After the Ohio State football team lost to Michigan for the fourth straight season, it looked like they were doomed for an early exit in the College Football Playoff. Ryan Day looked confused on the field as TTUN players tried to plant a flag at midfield, as Jack Sawyer tried to stop it.
Once that scene was done unfolding, the Ohio State Buckeyes had a very uncomfortable meeting in the locker room. Stories from that meeting have already trickled out, but there are a few that still need to be told. Another one emerged with a former Buckeye at center stage.
Former Ohio State football player Mitchell Melton, who decided to transfer to Virginia after last season, called Day out right to his face. According to a new book from Columbus Dispatch writer Bill Rabinowitz, the Buckeyes wanted better answers from their head coach.
Mitchell Melton demanded more from Ryan Day following Ohio State loss to TTUN
An excerpt from Buckeye Brotherhood tells the story of a very angry Melton, who wanted more from his coach after Day demanded that the Buckeyes run the ball in between the tackles instead of pouring it on TTUN through the air with their weapons at wide receiver.
"He said Day started his answer by talking about scheme. That answer didn't satisfy Melton. He said Day talked before the game about the need to establish a run game because the winner of the OSU-Michigan game tends to be whichever has more rushing yardage. But that can be effect rather than cause. Teams run more when they're ahead. Melton, and probably others, believe that coaches knew that Michigan was a ground-based offense and stubbornly wanted to beat the Wolverines at their own game."
Melton wanted to make sure that his voice was heard. He, like many others in the locker room, wanted to let Day know that what he did in that game was wrong.
"What I wanted out of that meeting was to be very honest and open with ourselves and clear on what happened and why it happened, so that it would never happen again."
Obviously, that message got through. The Buckeyes went on to destroy everyone in their path to the national championship, never scoring fewer than 28 points in any of those games. They never tried to be stubborn and ignore the passing game again.
That seems to have carried over into this season, as well. The Buckeyes continue to mow down opponents in their quest for back-to-back national championships.