Skull Session: Rory McIlroy, Ryan Day and the Pursuit of Redemption Under the Weight of Expectations

By Chase Brown on April 14, 2025 at 5:00 am
Rory McIlroy and Ryan Day
McIlroy Image: Kyle Terada – Imagn Images
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Welcome to the Skull Session.

It's gonna be a loooooong 138 days until Ohio State hosts Texas in the 2025 season opener.

Have a good Monday.

 THE PURSUIT OF REDEMPTION. Rory McIlroy reminds me of Ryan Day.

On the surface, Day and McIlroy have little in common. One is the head coach of college football’s most prominent program. The other is a global golf star.  Despite their different settings and sports, their career arcs share striking similarities – particularly when it comes to the burden of expectations and the pursuit of redemption.

Both Day and McIlroy had rapid ascensions. Day climbed the coaching ladder, rising from unknown offensive coordinator to Ohio State’s head coach. Inheriting a program from three-time national champion Urban Meyer, Day hit the ground running, winning games and competing for titles like his predecessor. McIlroy turned professional at 18 years old, and after winning one U.S. Open, one Open Championship and two PGA Championships before turning 26, he became known as the heir apparent to Tiger Woods.

Day and McIlroy’s early success came at a cost: expectations. For years, both men were defined by their inability to finish when it mattered most, crumbling under pressure when the lights shone bright. Day suffered four consecutive losses to Michigan – each more hurtful than the last – and fell short of beating Georgia in the 2022 College Football Playoff by the slimmest margin. Meanwhile, McIlroy blew a four-shot lead at the 2011 Masters in one of golf’s most public meltdowns, and his missed putt on No. 18 at the 2024 U.S. Open was as haunting, if not more. 

Both received loud criticism. 

They had the tools. 

They had the talent. 

They had the opportunities. 

But not the result.

Then came the breakthrough – a breakthrough in which both men placed themselves at the bottom of a pressure cooker.

Coming off an inexplicable home loss to Michigan last November, Day led Ohio State on the greatest run in college football history, as the Buckeyes beat Tennessee, Oregon, Texas and Notre Dame en route to a national championship. McIlroy blew leads of two strokes, four strokes and one stroke in the final 18 holes of the 2025 Masters, the last of which sent him to a sudden-death playoff with Justin Rose. But McIlroy met the moment (well, the fourth moment) head on, draining a 3-foot birdie putt to win a green jacket and secure a career grand slam.

Both Day and McIlroy celebrated their achievements with moments of jubilation. Day threw his headset in the air; McIlroy his putter.

"Nothing great was ever achieved without going through a lot of adversity along the way," Day told ESPN after winning the national title. "Not to overstate it, but for coaches, we're in this profession, and it can take you to your knees. You've just got to keep swinging and fighting. And it's not always easy."

“It feels incredible,” McIlroy told CBS after winning the Masters. “This is my 17th time here, and I started to wonder if it would ever be my time. The last 10 years coming here with the burden of the grand slam on my shoulders and trying to shoulders and trying to achieve that. I’m sort of wondering what we are going to talk about going into next year’s Masters. I’m honored and thrilled and so proud to call myself a Masters champion.”

Different sports, different contexts – but the same career arc: a prodigious rise, years of frustration and a breakthrough forged in the fire of expectations.

 SPRING SHOWCHASE DISASTER. Oh, yes. Ohio State had its spring game over the weekend. Let’s talk about it. 

Well, wait. Before we discuss the game, can we discuss its attendance? Here’s how it felt walking into the Horseshoe:

Ohio State announced an attendance of 40,136 on Saturday. 

According to Marcus Hartman of Dayton Daily News, that’s the smallest for a spring game at Ohio Stadium (excluding 2021 under COVID limits) since 2005, when the school announced an attendance of 33,918. Hartman also reported that the Buckeyes’ average attendance since 2002 had been 65,847.

Soooooo… where the heck were the fans?

To be clear, I don’t blame fans for the lack of attendance. I blame Ohio State for rebranding the program’s final spring practice as a “Spring Showcase” in February, suggesting a more scaled-back event than a traditional spring game. (It wasn’t until April 2 that the school began to market the scrimmage as a traditional spring game.) 

So, despite a handful of intriguing position battles and favorable weather conditions, I believe uncertainty regarding what the event would look like kept fans at home for the afternoon. That and detestable ticket fees, which Ohio State waived the week of kickoff but, in a boorish move, decided not to reimburse fans who purchased tickets prior to the announcement.

No matter what caused small attendance, the environment inside Ohio Stadium suffered because of the lack of butts in seats, which is unforunate.

At least Ohio State wasn’t alone in this phenomenon.

 JULIAN SAYIN, QB1? As far as I’m concerned, Ohio State’s quarterback battle ended the spring where it started. This is Julian Sayin’s job to lose.

Sayin and Lincoln Kienholz have vied to replace Will Howard as Ohio State’s QB1 this offseason. Coming off the Buckeyes’ Student Appreciation Day scrimmage, in which Kienholz outdueled Sayin, Day called the competition “neck-and-neck.” While he was careful to make no declarations or guarantees after the spring game, Day’s examination for Sayin indicated, at least to me, that the second-year quarterback put himself back in the lead entering the summer.

“I thought Julian, for the most part early on, was in rhythm and moved down the field for a couple of touchdowns, which was good,” Day said. “He made some nice throws.”

Sayin completed 16 of 25 passes for 178 yards and one touchdown in the spring game. On his first possession, he led the second-team offense on an 82-yard touchdown drive in which he completed four passes. On his next drive, this time with the first-team offense, he completed all four passes with the final 26 yards coming on a well-placed ball to Max Klare for a score.

“He’s had some good days, he’s had some days he’s learning from,” Day said of Sayin. “A big trait of great quarterbacks is that they’re resilient, they keep coming back and they keep learning. If you keep making mistakes over and over again, not good. But I think all the guys have been that way this spring. But good to see him respond the way he did and rebound from a couple of practices early on.”

Sayin made a move. Now, it's time to see if he builds on it this fall.

 NEW ARRIVALS! Relive two glorious wins forever with brand-new shirts from Eleven Warriors Dry Goods.

First up, the It Was 34–0 in the 2nd Quarter Tee. Simple. Direct. Ruthless. Just like the Buckeyes in Pasadena. This shirt doesn’t need flashy graphics or over-the-top slogans — it delivers a cold, hard fact, the kind that stings a little more for Oregon fans every time they're repeated. It’s the perfect way to remind everyone exactly what went down in The Granddaddy of Them All.

Then there’s The Lone Star Heist Tee, a stylish nod to the Buckeyes rolling into enemy territory and walking out with a win, their dignity and a few Texas hearts. It’s got “85 Yards Through the Heart of the South” vibes with a modern edge, paying homage to Jack Sawyer’s Cotton Bowl heroics in a shirt that’s ideal for gamedays, tailgates or any time you feel like remembering the Scoop-and-Sawyer.

These aren’t just shirts – they’re receipts. And they belong in your collection.

 SONG OF THE DAY. "At Last" - Etta James.

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