Ryan Day Radio Show: Ryan Day Thinks a "Talented and Dangerous" Maryland Team Awaits OSU on Saturday, Wants Buckeyes to Play With An Edge This Weekend

Here are some of the highlights from The Ryan Day Radio Show on 97.1 The Fan:

Ryan Day

On the running backs' performance against Indiana

• "I thought Miyan ran hard early on. Got some good movement up front... Good balance in the game."
• Day said Marvin Harrison Jr.'s 58-yard touchdown came off a play-action pass that was set up by Ohio State's effective run game early.
• "The guys had great energy out there."

On having practice in the snow on Wednesday

• "There were a couple of points in the film where you could barely see what was going on."
• Day said "it was good" to have practice out in the snow. He said Ohio State hasn't traditionally done that in the past, but he thinks it's "part of playing in November," especially in Big Ten country.
• "The guys were excited, and they had a really good practice."

This clip goes hard. pic.twitter.com/sIIF4oo9eR

— Eleven Warriors (@11W) November 16, 2022

On Josh Fryar filling in for Dawand Jones at right tackle

• "Josh had been playing as the extra tight end in some of the bigger packages... He was able to grab hold of that opportunity and graded out a Champion."
• Day said it can be challenging for the sixth offensive lineman that rotates into the game to keep from being frustrated that they aren't playing enough. Still, he noted Fryar has handled it well and done everything the coaching staff has asked him to do this season.

On C.J. Stroud

• "He had a really good week of work. His Tuesday practice was as good as I've seen from him in a Tuesday practice."
• Day said "you can start to see" how well Stroud is playing at this point of the season and how well he commands the offense he has put into place for the Buckeyes.
• Day said Ohio State's receivers were tremendous for Stroud on Saturday, including Marvin Harrison Jr., who made a few catches that Day said would "have some of us in the hospital room."

On the receiver room, its depth

• "I think that room is built that way. They want to work every day and earn their opportunity on the field."
• "Not having Jaxon available, really for the whole season, has been hard... It took some time to recover from that early in the season." Still, Day said he's been proud of how the receiver room has stepped up in Smith-Njigba's absence.
• Day said Xavier Johnson has stepped up in a big way for Ohio State this season. He said "it didn't take a lot of work" to transition Johnson from wide receiver to running back because of Johnson's experience at the position.

On the freshmen receivers

• "Some of those guys didn't have much high school work because of COVID." However, Day said the receivers have been coming along nicely as the season has progressed.
• Day said Brian Hartline has been pleased with how hard Kyion Grayes, Kaleb Brown, Caleb Burton and Kojo Antwi have been working in practice and their desire to learn from more experienced players in the receiver room.

On Stroud's running ability in practice

• "We don't tackle C.J. in practice. We really don't tackle people in practice. We don't hit C.J. in practice." Still, Day said Ohio State involves Stroud in the run game as much as it can during practice.
• Day said Larry Johnson does a really good job with the defensive linemen to make sure that they still finish plays whether or not they can hit a quarterback or running back in practice.

On the team wearing suits into the stadium on Saturdays

• "This year, they came to me and said they want to dress up... They take a lot of pride in their look."
• Day said Ohio State "had gotten lazy" wearing the warmup travel suits into the stadium from the Blackwell Inn once COVID hit in 2020, but the team has been excited to wear traditional suits to games this year.
• Day said Harrison "certainly looked the part" on Saturday as he walked into Ohio Stadium wearing an all-scarlet suit with a scarlet suit jacket, pants and black shoes.

On Maryland quarterback Taulia Tagovailoa

• "He's a leader. He's tough. I recruited him."
• Day said Tagovailoa comes from a family with an excellent football pedigree, referencing Taulia's brother, Tua, a national champion at Alabama who currently plays quarterback for the Miami Dolphins.
• "He's got a strong arm. He can extend some plays... He's played in the Big Ten for a long time. He can win games."

On the 2018 Maryland game

• "We always know how dangerous Maryland is. They have a lot of talent, a lot of good players."
• "We kept fighting and kept swinging... played tough." Day said Terry McLaurin, Johnnie Dixon and several others players were phenomenal for the Buckeyes when they needed to win the game in whatever way possible.
• "Barely got out of there. Not exactly a great memory."

On how the team has stayed focused on Maryland

• "You're 10-0, and you haven't reached any of your goals, but you have an opportunity here in the next few weeks (to accomplish them)." Ohio State's goals are to beat Michigan, win the Big Ten Championship and win a national title.
• Day said the time is now. He said the Buckeyes can't slip up against Maryland, or all of those goals lose meaning before they even get there.
• Day said Maryland is "talented and dangerous." He added that the Terrapins will give Ohio State the best game they've played all season, and he expects the Buckeyes to put together their best performance of the year as well.

On Kamryn Babb's touchdown on Saturday

• "We're so caught up and winning championships and games. This is what the college experience is about, young men overcoming things."
• "Even if he didn't have that moment, he still has done so much for Ohio State." Day said Babb's body didn't let him accomplish all his goals when he arrived on campus, but he adjusted course and has made a bigger impact than he could have ever hoped to make over four years ago when he was a freshman.
• "You're seeing somebody who is gonna leave a legacy behind at Ohio State... You can see the inspiration he's left behind on the entire program."
• Day said being a football player at the Division I level is hard work, but Babb worked through that while also enduring his injuries. Through it all, Babb has helped his coaches and teammates have a new perspective on each day and how well it goes. How can you say you're having a bad day when Kam Babb is over there cheering up people?"

On Ohio State the season moving quickly toward its end

• "It goes fast, especially the second half of the season."
• "We gotta have an urgency about us. Here we are in November."
• After the bye week, Day said the Ohio State coaching staff has emphasized that there's no time to waste as the program barrels toward its final regular-season games and postseason play.

On being physical in practice while remaining healthy for games

• "You adjust it as time goes on, but you want to keep your edge there."
• Day said he wants to keep "an edge" for his players while "keeping them fresh" for games on Saturday. He said there is a difficult balance there but believes Ohio State has managed that as well as it could this season through 10 games.

On Tommy Eichenberg

• "He's a prototypical Big Ten linebacker. He's strong, tough, fast."
• Day said Eichenberg led a team against Stroud in practice where Stroud had the ball at the 10-yard line with the offense and was asked to drive down the field and score. Both the players competed with the third-stringers at each offensive and defensive position. Stroud called the offense, and Eichenberg called the defense. Eichenberg's team won.
• Day said Eichenberg "called a lot of blitzes" and disrupted Stroud's team.

On Ty Hamilton

• "He's playing his best football right now."
• "He's at starter level."
• Day said Hamilton has stepped up for Ohio State when the Buckeyes have needed him most, which has been extremely encouraging for the coaches and the team as it approaches its toughest games of the season.

On whether or not he has time for his kids' events during football

• "There's no kids' events for about seven months here. Yeah, there's none of that going on."
• Day said he was able to sneak away to one of his son's football games for one week, and he attended some of his daughter's soccer games during Ohio State's bye week.

Perry Eliano

On Lathan Ransom

• "Credit to the young man for working extremely hard."
• "What he's doing on Saturdays is no shock because of what he's been doing in practice."
• Eliano said Ransom's one of the hardest working players on the team and claims he is a "sponge" that absorbs lots of information quickly.
• "Lathan's awesome. He makes life easier for me... He wants to be the best he can be."

On the safeties

• "It's a great group. They're selfless."
• Eliano said all of the safeties cheer and root for each other even when they aren't the player on the field. He said that camaraderie will go a long way as Ohio State approaches its more challenging games this season.
• Eliano said his safeties have been a "fun group" to coach this season in his first year with the program.

On Maryland's offense, its talent

• "We got our hands full on defense."
• Eliano said Maryland has a "very dynamic offense" that is balanced running and throwing the ball. He said the Terrapins have talented running backs and receivers out wide, so the defense will need to be ready for anything this weekend.

Ryan Day’s Thursday Press Conference

• On Marvin Harrison Jr.: “In the past we’ve had guys like Chris Olave, Garrett Wilson, Terry McLaurin, Jaxon Smith-Njigba, guys that teams will game plan against.” Day says because of that, the team has worked hard on balance so that you can’t take any one player out of a game.
• On Xavier Johnson potentially playing more running back: “He’s taken more reps at running back this week, but still did a bunch at receiver.” Day says he’s “provided unbelievable depth for us.”
• On practicing in the snow this week: “I just don’t think we got any snow last year.” Day says “it was coming down sideways” yesterday and the guys “didn’t skip a beat. … Our guys seem to be becoming immune to it.”
• Day says there’s “very, very high-end talent” in the DMV, and that many prospects from the area view OSU as a close destination. Day says the Buckeyes consider that area a “very high priority” to recruit.
• On Dallan Hayden: “The number one thing for anybody who’s touching the ball is ball security.” Day says “we talk about that all the time” with the true freshman.
• Day says “you know now that (Josh Fryar) can do well” in a starting role at tackle after last week’s performance. Day says he’d be “one of the first ones to go in” if there’s any “hiccups” up front for OSU.
• Day says he wouldn’t say he’s “expecting” JSN to return this season, but more so “hoping” that he will.
• Day says final decisions haven’t been made on players using their COVID year of eligibility yet.
• Day says “with the way our defensive coaches are coaching and communicating” that’s why Steele Chambers is playing faster in 2022 than he did last season.
• On Cade Stover: “When you’re talking to him, you’re talking to a man.” Day says there was “some doubt last year” in what Stover’s future would be, but that the “hard work is paying off” in 2022. “He’s had such an impact on a lot of guys.”