It took some time, but Ohio State head coach Ryan Day finally made it to the mountaintop last season and won his first National Championship as the head coach of the Buckeyes. Even after a lot of scrutiny after the Michigan loss, Day rallied his team and led the 8-seed Ohio State Buckeyes to a championship win.
Now, after the AP's serious blunder putting Texas and Penn State above Ohio State in the preseason rankings, the Buckeyes are the No. 1 team in the country for the ninth straight week, and they show no signs of slowing down. Day has masterfully led his team to win after win this season, but this team has also been able to get through the season without a ton of injuries.
With Ohio State practically a lock for the College Football Playoff at this point, the Buckeyes are primed and ready to play late into the season yet again. How do the Buckeyes look so refreshed, though, even 10 weeks into the season? Well, the Big Ten Network explained how Day can have his team looking so good, even in late October.
Big Ten Network analyst Jake Butt has looked at Ohio State all season long, and one thing that has stood out about Day is how he controls the entire game for his team, from special teams to defense, and finally offense. Day does such a good job at controlling the clock and not making his team play extra downs for no reason, especially in games they are ahead by so much.
Butt points out that the Ohio State offense has a very slow pace of play, but when one sits down and truly looks at it as a whole, Day simply is having his team play fewer snaps.
"They will have effectively played one fewer game than their opponents in terms of total snap counts." 😳@Jbooty88 explains how Ryan Day is pacing No. 1 @OhioStateFB to stay fresh late in the season 👇#B1GToday pic.twitter.com/dJaoL4UFtQ
— Big Ten Football (@B1Gfootball) October 28, 2025
"When you do the math in terms of snaps per game and you extend it out over the course of the season," Butt said. "They will have effectively played one fewer game than their opponents in terms of total snap counts."
That kind of thought is insane to think about because that is basically another bye week for the Buckeyes, in terms of less wear and tear on the bodies of the players. There are 12 regular-season games, and then if a team wants to make it to the National Championship, they have to play three games with a bye, four games without a bye.
Last season, Ohio State played four games, which included the National Championship game. That is a lot more wear and tear on the bodies of players who are used to maybe playing 13 games in a season. For Day to have his guys at a point where they are playing more refreshed than any other team in the country and still be the best team in the country shows his mastery of the 12-team College Football Playoff.