Ryan Day didn't follow up the Ohio State Buckeyes football program's CFP title triumph with the most critically-acclaimed offensive/defensive coordinator hires following the loss of their two championship minds.
If he doesn't beat TTUN and, heaven forbid, misses the College Football Playoff altogether, Day may be in legitimate trouble. Finding three losses among the Wolverines in enemy territory, the Texas Longhorns, the Illinois Fighting Illini in Champagne, and against the Penn State Nittany Lions isn't impossible.
Imagine all four being letdowns? Day goes straight to the unemployment line, though probably not for long.
Offensive coordinator Brian Hartline was brought to the Buckeyes by Day. There's a chance he'd be dismissed as well. Defensive coordinator Matt Patricia would almost certainly be part of that personnel purge.
This roster is too good for the worst-case scenario. And the worst-case scenario doesn't feel impossible, which is an uneasy feeling.
What happens if Day doesn't cut it?
A familiar face would be the perfect fit to take the reins at OSU.
Jim Knowles is Ohio State's perfect Ryan Day replacement
If Penn State makes good on its top-three odds to win the 2025/2026 CFP, it'll almost certainly be because Jim Knowles coached that defense up to make critical stops along the way. Possibly co-starring with Drew Allar's ascension to a first-round NFL draft pick next April.
Knowles' hiring improved the Nittany Lions' futures odds. That's no coincidence. Vegas knows best.
Knowles was a head coach at Cornell in the aughts but has since been exclusively a defensive coordinator. He had three Power 4 stops with the Duke Blue Devils, Oklahoma State Cowboys, and Buckeyes, with Penn State his fourth.
Knowles will be a head coach again. And if Ohio State passes up an opportunity to have him after lifting a defense that was behind TTUN into the No. 1 spot last year, Day, or whoever is in the seat next fall, could feel like the wrong guy.