Welcome to the Skull Session.
Jeremiah Smith is hilarious.
Brock Boyd is, too (check slide seven).
Have a Good Friday.
REST IN PEACE, BOB. I write with a heavy heart that former Ohio State kicker, punter and quarterback Bob Atha died Tuesday after a years-long battle with cancer.
My dad and Bob were childhood friends — which, in my book, makes them brothers.
They grew up together in Worthington. They played youth sports together. There were a few years of distance when my dad’s family moved to Cleveland during high school, but they found their way back to each other — eventually even living together at Ohio State. My dad, a golfer. Bob, a football player. Sharing an apartment off High Street.
They told me most of the stories. They spared me some. I think I’m thankful for that. No, I’m definitely thankful for that.
Former Ohio State kicker, punter and quarterback Bob Atha died Tuesday after a years-long battle with cancer. https://t.co/RphCEX4yTF
— Eleven Warriors (@11W) April 2, 2026
“Dad Lore” is a never-ending list of unbelievable, adventurous, sometimes reckless stories fathers tell about their lives before they were dads. My dad has plenty of them. But almost none of those stories exist without Bob. And the ones that do? I’m sure Bob was the first person he called to tell.
They were best friends.
No, they were brothers.
As someone who also had to find his own brothers along the way, I know how much Bob meant to him. Which means he meant a lot to me, too.
Rest in peace, Bob.
See you soon.
“HE’S STILL A BUCKEYE.” In Thursday’s Skull Session, I wrote about Ryan Day’s interview with ESPN’s Kevin Clark, including the Ohio State head coach admitting that Sonny Styles essentially forced him into retirement from basketball. I’ll circle back to that conversation a couple more times in Friday’s Eleven Warriors Morning Constitutional because, honestly, it was a thoroughly entertaining 20 minutes.
Let’s start with how Day answered this question: Could Jeremiah Smith have played in the NFL straight out of high school?
“I just kind of want to get through this (2026) class first and enjoy the fact that he’s with the Buckeyes for another year,” Day said with a laugh. “We just got off the field again, and he’s still a Buckeye. That’s what I’m gonna focus on right now — the fact that he’s still here — and try to find a way to get him the ball. I know Arthur Smith is excited about making sure he touches it as many times as possible this season.”
From Day’s lips!
Get that man the football.
Day continued, comparing Smith’s looming departure to that of his son, RJ, who will begin his senior year at DeSales High School this fall.
“My son is going into his senior year of high school, and we’re counting every day to make sure we appreciate it, because when he’s gone, he’s gone. It’s going to be the same thing with No. 4,” Day said, still smiling. “We’re not going to talk about the future — we’re just going to enjoy the fact that he’s still a Buckeye.”
A true players’ coach, Day said his relationship with Smith is one of many he wishes could last longer in Columbus.
“It’s been like that with a lot of guys,” Day said. “We just have to keep reloading.”
TOMMY TWO THUMBS. Now to another gem from Clark’s interview: Who is the most badass player Ryan Day has ever coached?
“It’s hard for me to say one person because there’s been a lot of tough guys,” Day said.
Still, he gave the nod to a pair of Buckeyes: offensive lineman Josh Myers (now with the New York Jets) and linebacker Tommy Eichenberg (now with the Las Vegas Raiders).
“I remember getting ready to play in the national championship game in 2020 with Josh Myers, and he had a needle about this long (holds hands up) that he shot into his foot because he had turf toe,” Day said. “He was literally biting a towel because he had to take the shot. He played that whole game with it and then later had to have surgery because he couldn’t let his brothers down.”
That’s one.
“I watched Tommy Eichenberg in the rivalry game with one arm go out there and play,” Day added. “There have been so many guys that I’d hate to say just one. We’ve had a bunch of them over the years. I think that’s what makes the game special.”
Then Day took it a step further — placing Myers and Eichenberg in truly elite company. (Hall of Fame company!)
“Probably the guy that I was around the most that just had that knack overall was Kuechly when we were at Boston College. The guy was everywhere,” Day said. “He was physical. He was tough. He was nasty. He was just badass altogether. If you ran a play one time, he was gonna tell you exactly where the next one was going, and he was gonna tell four guys where to go. You just had to throw him off the (practice) field because he was that type of player.”
That would be Luke Kuechly — a two-time All-American who led the FBS in tackles in 2010 and 2011, won just about every defensive award imaginable and then went on to become the NFL Defensive Rookie of the Year (2012), Defensive Player of the Year (2013) and a seven-time All-Pro.
Is that good?
I’ll let Day answer that.
“Unbelievable,” Day said. “He was the best.”
ADAPT OR DIE. What is it Ryan Day said about the dinosaurs this week? Adapt or die? It looks like Lane Kiffin has learned that lesson entering the 2026 college football season.
Entering 2026, Kiffin reportedly sold the Tigers’ athletic department and boosters on a $40 million roster, even though the school initially planned to spend between $25 million and $30 million.
NEW: LSU planned to spend $25-30M on its roster but ended up at $40M+ after Lane Kiffin sold his vision, @whalexander_ reports
— On3 (@On3) April 1, 2026
"Why not win in Year 1? You don't build stuff over three, four years anymore," one donor said.
Story: https://t.co/PdXHZvNVHq pic.twitter.com/PNv4uit3yS
What’s hilarious about this development is that Kiffin once trolled Ohio State for reportedly spending $13 million to field its roster entering its national championship season in 2024.
But then again, this is the same person who abandoned his child, abandoned his boy…
No, wait.
That was Daniel Plainview.
This is the same person who abandoned a CFP semifinalist Ole Miss team midseason for LSU while the 2025 season was still happening, so he’s not exactly a beacon of principle.
But hey, adapt or die, right?
It takes money to compete in today’s college football — lots of it.
It also takes culture. And that’s a lot harder to buy.
Good luck building it in Baton Rouge, Lane.
SONG OF THE DAY. "Ghost" - Justin Bieber.
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