The bye week gives Ryan Day a chance to reflect on where his team stands at key positions.
The two main positions that have emerged in recent weeks are right guard and running back. Day said that Ohio State is "evaluating" whether Joshua Padilla or Tegra Tshabola should start moving forward, though a "hierarchy" isn't going to be established at running back.
In the run game generally, Day said the Buckeyes' flaws have come from breakdowns in run-blocking technique. He also broke down Ohio State's off week plans among several other topics in his Tuesday press conference.
- Day said Ohio State's lean on run vs. pass is based on game plan and opponent. "The big thing is, do you have the ability to do everything you want to do."
- On Tegra Tshabola and his journey coming from the Democratic Republic of the Congo: "Very proud family that Tegra comes from and very proud of their heritage and their culture. ... I think that plays into his success. He understands what he wants to do with the game of football. ... Each year his football IQ is getting better and better, understanding the game. ... He's a guy who shows up every day ready to work ... his best football is still ahead of him."
- On Julian Sayin: "Each week he's grown more and more. He's built confidence. I think his teammates believe in him now. ... Just halfway through the season, so a lot of football left. ... All of these games, all of these decisions, everything we'er doing is just going to be ramped up and amped up to a higher level."
- On whether he's considering starting Joshua Padilla over Tshabola: "We're looking at everything, we're looking at the stats. ... Figure out who and what gives us the best chance to win. All things we're evaluating."
- There's too much youth in the running back room to set a "hierarchy" at this point, Day said. "I think most of the guys are so young that, I don't think we're there yet. ... There's a lot to be learned about all of them. ... It was a bright spot to see Isaiah with some of the runs that he made."
- On where the run game is falling short: "I won't really get into pointing fingers, but we've gotta be more consistent in terms of identifying who we're going to and using technique to block them. ... We abandoned our technique. That's really what it came down to. I don't think it was really an issue of the running backs not identifying the hole. ... What we can't have is have guys running free in the backfield. ... That's unacceptable."
- The chemistry with coaching staff and diversity of scheme are the top two things that have made Matt Patricia successful as a defensive coordinator, Day said, along with the understanding and excellence of the players on defense. "We wanted to find a guy who can use our guys in multiple fronts and multiple formations and be successful."
- On freshman wide receiver Quincy Porter: "It was good to see him, that was really his first big action ... I don't think he flinched. ... That's exciting. And I think Carnell (Tate) and Jeremiah (Smith) need that. We need that depth."
- Day said Ohio State's off-week plan will be individually tailored to each player based on balancing how much improvement is needed against how much rest is needed.
