Ryan Day Radio Show: Ryan Day Says Ohio State-Michigan is “About Us and Our Execution,” the Buckeyes Have Been “Locked In” and Focused on Doing Their Job in Ann Arbor

From routine practices to position-specific matchups, Day touched on everything — offense, defense, special teams and individual players — as the Buckeyes get ready for the biggest game of the season.

Day shared insights on the team’s preparation and on key contributors like Julian Sayin, Bo Jackson, Max Klare, Caden Curry, Kayden McDonald, and Caleb Downs. He also highlighted player growth, leadership and the team’s approach to minimizing distractions in a week loaded with tradition, emotion and history.

Here’s a closer look at what Day shared on The Ryan Day Radio Show as Ohio State gears up for The Game:

Ryan Day

On Ohio State’s routine

• “Today’s Wednesday for us, so have to do a great job today of getting into situations.”
• “In this game, situations are huge.”
• “It’s been workmanlike. The guys have been locked in.”
• Day said Ohio State brought the players into the building early today because Ohio State did not have classes.

On Max Klare

• “It was good.”
• “Ran some good routes, did a good job separating against man-to-man, did a nice job running after the catch.”
• “I thought he blocked well in the game.”
• “Certainly he’ll be an important part of this game.”

On Bo Jackson

• “He’s running well.”
• Entering November, Day said Ohio State challenged Jackson to make defenders miss at the next level. “You saw that on Saturday.”
• Day said the emphasis for Ohio State’s running backs will be to protect the football in The Game. “Got to protect the football. We know that that’s a huge part of this game. That will be the emphasis going in.”
• “In the situations, being able to run the football will be critical.”

On James Peoples

• “It’s easy to see when you watch the game the energy he has right now.”
• “He’s got a good burst. That started a couple of weeks ago.”
• Day said Peoples has been “practicing better, practicing faster” this month, “and you’re starting to see that show up on the field.”

On CJ Donaldson

• “He’s been around, played a lot of football.”
• Day said Donaldson has a knack for gaining extra yards in short-yardage situations and near the goal line. He also “does a nice job” in pass protection, Day said.
• “This is a guy who’s been through it before. I think those guys look up to him.”

On Ohio State’s wide receiver depth

• “At this time last year, we were talking O-line. Now, we’re talking receivers.”
• “That’s how it works. Guys are gonna have to step up. That’s their job.”
• Day said it’s the job of Ohio State’s coaches and players to grade out a champion in The Game.

On Brandon Inniss

• “Another guy that has to step up, and he has in terms of his leadership.”
• “He’s a captain, has a great personality, has a voice on the team, he’s super competitive.”
• “He’s got a toughness, a competitive toughness. He’s got an edge to him. He’s competitive in terms of when he’s on the field, but just in general in life, that’s the way he’s wired. It’s contagious around the offense.”

On containing Bryce Underwood

• “Anytime you have somebody who is as mobile as this quarterback is, you got to account for them. Sometimes that can be the X factor.”
• “We got to do a good job of that in the run game.”
• “When he’s scrambling and making plays off-schedule, that’s everybody working together.”
• Day said Ohio State’s defense has to “be disciplined” in defending Underwood.
• Day said Lincoln Kienholz and  Tavien St. Clair have done a good job imitating Underwood in practice.
• Day said Ohio State has had success against mobile quarterbacks, particularly against Washington’s Demond Williams. Day said Williams and Bryce Underwood are different players, however. “Bryce is a little bit more of a long strider but can really pick up speed when he gets running. He’s a little bit bigger and stronger.”

On Caleb Downs, his sack against Rutgers

• ‘He’s a student of the game, for sure.”
• “That was very well-executed by him.”
• Day said Ohio State’s defensive linemen were “in concert” with Downs to execute the blitz.
• Day said Downs has “a good feel” for the game and is versatile in Ohio State’s defense.

On Michigan’s run game, Ohio State’s linebackers

• “There are gonna be a lot of different run schemes.”
• Day said Sonny Styles, Arvell Reese and Payton Pierce must be ready for anything against Michigan. “Sonny and Arvell and Payton, those guys have got to do a great job this week.”
• Day said Ohio State’s scout team has to do a good job this week in preparing the defense for Michigan’s offense. Day said he wants the Buckeyes to be “anticipating as opposed to reacting.”

On Arvell Reese

• “Each game, there’s a different game plan.”
• Day attributed Reese’s lack of production in recent weeks (five tackles) to game plans. He expects Reese to make an impact against Michigan.
• “They certainly need to know where Arvell is on the field because of his versatility and his impact on the game.”

On Ohio State’s punting game

• Day said he was pleased to see Joe McGuire down a punt inside the 2-yard line against Rutgers.
• “That’s the lead-up to this game. We know every yard is gonna be important, so the battle of field position will be critical.”
• “Good to see us execute that pooch. We haven’t had as many opportunities this year to do that — I think it was our second or third all year. But those are important. We go out there, we got one shot to get it right, we got to get it right.”

On Caden Curry

• “He watches a lot of film.”
• “He anticipates things.”
• “He plays fast. He plays with a motor. He’s got great instincts. And he just finds himself around the ball a lot.”
• “A guy who, as he continues to play, has become more and more productive. He’s playing himself into one of the better players in Ohio State history here on defense in terms of a week-in, week-out showing up and making plays. We know he’s gonna be a huge part of this weekend.”

On Julian Sayin playing in cold weather in The Game

• “The good news is we practice in Ohio, so he’s getting used to it,” Day said with a laugh. “We’ve had some days that have been cold here. Like I tell him, you just got to handle it better than your opponent. That’s it.”
• “He does a good job. He’s a smart guy.”
• “He’s been able to handle it in practice great. He’ll be great on Saturday.”

On Ohio State doing its job this week

• Day said the No. 1 focus for Ohio State’s players this week is “doing your job.”
• Day said Ohio State must continue to do what it has done all season. Everything the Buckeyes have built to this point has been for this game.
• “We all have a job to do. As long as everyone’s doing their job, we’re gonna win the game.”

On Ohio State’s decision to fly vs. drive to Ann Arbor

• “Try to make it as normal of a week as possible.”
• Day said Ohio State had TBDBITL come to practice in October and decided to fly rather than drive to “keep the routine the routine.”
• Day said some distractions naturally occur this week because of the importance of The Game, but Ohio State works hard to minimize them.

On Ohio State’s seniors celebrating Senior Day 

• “They know that wasn’t the last one. They’ve got a lot of football ahead of them here. But running out of the tunnel for the last time is a big deal.”
• Day said he told his players not to be wrapped up in the emotion of Senior Day. “Enjoy it, but recognize the fact that this is gonna come to an end and that you’ve got to have urgency in everything you do, because time waits for nobody.”
• Day said Ohio State’s seniors were “locked in and focused” and that it “needs to be the same way this weekend.”

On Michigan’s defense

• “Good. Always good. Stout in a lot of areas.”
• “The edge guys. The inside guys are big and strong and powerful as well. The linebackers run sideline to sideline. The DBs are playing well.”
• “I say it all the time. It’s about us and our execution. They’re very good, but so are we. We need to make sure that we’re locked in to what we’re doing, executing at a high level, understanding the situations and having great balance in the game.”
• “A great challenge for us and looking forward to it.”

On Lincoln Kienholz

• “You can see what he can do.”
• “The more he’s out there, the more you kind of seem him do things.”
• “It’s been good to see him get out there and compete.”
• “It’s good for the team.”

On Kayden McDonald

• Day said he’s seen “growth” in McDonald this year. “That’s it. Growth. Just as a young man, as a player, you’re seeing him grow every day and get more and more mature.”
• “You can just see it in his eyes.”
• “Every day you see him get more and more serious, more and more locked in.”
• “He’s become a huge part of our defense.”

On Ohio State’s defensive backs vs. Michigan’s receivers

• “They’re playing well.”
• “Underwood is really getting comfortable throwing to (his receivers). We got to be on our game, just like we think we’d be in any of these matchup games.”
• “We’ve been working hard to make sure that we’re prepared in these moments to be at our best.”

On Jaylen McClain

• “Everyone is getting more and more familiar with him, seeing him out there making plays.”
• “He communicates well with Caleb. (Downs).”
• “He’s got a certain level of confidence. He’s playing fast. He’s physical, runs to the ball, and he’s making plays in the pass game as well.”

Sonny Styles

On how Matt Patricia runs Ohio State's defense

• "Just being a tough, smart defense. Coach (Matt) Patricia preaches that. I think he's instilled that mindset in us. I think we've been pretty consistent with it all year."
• Styles said Ohio State has "some stuff we've shown on tape that we've got to get better at," but he said the Buckeyes have made improvements in those areas.
• "You get to the end of November, this is the real test. You get to see where you're at."

On preparing for Michigan

• "The main message this week is doing what we do."
• "Keep doing our routine. Put in the work this week and just go out there on Saturday with a lot of confidence."
• "Not worried about anything that's happened in the past, just doing what we know we can do."

On Matt Patricia

• "He's awesome."
• "He's always one step ahead, I think.
• "He's always got a plan for what he wants to do, how he wants to do it, and he's always trying to stay ahead of the offense."

On The Game

• "This is the best rivalry in college football. You could probably say in all of sports, honestly."
• "To be fair, it's two great programs. Obviously, we don't really like each other, but we try to give them respect. They're a great program. It wouldn't be a great rivalry if they (weren't).
• "It's awesome to be a part of."