Ohio State football: Ryan Day had better be a man of his word

Ryan Day said the Ohio State football team was going to throw the ball to the tight ends more this season. He had better keep his word on that.

I’m going to hold Ryan Day to this statement. He’d better be a man of his word because I don’t enjoy being teased like this. When asked at Big Ten Media Days if Ohio State’s record for receptions in a season by a tight end will be broken this year, this is what he said,

"“That record has no chance this year.”"

That is what Day said. Ben Hartsock’s school record of 30 catches by a tight end is in jeopardy in 2021. Many of you are wondering why I’m making such a big deal about this. It is because the Buckeyes have an offensive weapon we’ve seen only glimpses of its potential in the last few seasons.

I’ve written a few times about the need for the Ohio State football team to make Jeremy Ruckert a bigger part of the offense. If you’re familiar with Travis Kelce of the Kansas City Chiefs or Rob Gronkowski of the Tampa Bay Bucs, that’s who comes to mind when I think of Ruckert. The type of tight end you can move around from the slot to splitting them out wide, to putting them in tight near the tackle.

They have great hands and can stretch the field with their speed. They’re a nightmare for a defense to match up to because of their size and speed. Too big for a safety to handle and too fast for most linebackers. Ruckert is that type of tight end.

Clemson found out how good Ruckert is. He had three catches for two touchdowns against the Tigers in the Buckeyes’ Sugar Bowl win. Wisconsin learned what he can do in the 2019 Big Ten championship game when he made a one-handed grab for a touchdown (watch that here).

Ruckert has just 28 receptions (9 of those went for touchdowns) in his OSU career but is more than capable of breaking Hartsock’s 30-catch school record for tight ends. His skillset adds one more dimension to an already loaded offense.

I really hope Ryan Day is a man of his word. He’s gotten me very excited with his statement about Ruckert. If Day disappoints me I may have to do something drastic, such as duct tape him to a chair and force him to watch something awful like Real Housewives of Ann Arbor or worse….like This Is Us.