Since taking over as the head coach of the Ohio State football program, Ryan Day has figured out the best way to recruit players. He understands that Ohio State is a unique place. He knows that it's not for everyone, and he has to go the extra mile to land the best recruits.
His efforts have resulted in him winning a national championship in 2024. He amasses some of the best talent in the country every single year, showing that he is consistently one of the best recruiters. The Buckeyes usually land multiple five-star recruits in every cycle.
One of those five-star recruits that Day was able to land was Sonny Styles. Styles was a five-star safety recruit and played his first two years with the Ohio State Buckeyes at safety. Day told a hilarious story about Styles permanently retiring him from basketball.
Ryan Day had to retired from basketball after Sonny Styles dunked on him
While appearing on This Is Football with Kevin Clark, Day told a story of the last day he ever played basketball.
"Well, it started when he was in seventh or eighth grade because we were recruiting Lorenzo, his older brother. I remember it was really the last time I ever played basketball 1-on-1. We were having an event before camp started so we went to the basketball area and were messing around. And he (Sonny Styles) took two dribbles and dunked on me. And that was the last time I played basketball."
Styles is an athletic freak, as he showed everyone at the NFL Combine. He will likely be a top-10 pick when the NFL Draft commences later this month. This story shows just how much of a freak he was early on in his life, and he hasn't lost those skills. In fact, he's only gotten more athletic.
Day showed with this story that he is willing to go the extra mile with recruits, even though Sonny was not the one they were recruiting that day. That moment clearly stuck with him because he became a Buckeye just a few years later.