Ryan Day Radio Show: Ryan Day Says the Texas Game Has “Been Circled on the Calendar for a Long Time,” Reiterates That Ohio State’s “Only Expectation is to Win” Against the Longhorns

With No. 1 Texas set to visit the Horseshoe on Saturday for one of the biggest season openers in Ohio State history, the seventh-year head coach made it clear on The Ryan Day Radio Show that everything this offseason has been geared toward this moment.

“It’s been circled on the calendar for a long time,” Day said. “Being ready to play in this first game is important.”

Joining Day on his radio show were co-hosts Paul Keels and Jim Lachey. Ohio State Block O recipient and captain Sonny Styles also appeared on the broadcast to provide insight on how the Buckeyes have prepared for their top-three showdown with the Longhorns.

Ryan Day

On facing Texas in the season opener

• “To start this season with such a big game is great. It’s great for our program. It’s great for our fans. It’s great for college football.”
• “Texas is a great team.”
• “It’s been circled on the calendar for a long time, which affects our preseason, the way that we practiced, how we practiced. Being ready to play in this first game is important.”
• “Julian Sayin, first start, Texas at home, No. 1 team coming into the Horsehoe, here we go. Our guys are really excited for this one. We talked a lot about having no expectations. The only expectation is to win the game.”

On Ohio State’s preparation for Texas

• Day said Ohio State is tired of preparing for Texas and is eager to face the Longhorns on Saturday.
• “When you have the No. 1 team in the country coming in with the type of talent they have, obviously it has our attention. It has from the jump.”
• “This is the reason why you come to Ohio State, for games like this.”

On Matt Patricia

• “He’s very, very intelligent.”
• “He’s coached at the highest level.”
• “He’s won Super Bowls.”
• “It’s been good for me too to have somebody there that’s been a head coach and has been competing at the highest level.”

On Brian Hartline

• “For Brian, this is the next step in his progression.”
• “He’s been working really hard.”
• “I thought he did some of his best work in the playoffs.”
• Day said Hartline has a great coaching staff around him that has helped him game plan for Texas. Day mentioned Billy Fessler, Carlos Locklyn, Keenan Bailey, Tyler Bowen and a number of other people who Hartline can lean on.

On Ohio State's depth

• "The guys who deserve to play will play."
• "The more we can roll these guys, the better off we're gonna be."
• "When you can roll guys, they can be fresh, especially in the fourth quarter."

On Texas edge Colin Simmons and linebacker Anthony Hill Jr.

• "He's a guy that you'd better know where he is. He's a game wrecker. He's fast and athletic off the edge. He's got a great explosiveness. And he'll be a year older now, so what you see on film, it's gonna be moving faster and more powerful than it was last year."
• "Same thing with the Mike linebacker, Hill is fast."

On Texas' defense

• "They do a very good job on defense."
• "They really take advantage of poor execution."
• "We can't beat ourselves, and a big part of that is ball security on offense and taking care of the football."

On Caleb Downs

• "They call him Coach Downs. He's a guy who knows exactly what's going on every play and gets everybody in position."
• "His play speaks for itself, but it's the other part of it — he makes everybody better. How do you make everybody better as a leader? It's the communication. It's making sure everybody is where they're supposed to be."
• "He's a playmaker. He can run downhill and tackle well. We're gonna need him to tackle well in this game. He can cover."

On Jeremiah Smith

• "We all know when the ball is in his hands good things happen. But they also know that too. That's how it works."
• Day said Ohio State has to balance getting the ball to Smith and doing what's best for the team. Those can be one and the same, Day said, but the Buckeyes need to have balance.
• "One of the keys for coaches is to get their playmakers the ball, so we're gonna make sure we do that."

On Julian Sayin

• "You can see his confidence building."
• "He's got more and more a command on the offense."
• Day said Lincoln Kienholz needs to be prepared to play behind Sayin because he's "only one snap away" from entering the game.
• "We know how important quarterback play is gonna be in every game, this game included."
• "Excited for him to get his first start."
• "Just win the game."

On Texas' offense

• Day praised Texas coach Steve Sarkisian for how well he game plans for his opponents.
• "We're gonna see some curveballs."
• "They're gonna have some different things. They'll have some gadgets early on. They're gonna take their shots. We have to be ready to adapt to those things and maybe see some things we haven't prepared for. I mean, they've had a lot of time to prepare. At the end of the day, we got to do what our guys can do and allow them to play fast because that's what will matter in the end."

On Sonny Styles being Ohio State's Block O

• "He's just a perfect candidate for this job."
• "I know he's honored to have it."
• "This is a guy who is very, very mature."
• "Just an amazing young man — someone we all can be proud of."

On how the Texas game impacts recruiting

• "A lot of guys coming in, some great recruits."
• "What a great environment to see and be a part of."
• "What a cool opportunity for those guys."

On

• "Culture is the most important thing."
• "We're not in a situation where it's win a season and then get two or three years to rebuild. It doesn't work like that around here. Try losing a game."
• "You have to make sure that we're looking at this as hard as we can for the long term but also know that we have to win right now. That's the best way I can put it. A big part of that is making sure guys in the locker room understand is that this is a meritocracy. What you can do on the field, what you earn on the field, you're gonna be rewarded for that type of play. Now, we also have to be competitive and bring in the best players in the country. That's where the balance comes into play.
• "It's something that's been going on now here for a couple of years, and we're continually working through and adapting to make sure that we're the best in the country at it."

On his sleep schedule during game weeks

• "I set an alarm, but I'm usually up before that every morning.
• "I actually usually sleep well the night before the game. When I don't sleep well is Sunday, Monday, Tuesday and even a little bit of Wednesday."
• Day joked that he sleeps well on Fridays unless his son RJ doesn't play well for DeSales.

Sonny Styles

On being Ohio State's Block O

• "It's an honor."
• Styles said he looked up to Ohio State's three previous Block O recipients — Kamryn Babb, Xavier Johnson and Cody Simon — during his first three seasons with the Buckeyes.
• Styles said he will work hard to lead his teammates this season.

On Arvell Reese, C.J. Hicks

• "He's awesome."
• "To see the steps he's taking as a linebacker, it's amazing."
• "He's a very cerebral player."
• "We got Payton Pierce, too, another great linebacker."
• "The linebacker room is great. Excited to see what we can do this year."

On Matt Patricia

• "It's been awesome."
• "Coach Patricia is great. I think he's a great teacher of the game."
• "Guys have been picking up stuff really fast, and it's easy to understand."

On James Laurinaitis

• "Just try to soak in as much knowledge as possible (from him)."
• Styles said something funny Laurinaitis does is show Ohio State's linebackers the lowlights from his Buckeye career while telling them that football is hard.
• Styles said Laurinaitis gives Ohio State's linebackers the confidence to go out on the field and play fast.

On Ohio State's defensive line

• "Our defensive line has been great."
• "Guys have really stepped up."
• "We got a lot of monsters up front."
• Styles praised C.J. Hicks for his work this offseason. Styles said everyone knows Hicks can rush the passer, but he said Hicks has really developed as a run defender entering the 2025 season.