On Jan. 20, 1988, Ryan Day lost his father, Raymond, to suicide. Exactly 37 years later, Day led Ohio State to a national championship.
In an interview on The Herd with Colin Cowherd, the FOX Sports host asked Day to share the first person who came to mind when the Buckeyes hoisted the College Football Playoff trophy in Mercedes-Benz Stadium.
His answer?
Raymond Day.
"Well, for me, it was my father," Day said. "I hadn't really made this public before, but since you asked me, I'm gonna answer the question. I lost my father on Jan. 20 when I was 9 years old. I saw when the schedule came out that the national championship was on the same day that I lost my father. And so I just knew he was with me that day. That was the first guy I thought of."
"I just knew he was with me that day."
— FOX College Football (@CFBONFOX) March 7, 2025
After winning the National Championship, the first person Head Coach Ryan Day thought of was his late father @OhioStateFB | @ryandaytime pic.twitter.com/fQGUmcX7jr
Family has been the foundation of Day's entire coaching career. Amid a tumultuous four seasons as Ohio State's head coach – which included four consecutive losses to Michigan and a heartbreaking loss to Georgia in the 2022 CFP semifinals – that foundation was tested.
"I think he, at times, second-guessed his decision to get into this and be in the spotlight that we're in," Day's wife Nina told The Columbus Dispatch in January. "He felt responsible and just felt bad that he had put us in this position. He promised us he'd get us out of it.
"He fought like hell and got us out of a very dark place that we were in five weeks ago (after the Michigan loss) because of his resilience and because I don't think anybody really thought this was going to end the way it did. Everybody thought the season ended in November.
"All he kept telling me was, 'I want to bring you guys peace. I just want to bring you guys peace.' And he knew for us to feel any type of peace, he had to win it all."
And so he did.
Moments thatll last a lifetime pic.twitter.com/IAdD9VxMB4
— Ohio State Football (@OhioStateFB) January 23, 2025
Ohio State defeated Tennessee, Oregon, Texas and Notre Dame to claim its ninth national championship. The victories placed Day alongside Paul Brown (1942), Woody Hayes (1954, 1957, 1961, 1968, 1970), Jim Tressel (2002) and Urban Meyer (2014) as the five coaches to lead the program to a title. He also became one of three active FBS coaches to win a championship, joining Georgia's Kirby Smart (2021 and 2022) and Clemson's Dabo Swinney (2016 and 2018).
In six seasons with the Buckeyes, Day has a 70-10 record and 46-5 mark in Big Ten competition. His .875 winning percentage leads all active FBS coaches.
