‘It’s easy for people to say that’: Ryan Day stands up for Ohio State against a narrative around their National Championship
Ohio State just had 14 players drafted from their National Championship roster and challenged the record for the number of players drafted in a single year from the same school. The Buckeyes had a loaded roster in 2024 and there is no hiding that. After losing to Michigan and missing out on the College Football […]
Ohio State just had 14 players drafted from their National Championship roster and challenged the record for the number of players drafted in a single year from the same school.
The Buckeyes had a loaded roster in 2024 and there is no hiding that. After losing to Michigan and missing out on the College Football Playoff in the previous season, a bunch of draft-eligible players decided to return to Ohio State for another year.
Ohio State head coach Ryan Day wants no part of hearing the notion that the Buckeyes bought their way to a title.
"It's easy for people to say that Ohio State had NIL for this amount of money or whatever that it is," Day said in an interview with Josh Pate. "It's just so cheap and easy for someone to say. If you actually do the research, all it does is really tell you the value of an Ohio State football player."
The Buckeyes did add several transfers but two of them happened due to Nick Saban returning. Caleb Downs was a great addition to the defense and Seth McLaughlin won the Rimington Trophy. Quinshon Judkins joined the Buckeyes from Ole Miss and Will Howard came over from Kansas State.
“The truth is the majority of those guys were all guys that decided to come back, who were already on the team that we recruited and developed,” Day stated. “We did add six or seven guys, but not 15, and not 20, where we went out there and just went and got the best players in college football. That wasn't the case and that's not what won us a championship.”
Ohio State may have spent around $20 million in NIL but that is just the era of college football we’re in. That number is going to be bigger around the landscape this season. The new normal is here.
