Welcome to the Skull Session.
Ryan Day needed a BOOM! 1870 Lager on Wednesday.
@ryandaytime pic.twitter.com/KegnRF2iFz
— Eleven Warriors (@11W) December 20, 2023
Cheers, Coach Day.
Cheers.
Have a good Thursday.
SIGHS OF RELIEF. On Wednesday, Ohio State fended off Florida State and Miami for wide receiver Jeremiah Smith, the No. 1 overall prospect in the 2024 class. Nobody – and I mean nobody – was more pleased with that outcome than Ryan Day.
Day learned that Smith would honor his commitment to Ohio State amid a hectic press conference at the Woody Hayes Athletic Center. While Day answered a question (from Eleven Warriors reporter Andy Anders!) about the Buckeyes’ cornerback signees, Ohio State general manager Mark Pantoni notified him that Smith picked the Buckeyes over the Seminoles and Hurricanes.
Day's reaction was priceless.
I think that reaction represented all Ohio State fans at that exact moment.
Oh, what a relief it is... Smith, a generational talent and top-three Florida prospect all-time, will continue his college football career in Columbus.
OHIO STATE’S FUTURE QB1. Across four seasons at Langston Hughes High School in Fairburn, Georgia, Air Noland completed 636 of 942 passes (67.5%) for 10,164 yards, 126 touchdowns and 25 interceptions. He also carried the ball 111 times for 334 yards and seven scores.
On Wednesday, Noland became a member of THE World Famous Ohio State Buckeyes.
Signed: Air Noland becomes the sixth five-star quarterback to sign with the Buckeyes out of high school and brings a quick release with pinpoint precision to Ohio State. https://t.co/0n8gNYm7Ca
— Eleven Warriors (@11W) December 20, 2023
When Noland put pen to paper – or, perhaps, electronic pen to screen – and submitted his National Letter of Intent to Ohio State, he followed Justin Zwick, Terrelle Pryor, Braxton Miller, Quinn Ewers and Kyle McCord as the sixth five-star quarterback to sign with the Buckeyes out of high school.
In an interview with Cameron Teague Robinson of The Athletic, Langston Hughes head football coach Daniel Williams said Noland, a left-handed quarterback with pinpoint precision inside and outside the pocket, will excel at the next level.
“As soon as he gets on campus, (Ohio State’s coaches will) see he is a worker and a learner,” Williams said. “They’ll get a worker, personable kid that is open to conversation. There’s so much I can say about him. He’s different.”
Different...
Ryan Day believes that, too.
"Air Noland is special in a lot of different ways," Day said on Wednesday. "The way he conducts himself, and the way he handles himself, he's high end. He's very athletic. He's gonna be the leader of this team."
Later in his press conference, Day explained Ohio State identified Noland soon after then-No. 1 overall prospect Dylan Raiola decommitted from the Buckeyes in February. Noland committed to Ohio State on April 8.
"He's a baller out there," Day said. "He makes a lot of plays. He's a state champ. He was high school teammates with Jelani Thurman. We were down there some, and we got to see who he was. We saw the people, the area, the school – the coaches talked about what a great player he was and what a great leader he was. When you talk to him, you recognize how mature he is and his approach. We love that part of it. We feel like he has a high ceiling. When he gets here, I look forward to working with him."
Devin Brown will be QB1 in the Cotton Bowl.
Lincoln Kienholz will be behind him.
When spring starts, however, Noland will arrive.
The competition will start.
“I think that competition is very, very healthy,” Day said. “Lincoln's really been coming on. I'm excited to see Air get going here this spring. But I'm fired up to see how Devin's been practicing the last few weeks. It's been great for him, now that he's healthy and his ankle’s feeling better, and kind of like, OK, take this thing and run, and see how the next couple of weeks go in terms of the way he handles himself. I'm excited that he'll be able to play in this game, and then we'll go from there."
IAN MOORE, EVERYONE. At 8:20 a.m. on Wednesday, Ian Moore submitted a National Letter of Intent to Ohio State. At that moment, the No. 138 overall prospect and No. 6 interior offensive lineman in the 2024 class became a Buckeye.
Before Moore signed his National Letter of Intent, the New Palestine, Indiana, native sent a different kind of letter to Kyle Neddenriep of the Indy Star – one that allowed Moore, the No. 3 prospect from The Crossroads of America, to explain his decision to play college football in The Buckeye State.
Competing at a Division level has always been a dream of mine. I’ve been blessed with a multitude of offers to play D1 football, but Ohio State is where I thought I fit in.
There are several reasons why I’m signing to OSU. On my first unofficial visit, the staff, coaches and team made sure that I saw as much as I could see and had every question answered. My family and I were treated like family. The coaches and staff are very personable and I know that if I need anything, I can go to any of them.
Throughout the recruiting process, coach (Ryan) Day and coach (Justin) Frye have been amazing. They are just really good people. My grandmother, who got to meet them on my house visit on December 4th, gave them both the thumbs up. When they left she even said, “I know why you picked them. They were just like having another member of the family home for dinner.”
It’s like that every time I’m on campus or if they are popping in to check in at my school. This is part of the reason I committed early and the reason I’ve stayed committed. I know that when I get there in January, it will be a transition from high school to college. But, I know that I can go to Coach Day or Coach Frye if I need to talk about anything. I’ve seen how they are with their own families and how they are with my family. I know that they will be there.
I do understand that with any program, coaches may come and go. No matter who is at the reins, I believe in the brotherhood and tradition that Ohio State symbolizes. The short drive for my family is also nice. I like that my family will be close enough to come to home games and visit. The facilities, academics and strength program are some of the best in the country. I feel like OSU has everything I need to be successful on and off the field.
Ian Moore, ladies and gentlemen.
I like him already.
Go be great, kid.
“HE'LL DO WELL THERE.” Kyle McCord transferred to Syracuse last weekend. In Ryan Day's first comments since McCord entered the portal and committed to the Orange, the Buckeyes' head coach wished his former quarterback luck at his next destination.
— Kyle McCord (@kylemccord16) December 17, 2023
"Kyle was very well-respected here. We wish him nothing but the best," Day said. "He played some good football here and spent three years here and made a lot of relationships here. He's committed to another school now, and he'll do well there, he will."
When Day last spoke to the media about McCord – on Selection Sunday, one week after Ohio State's third consecutive loss to Michigan – his words lacked conviction. What he could not yet say publicly was he already knew McCord might leave the program. That happened less than one day later, hours after the winter transfer portal window opened on Dec. 4.
McCord completed 229 of 348 passes (65.8%) for 3,170 yards, 24 touchdowns and six interceptions. He led Ohio State to an 11-1 record in 2023. That production was worthy of All-Big Ten honors, but it fell short of the standard set by three consecutive Heisman Trophy finalist predecessors, Dwayne Haskins, Justin Fields and C.J. Stroud.
Kyle McCord was the present and future of the Ohio State QB room. Then he lost one game. https://t.co/n0ts4fqEll
— Eleven Warriors (@11W) December 13, 2023
According to a report from Bill Rabinowitz of The Columbus Dispatch, Day believed McCord could be Ohio State's starter in 2024. However, he could not promise that said outcome would occur. McCord, with only one season of eligibility remaining, found a situation where that job was more secure.
“I just don’t think it’s worth getting into (the reasons McCord left) now, but I wish him nothing but the best of luck,” Day said. “There are a lot of guys who really care about him a lot.”
SONG OF THE DAY. “The Best Is Yet To Come” - Frank Sinatra.
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