Presser Bullets: Brandon Inniss Calls Ryan Day “The Best Coach in the Nation,” Tyleik Williams Frustrated With Lack of Holding Calls for Buckeye DL

Seven Buckeyes took a break from their film studies and practices to meet with the media on Sunday. On offense, guard Luke Montgomery, tight end Gee Scott Jr., wide receiver Brandon Inniss and quarterback Will Howard shared their thoughts on the Longhorns. Linebacker Sonny Styles, safety Caleb Downs and defensive tackle Tyleik Williams did the same on the defensive side.

Ohio State has rallied behind head coach Ryan Day after its loss to Michigan, responding with two blowout College Football Playoff victories over Tennessee and Oregon. After the Bucks beat the Ducks, Inniss took to Instagram to praise and defend his coach, and Sunday he reaffirmed that stance, calling Day the best coach in the nation.

Williams expressed frustration that Ohio State hasn't drawn a holding penalty on defense since early in the season, saying “I don't know what the refs are seeing.” Howard said he's always viewed himself as an underdog after being a lower-rated recruit and being overlooked early in his career.

LB Sonny Styles

• Even though Texas has struggled to run the football at times, Styles isn't sleeping on the Longhorns' ground game. "I think they've got a super explosive run game. If you watch the Clemson game, I think they had 250 rushing yards. .... They're a well-rounded offense.
• On whether the team thrives in front of hostile crowds: "It could be like an away environment, but it doesn't matter where you put the ball down, we're gonna show up and play."
• Styles said the defensive line has been dominant enough that it's allowed more seven-man drops in pass coverage. "A four-man pressure is feeling like a six-man pressure to the quarterback. ... Then you've got everyone dropping into coverage ... it definitely makes it easier on everyone when the defensive line is playing like this."
• On Caleb Downs playing in the box more: "Both of our safeties have done a really good job. ... They're super impressive in the run game."
• Styles said the defense's changes since the team's earlier loss to Oregon have been about a more aggressive mindset. "We've improved on the issues that have shown up each week ... look like a completely different team now."
• On Texas tight end Gunnar Helm: "I think the biggest thing that stands out is probably the routes and the hands. That really stands out for a tight end."
• On Quinn Ewers: "He's a super talented quarterback ... he can make any throw on the field. He can move around a little bit, I don't think people respect that enough."
• Styles said he hasn't thought about his NFL draft decision.

LG Luke Montgomery

• On the confidence he's played with: "The preparation the coaches have given us these last couple of games, that gives you confidence in and of itself."
• Montgomery is among those motivated by the chance to play one more game with his close friends. "Of the two I've been on, I would say this is the closest I've been on. ... We've been really close."
• On Texas' defensive line: "They've got a lot of great players up front and they're banking on guys losing their one-on-ones."
• On rotating with Austin Siereveld and Tegra Tshabola at guard: "I think it helps a lot. ... They start the game the first series or two and I get to ask questions on what their moves are, what they do."
• As someone who's moved from tackle to guard, Montgomery feels Donovan Jackson has done an incredible job moving there midseason. "He's a tremendous athlete, guys. ... I know that he wanted to be an All-American at guard ... but he's done a tremendous job going from guard to tackle."

S Caleb Downs

• On playing in the box more: "The coaches, they've done that themselves. I feel like I can play anywhere on the field. ... To me it doesn't really matter (where I play)."
• On the Michigan loss and whether he puts stock into Texas' win over Michigan: "It's win or go home now, that's all that matters. ... Whatever happens in the past, it doesn't put any stock into anything."
• Count Downs among those who saw Jeremiah Smith's breakout coming: "It doesn't really surprise us. It was pretty easy to see how talented he was."
• On Quinn Ewers: "Really smart quarterback, knows how to operate their offense. ... (Steve Sarkisian) does a great job of putting him in the right position."
• On what makes Texas' play action work well: "They do a great job of creating eye candy. ... Really just having great eye discipline, seeing the line, seeing what it's telling us."
• On Texas' wide receivers: "A lot of great athletes ... a lot of speed. ... Everybody has to be on their P's and Q's if we're gonna stop them."

TE Gee Scott Jr.

• Scott feels he's another of a long list of weapons in Ohio State's passing game. "I think when you look at our offense as a whole, there's a lot of components that you have to respect. ... I just think it's the limitless potential that we have and the things that we can do."
• On helping spring TreVeyon Henderson's 66-yard touchdown run: "I feel very confident in my abilities to block in space. And then blocking for a running back like him ... if you look at that play, he's kind of running behind me there, so that was a really exciting moment."
• On Jack Sawyer and JT Tuimoloau: "Those are two electrifying players. Just being real, I don't think I've seen any defensive ends of their caliber on an opposing team thus far. ... Sometimes you get to the games, it's just, 'Man, I go against someone better in practice."
• Scott said downfield aggression in the passing game is part of Ohio State's "mentality" on offense. "That's just part of our mentality. ... We're gonna come right after you guys despite how it looks. It might be a vertical throw, it might be a run between the tackles ... we're gonna throw the first punch, we're gonna be dominant."
• On how he's seen Will Howard grow throughout the year. "Will has continuously become more of a confident leader. ... It's just been amazing to be a part of and amazing to witness. He's just continuing to grow more confident and competent. ... I think I've speaking for all of Buckeye Nation when I say we're excited to have him."
• Scott looked back on his infamous headbutt of a Michigan player in 2022 and sees a lot of personal growth since then. "The amount of public ridicule that I received from that ... that was a behavior pattern that I have. When I look at what the Lord has done for has done for myself ... it's amazing."

WR Brandon Inniss

• On Ryan Day after Inniss had an Instagram story supporting him following the Oregon win: "Coach Day is the best coach in the nation. ... To have a guy like that, you want to play for him."
• Emeka Egbuka's leadership in the wide receiver room has been huge, Inniss said. "He means a lot. He's so smart. Emeka is probably the smartest player I've ever been around. Me and Jeremiah and Carnell (Tate), we come to him with questions all the time."
• Inniss is still in awe of Smith, and says his maturity comes from how he was raised. "I'm not surprised at anything he does now. I've seen him since we were 9 years old."
• Inniss said he's embraced his role off the bench in 2024. "In life, things don't go the way you exactly plan them to. ... That allows me to see and prepare more for the future."
• On Howard's recent deep-ball accuracy: "A lot more confidence. ... We didn't quite know our identity and now slowly but surely I think we've found that."

DT Tyleik Williams

• Williams said he's not currently battling any injuries.
• Williams is eager to keep battling for a national championship this week. "To have this chance with these guys, to go end it the right way is great."
• On the pass rush after an eight-sack outing against Oregon: "I'd say we always knew what we had in our room. ... We have 2s that can be 1s anywhere ... they decided to stick it out here and make plays with the guys they came in with."
• He's not sure what's causing it, but Williams called the no-calls for holding for Ohio State's defensive line "pretty bad." "I think our whole D-Line is held every game. I don't know what the refs are seeing."
• On his relationship with fellow defensive tackle Ty Hamilton: "He's one of my best friends on the team. ... We're always connected in some type of way."

QB Will Howard

• Howard is eager for his own shot on Texas. "That was the only team I didn't beat when I was Big 12, so for me there's definitely a little bit of extra motivation there for me."
• On the balance of playing aggressive but not overconfident. "You don't want to press to make any wild plays or anything like that. ... We're playing really good football right now, but we've got to keep ramping up and getting better and better."
• Howard feels loved and accepted for who he is at Ohio State. "I'm me and I'm gonna try to have fun and keep things light at times but also be super intense."
• On his personal motivation: "I've always viewed myself as an underdog. ... I like to take that underdog mentality, have that little chip on my shoulder. ... We've got two more games left and this one coming up is going to be the biggest game this year because it's the next one."
• On the team's playoff run: "We still haven't done anything yet. We still have two more games to win."
• On Texas' defensive line: "They're really athletic, they're big, they're good players, they're instinctual."
• The interception-heavy nature of Texas' defense forces a quarterback to play smarter, Howard said.
• Howard said it's a credit to Day and Chip Kelly that "Just continuing to grind and get my feet moving and getting them going, because you can't develop that consistency if you don't do it practice."
• On not being let on stage at first at the Rose Bowl: "It was strictly a weight-limit thing. ... There was too many people on the stage ... so I had to go to the other side and jump on. ... A bunch of us had to go to the other side and sneak on."