaned on a lot of people. I wouldn’t have been able to go through the stuff I did,” (Dellenger Yahoo Sports).
Ryan Day, reflecting on the championship, said, “The story gets to be told now, and it’s a great story. I’ve got a bunch of guys who have just overcome some really tough situations,” (Leuzzi Columbus Dispatch).
Day did a great job leading the team back from their lowest points, and he was rewarded with a contract extension that would make him the 2nd highest paid coach in the nation through 2031.
He also did a great job hiring his staff around him, but when you win people want a piece of that pie. And the staff got picked apart. Chip Kelly the offensive coordinator was stolen to be the OC of the Las Vegas Raiders. Jim Knowles became the highest paid coordinator in the nation to coach at Penn State.
Furthermore, Justin Frye offensive line coach got the same position in the NFL with the Arizona Cardinals. Although we lost a lot, Coach Day did a good job replacing the coaches.
First, he hired Tyler Bowen Virginia Tech’s OC and former offensive lineman to be the offensive line coach. Also, he promoted one of the best position coaches in the country Brian Hartline to offensive coordinator. Last but not least he got 3x Super Bowl winning Defensive Coordinator Matt Patrica for the same position with the Buckeyes.
“Patricia has shown he can lead elite defenses at the highest level of football. The Patriots ranked in the top 10 in the NFL in points allowed per game in eight of those nine seasons, leading the NFL in scoring defense in 2016 on its way to winning the Super Bowl” (Hope, Eleven Warriors).
With these hires Ohio State’s staff is looking ready for next year, but they will have a difficult time replacing the sheer talent they lost to the NFL.
The Ohio State Buckeyes are projected to have 13 players drafted into the NFL at this year’s draft. It was great having such an amazing team this year, but they will have to do some work to have the same successes next year.
