Ryan Day held his third press conference of the spring following Ohio State's ninth practice of the spring on Monday, giving the local media another opportunity to ask the Buckeyes' head coach about their progress this spring and other questions surrounding the team.
A bullet-point recap of what he had to say:
- Justin Fields lost his black stripe last week because he's picked up the offense quickly and has done a good job early on.
- Day said he does not want to put any limitations on when Kamryn Babb and Justin Hilliard could return from their injuries, but said they have a recovery plan for both of them and hope they are able to contribute this season.
- Ohio State felt the need to bring in a graduate transfer offensive lineman, which they did with Jonah Jackson, because they want to have 16 offensive linemen and their numbers are down.
- Day said it is about time in the spring for the coaches to dig into the numbers on how the quarterbacks have performed and stack up against each other, but said that hasn't happened yet.
- Will Ohio State name a starting quarterback, or at least a frontrunner for the job, at the end of spring? "We'll see."
- On Josh Myers, who has been running with the first-team offensive line at center: "He's done a good job as he's been in there so far."
- Day said he chose to keep Greg Studrawa as offensive line coach because of the work he has seen from Studrawa in developing Ohio State's offensive linemen.
- Day said he wanted Ohio State to put a bigger emphasis on recruiting offensive linemen within Ohio, but believes Studrawa has done a good job recruiting nationally.
- The Buckeyes are about where Day thought they would be at this point in the spring, but said they are still working on fundamentals. Defensive installation has been solid, and the defense has shown an ability to force turnovers; offense has been explosive, but needs to be more consistent.
- Branden Bowen has practiced at both right tackle and left tackle this spring, and "does a good job being able to go back and forth ... I think he's been solid this spring. I don't think he'd tell you that he's playing his best football." Said Bowen is still getting his feet back under him after missing the last year-and-a-half with his leg injury.
- Day likes what he has seen from the new members of the coaching staff and how they have meshed together so far.
- Can Harry Miller compete for immediate playing time? "I think absolutely Harry can come in and compete right away." Said Miller has been working hard in his preparation, even right now, when he is in Nicaragua on his annual mission trip. Miller has been FaceTiming with Studrawa 3-4 times a week.
- Day said the Buckeyes are looking for athletic offensive linemen in recruiting, and offensive linemen have to be great athletes – not just big – in today's game.
- Day said accuracy, ability to stand in the pocket and deliver the ball on time, understanding the game and making good decisions in the run game are among the traits they are looking for in their quarterback prospects. At the end of the day, most importantly, the quarterback has to be lead the team down the field and get to the end zone.
Stay tuned with Eleven Warriors for more coverage from Monday's media availability, as offensive line coach Greg Studrawa and select offensive linemen are also set to meet with reporters this morning.
