Presser Bullets: Ryan Day Talks Ohio State's 2022 Recruiting Class, Concerns About NIL, Terrance Brooks Flipping to Texas And NFL Rumors

The Buckeye head coach broke down the 2022 recruiting class, which saw 17 players sign their National Letters of Intent to join Ohio State, talked about his concerns about NIL and the transfer portal and discussed how the first week of bowl practices have gone ahead for the scarlet and gray ahead of the upcoming Rose Bowl matchup with Utah.

Here's a rundown of everything Day said at Wednesday's press conference.

Ryan Day

• "I've very excited about this class." Day says he expects to sign more than 20 players in the class in total. Day says "to say that I'm not, at the very least, concerned about what's going on around the country right now, that would not be accurate."
• On Sonny Styles, Day says "he's gonna be a very good player for us." Day says Styles' family told him he always "played up" in age anyway, and Day says he will support the decision to reclassify.
• On the transfer portal, Day says "somebody on our team could say that they're coming and leave tomorrow, too." Day says "we've already had somebody that was supposed to be in this class come and leave." Day says "it's certainly very new, and it's happening very fast."
• On Jim Knowles' impact on recruiting and evaluating talent: "Schematically, we're looking for the same type of players." Day says the defense will still look like a 4-2-5, "like we've been working towards."
• Day says he will visit with Knowles over the next couple weeks and after the Rose Bowl to "figure out what this thing's gonna look like" on defense.
• Day says Devin Brown "just has a magnetic way about him." Day says "he wanted to come to a place where he could compete at a high level, wasn't concerned about the other players in the room."
• Day says he encouraged many of the incoming recruits to watch Oklahoma State's film to see how Knowles' system works.
• On C.J. Hicks: "He jumped into this thing early and he recruited a lot of these guys." Day says "they really spearheaded this thing."
• Day says Styles is "like a Swiss army knife out there" on defense, and that he will play "everywhere" for the Buckeyes.
• Day says Ohio State and the coaches aren't allowed to set up NIL deals, and that it's "concerning" that there are people outside of the university influencing young players. "That being said, our guys have benefitted tremendously from NIL."
• On Devin Brown, Day says "we want to bring in a quarterback every year, for a lot of years." Day says when Quinn Ewers reclassified, the Buckeyes went about trying to get a QB in the class of 2022. Day jokes that Brown's video of him doing a windmill dunk "put me over the top" on him.
• Day says getting back on the road to learn things about recruits first hand has been a relief after a year spent on Zoom.
• Day says the Buckeyes' goal is to have eight cornerbacks on the roster, and that if they don't after the Rose Bowl, they might have to pick somebody up through the transfer portal.
• Day says Bennett Christian is "really well-rounded as a person." Day says "for the most part, this is a big, good-looking tight end."
• Day says Caden Curry told him he thought he was always going to end up about Ohio State, and Day joked that he could've saved the coaching staff a lot of sleepless nights if he had told them that earlier.
• Day says he doesn't think anything against the rules is going on across the country, but "the deals that are being made have nothing to do with the university itself." Day says "it's kind of out of our hands, which is concerning."
• Day says he doesn't want the date of signing day to change right now, because it would just create one more thing that would be new and different amid many changes in college football.
• On needing to land a couple more defensive linemen in this class: "It will get done, one way or another. We gotta have eight defensive tackles and eight defensive ends."
• Day on Curry: "When you watch him play, you can see him jump off the screen." Day says Curry's decision to enroll early was a "hard" one, but that it will allow him opportunities to get on the field quicker in September.
• On Knowles, Day says "we're gonna start fresh on (Jan. 2)." Day says he will show up for a few days to get a lay of the land before that, though.
• Day says he feels like Master Teague will be able to play in the Rose Bowl despite missing a good chunk of the season.
• On the Heisman Trophy ceremony, Day says "it was an honor to go back there this year."
• "I think his motor's what's most special about Caden Curry."
• "You have to check all the boxes" when you're the defensive coordinator at Ohio State. Day says his track record "speaks for itself."
• "It's unlike anything that's happened before in college sports." Day says roster management these days is a "moving target," and that in high school and pro sports, you can't just change teams whenever you want to. "You can in college football right now."
• "I think it's dangerous to live in the portal world." Day says he doesn't think it's "sustainable" for the chemistry of the team to bring guys in without thinking it all the way through.
• On NFL rumors: "There's nothing to that, there's no truth to it. ... I love Ohio State, and I love being the coach at Ohio State."
• On the four wide receivers Ohio State is bringing in in 2022: "We had three guys catch a lot of balls last year ... they want to come compete and be the best, because we say, 'If you can make it here, you can make it anywhere.'"
• "You don't just talk somebody into coming to your school anymore. They have to want to be here."
• Day laughs when asked if he's coaching the 2022 Buckeye and says "I hope so."
• "It isn't the CFP, but it is the Rose Bowl. The Rose Bowl matters." Day says "they got a lot of pride in themselves, and they got a lot of pride in Ohio State."
• On Terrance Brooks flipping to Texas: "Very disappointing, for sure." Day says "there wasn't any conversation that this would happen like this. It caught us off guard, for sure."