Ohio State Football: Three biggest wins in the Ryan Day era

As we get closer to Coach Ryan Day’s squad taking the field against Indiana, we have decided it would be fun to look at his biggest wins over the years. Some people are critical of him, some love him more than others. However, the fact of the matter is the man wins football games. He is currently 45-6 as a head coach of the Ohio State football program. Ryan Stano of Scarlet and Game did a list of the top ten passers in Buckeye history and many of Coach Day’s players were on the list

Today we will look at the top three wins over his career at Ohio State to this point. This is just my opinion, and would love to hear your thoughts and comments!

Number 3: Ohio State vs Notre Dame 2022 

One of the most popular topics in the offseason last year was “How will the new defense look?” It also came to question how Ohio State alumnus Marcus Freeman. Freeman had made many enemies amongst the Ohio State football fanbase for his offseason comments. It was the first chance to see Ohio State’s offense without legend Chris Olave, or dynamic receiver Garrett Wilson.

These two programs bring national attention. Ohio State played really well on defense. However, without two of your best receivers in program history, the offense struggled mightily. But Ohio State was able to get the win at home, 21-10. It is strange how the media reacted to this. Instead of crediting two great teams for a defensive battle, the narrative became “Which of these teams is overrated?”

The Fighting Irish finished 9-4 and was able to rebound after a bad start. Ohio State went 11-2 and was one field goal away from playing in a national championship. Now the Buckeyes of Ohio State will make a trip to South Bend, where we are sure the Fighting Irish will have revenge on their mind.

Number 2: Ohio State vs Northwestern 2020

A forgotten game, due to how strange the COVID season was as a whole, this was a tough gritty win for Ryan Day’s squad. Northwestern was extremely good this season. They had NFL-level players all over the field. Including two future first-round picks in Rashawn Slater, and Greg Newsome II.

Their defense was dominant against the pass, holding Justin Fields to just 114 passing yards. He also hurt his hand this game so it seemed that everything that could go Northwestern’s way was going their way. You never want to get into a defensive battle against a Pat Fitzgerald-coached team. He is one of the best coaches in the Big Ten and always has his squad ready.

Insert, Trey Sermon. Sermon became the savior of the day for Ohio State. Sermon broke legend Eddie George’s record for all-time single-game rushing record in Ohio State football history. How much did he rush for? Just a cool 331 rushing yards. He was destroying defensive players left and right. He looked like a man on a mission. A mission, to bring his team a Big Ten title. In thanks to Sermon, Ohio State won 22-10 and secured their fourth straight Big Ten title.

Number 1: Ohio State vs Clemson 2020

Oh, the antics, the drama, and all of the extra material brought into this game were fantastic. This was a chance at redemption, against all odds, with no one believing in Ohio State but their fans and themselves.

In 2019, Ohio State lost a heartbreaker to the Clemson Tigers. Ohio State received the news on a cold December day they would get the chance at revenge. Clemson head coach Dabo Swinney decided to talk, and his infamous ranking of Ohio State as 11 was the cherry on top.

On every social media platform, Ohio State and Clemson fans were going at it. Back and forth arguing, everyone was ready for this game. Until it became a beatdown for ages, and one Ohio State fans won’t forget for a very long time.

Ohio State crushed Clemson, 49-28, against a Clemson team that return many of its starters from a runner-up national championship squad the year before. This included starting quarterback and future first-overall pick Trevor Lawrence. Since then, Ohio State and Clemson have not faced off, and Clemson seems to be trending in the wrong direction of contention.

This will go down as one of Coach Ryan Day’s greatest victories, and one of the best games Ohio State football fans will remember for years to come.