“Our guys were really looking for an opportunity to finish this season the right way, and I think that opportunity is now in front of us.”
Ohio State head coach Ryan Day made a brief appearance on ESPN’s College GameDay on Saturday morning to discuss Utah’s 47-24 win over USC in the Pac-12 Championship Game, which opened the door for the Buckeyes to reach the College Football Playoff.
Below is a bullet-point recap of everything Day had to say:
- Day said he was driving home from a recruiting trip to Cincinnati during the game last night, but he was able to watch the second half. “Our guys were really looking for an opportunity to finish this season the right way, and I think that opportunity is now in front of us.”
- Day said the Buckeyes went “right back to work” after the loss to Michigan in hopes that things would fall their way, practicing on Wednesday and Thursday. Added that they knew things were out of their control, but they can be “really dangerous” if they make the four-team field.
- Day said the last week has been an emotional rollercoaster. “It’s almost like a second lease on life.” Added there’s a lot more excitement around the program since last night. “You’re two games away from the national championship after feeling like your season was over.”
- Day mentioned Georgia’s 41-24 loss to Alabama in the SEC Championship Game last year and how the Bulldogs still made the playoffs and won it all with a 33-18 win over the Crimson Tide a few weeks later.
- On last week’s loss to the Wolverines, Day said they didn’t pull away in the first half like they could have and didn’t execute in the third quarter. “There’s no excuses for it, but I know moving forward, we’re going to be loose, we’re going to be aggressive and we’re going to go at people.”
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