Skull Session: Ryan Day is a Better Coach Than James Franklin, Marvin Harrison Jr. Receives a New Nickname, The Silver Bullets Are Back and Ohio State Names Players of the Game

By Chase Brown on October 23, 2023 at 5:00 am
Ryan Day, James Franklin
Joseph Maiorana / USA TODAY Sports
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Welcome to the Skull Session.

Ohio State is 7-0.

Let's have a good VICTORY MONDAY, shall we?

 YOU ARE NOT THAT GUY, PAL. On March 9, Bruce Feldman of The Athletic ranked the top 10 college football coaches in the FBS: Nick Saban (Alabama), Kirby Smart (Georgia), Dabo Swinney (Clemson), Jim Harbaugh (Michigan), James Franklin (Penn State), Ryan Day (Ohio State), Lincoln Riley (USC), Brian Kelly (LSU), Kyle Whittingham (Utah) and Lance Leipold (Kansas).

tsk tsk... Bruce... tsk tsk

I kept the receipts.

Over the weekend, Franklin proved once more that he is NOT THAT GUY, PAL, as Ohio State's 20-12 win over Penn State altered Franklin's record to 8-19 vs. top 25 teams, 1-14 vs. top 10 teams and 1-12 vs. top-five teams as the Nittany Lions' head coach.

Five years later, Penn State is a great program – not an elite program.

Five years later, Ohio State is still an elite program. And so is its head coach.

With the Buckeyes' win on Saturday, Day improved to 18-6 vs. top 25 teams as Ohio State's head coach. His .750 win percentage in such contests leads all FBS coaches, with Smart's .725 as the next-best win rate. Moreover, Day's overall record is now 52-6, including a 35-2 mark in Big Ten competition, two Big Ten championships and three College Football Playoff appearances.

Day > Franklin

Seven days a week, twice on Saturdays.

Here are some other Freezing Cold Takes exposed over the weekend:

 MASERATI MARV. Marvin Harrison is the best wide receiver in college football. He is marvelous, super, a route man... a Maserati? How do we all feel about the new nickname from FOX announcer Gus Johnson?

Last season, Harrison collected 10 receptions for 185 yards vs. Penn State, with all 10 receptions moving the chains for Ohio State's offense. This season, Harrison was – somehow, some way – even better, as the 6-foot-4, 205-pound pass-catcher hauled in 11 catches (on 16 targets) for 162 yards and one touchdown. Much of that production came in one-on-one matchups with cornerback Kalen King, a potential first-round pick in 2024.

Harrison's 162 yards marked the 12th 100-yard receiving game of his collegiate career, placing him two behind David Boston's school-record 14. Across two matchups with Penn State, Harrison tallied 21 catches for 347 yards and one touchdown, with 19 of 21 catches ending in a first down or touchdown for the Buckeyes.

After Ohio State's win, Ryan Day was asked about Harrison's stellar performance. The head coach made it known that he views Harrison as the best player in college football, regardless of position.

“I haven’t seen everybody across the country, but it’s hard for me to find somebody who is better in the country,” Day said. "To me, he’s one of the most special players in the country.”

Harrison's assessment was less bold. The always-confident, never-cocky wide receiver said his coaches and teammates count on him to perform at an elite level each week, and he never wants to let them down.

“I think you could say a lot’s on my shoulders. But that’s my job at the end of the day,” Harrison said. “My teammates and coaches count on me to be the focal point of the offense, and each and every week, I know they’re going to lean on me. The offense kind of goes as I go.”

After that comment, Harrison was asked if he uses accolades like the Biletnikoff Award and Heisman Trophy as motivation for his performances. The answer? No. Why? Harrison believes there are more important trinkets and trophies to capture than ones that honor his individual efforts on the field.

“My goal is to beat 'The Team Up North' this year and get to the Big Ten championship,” Harrison said. “That’s one thing I’ve always wanted to do.”

Oh, and in a comment that should remind Harrison's Hall of Fame standards, Harrison said his 11-catch, 162-yard, one-touchdown performance wasn't perfect. In fact, he sees areas where he needs to improve.

"I'll have to watch the film, but my perimeter blocking wasn't where it needed to be," Harrison said.

Talk about a team player.

 "THAT'S CHAMPIONSHIP-LEVEL DEFENSE." Ohio State's defense is ELITE. How elite? The Buckeyes made the No. 7 team in America look inept on offense on Saturday, as the Silver Bullets held Drew Allar, Nick Singleton and Penn State to 12 points, 240 yards, 3.5 yards per play, 1-of-16 conversions on third down and 1-of-3 on fourth down.

"There's a lot of people who did a lot of great things on defense,” Ryan Day said after the game. “But I have to give Jim Knowles a lot of credit and his staff for their adjustments. That's two top-10 wins in the first seven games where our defense played really well. I'm happy for our guys. I'm happy for the success they’ve had. They came off last season with a few scars, as we all did. You're starting to see the confidence grow in a big way.”

Day said the confidence, energy and swagger of Ohio State's current defense reminds him of the Buckeyes' defense from 2019, which featured All-Americans Chase Young, Jeff Okudah and several other stars.

In 2019, Ohio State allowed 260 yards and 13.7 points per game to its opponents. Through seven games in 2023, the Buckeyes have held their opponents to 260 yards and 10 points per game, numbers that rank fourth and third in the NCAA.

“That’s championship-level defense,” Day explained. “And if we keep growing as a team, we’ll be tough to beat here down the road.”

After watching how Ohio State's defense has performed in Day's tenure – outside of 2019, of course – I would have never, ever believed Day would use the words "championship-level defense" to describe that side of the ball for the Buckeyes. But here we are.

I like where we are.

We should remain where we are.

Cool? Cool.

 PLAYERS OF THE GAME. The Sunday after an Ohio State win in 2023, Eleven Warriors will present an offensive and defensive Buckeye with player of the game awards. This week, wide receiver Marvin Harrison Jr. and defensive end JT Tuimoloau received our top honors for their performances.

Six hours after we shared our selections, Ohio State revealed its picks: Harrison as the offensive player of the game, THE WHOLE DEFENSE as the defensive player(s) of the game and Jesse Mirco as the special teams player of the game.

As mentioned above, Harrison and THE WHOLE DEFENSE were marvelous and ELITE on Saturday. Therefore, I have no quarrels with Ohio State's selections. Nor do I have quarrels with their selection of Jesse Mirco, who punted the ball six times for 285 yards (47.5-yard average). The Fremantle, Australia, native had a long of 72 yards, three punts of 50+ yards and downed two punts inside the 20-yard line. Overall, it was a fantastic performance from "Micro."

Congratulations to Harrison, THE WHOLE DEFENSE and Mirco.

I hope the 13+ Buckeyes continue to excel.

Ohio State will need them all.

 SONG OF THE DAY. "Carmen Ohio" by TBDBITL.

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