I have always been quite fond of the Day's since Ryan took over as OSU's coach in 2019. My wife works at Nationwide Children's Hospital, so we're aware of all they do to support the mental health of young people and children. I'm also very familiar with Ryan's family history and share some of those same challenges from childhood. I don't know the man at all, but I have always felt sort of a "kinship" with him, in that regard.

Even as I write this, I have to say that I must even stop myself with this sometimes. When I have something negative to say about someone, how might that affect them? Is it constructive? These are real human beings at the end of the day. Two things can be true. I can be sorely disappointed with the result against TTUN the last four years, but also try and count my blessings, as a fan. 

What is perhaps most tragic about seeing how being the wife of the Head Coach at OSU affects you is that they are only hearing a fraction of the "noise" that gets really personal – beyond the "dammit, why can't he beat TTUN" discussions. Perhaps I'm very naive, but I think most people do appreciate Coach Day and anyone that is in the pressure cooker, that is Ohio State. It's unfortunate that he and his family are likely only able to hear the sickos and loons that say negative things to their family or worse, their children. If I saw Coach Day in public, besides being shocked, I would probably say "go get 'em Coach", even if it was the day after The Game. I couldn't imagine being confrontational in person or online, for that matter, to anyone.

Also, it's clear that Mrs. Day is fully baptized in scarlet and gray when she refers to "the team up north", around the 8:00 minute mark. I'm not originally from Ohio either. I didn't move here until I was in my early 20s, during the late 1990s. I've now lived in Ohio longer than I lived in my birthplace. This is home, to me. And, I hope the Day's feel the same way for a long time to come.