Penn State fired James Franklin after the Nittany Lions lost three straight to No. 3 Oregon, a winless UCLA team, and a 3-2 Northwestern team that usually rides to the bottom of the Big Ten. This news shocked the entire college football world, even though it was sort of seen coming. The Franklin couldn't win in the big games, and then losing to UCLA and Northwestern was just the icing on the cake.
Now, with a job as high-profile as Penn State open, no name seems to be off the table according to the media, including Ohio State head coach Ryan Day. Penn State has the ability and the program to lure just about any coach away from their current job, maybe even including Day, but it seems unlikely.
According to ESPN analyst Heather Dinich, though, she seems to think Day can be lured away from Ohio State, but her reasoning is all off. She asked the question that just seems laughable to think about as to why Day could leave the Buckeyes.
"How happy is Ryan Day," Dinich said on The Pat McAfee Show.
Brilliant analysis from ESPN’s Heather Dinich regarding the Penn State coaching search:
— The Silver Bulletin (@tSilverBulletin) October 13, 2025
“I mean look down the stretch… is Kalen DeBoer happy at Alabama? How happy is Ryan Day? I don’t know the answer to all these questions.
Would they leave? That’s part of the question.” pic.twitter.com/0qpyEO4iJu
Now, she asked about the happiness of Day at Ohio State, and then the other part of the question was 'would they leave?' Well, let's look a little at Day's time at Ohio State.
Would Ryan Day be unhappy enough to leave Ohio State?
This question does seem laughable, as who has it better than Day in the college football world? Sure, Day has struggled to beat the Michigan Wolverines at the end of the season, but he has consistently built the top program in the country, and last year he and the team finally put it all together.
Day now has a National Championship under his belt at Ohio State, which answers all of the questions about whether he could do it. He also has all the money he could ask for when it comes to bringing players in and NIL money. He has one of the best, if not the best, wide receivers in college football with Jeremiah Smith, who has also said he plans to stick around and win more championships.
To ask the question 'how happy is Ryan Day?' just seems really dumb. Of course, Day is happy, so if there is one head coach that most likely won't be going anywhere, it is probably him.