Ohio State fans are turning on 'third base' Ryan Day

Chris Breiler | Oct 14, 2024

Adam Cairns/Columbus Dispatch / USA TODAY NETWORK

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Michigan Wolverines

It would appear that having some time to cool off hasn't done much to change the minds of a good portion of Ohio State's fan base. Following a 32-31 loss to Oregon on Saturday night, the Buckeye faithful flocked to social media to rant and rave about the failures of Ryan Day against top ranked talent.

While Day boasts an impressive 42-0 record against unranked opponents, he's just 8-8 against Top 10 teams, 1-7 against CFP Top 5 teams, and 1-3 all-time against Michigan. Those failures, coupled with the loss to Oregon over the weekend, have led many within the Buckeye fan base to call for Day to be fired at the midway point of the season. Although there's no chance that Day will be fired after six weeks, it's clear that his margin for error for the remainder of the season is zero - at least as far as the fans are concerned.

On Monday, an Ohio State fan site published an article about Day and referenced Jim Harbaugh's assertion that the Buckeye head coach was born on third base. Not only did they reference it, they seemed to agree with it.

Skull Session: Almost six years after becoming Ohio State’s head coach and three years after Jim Harbaugh’s "third base" comment, Ryan Day remains 90 feet from home plate. https://t.co/rQbSbEhBOW
— Eleven Warriors (@11W) October 14, 2024

"Whatever the reason, Day's narrative is that he can’t win the big games. He’s stuck at third base and can’t get home to score the winning run. And while he has two Big Ten championships and three College Football Playoff appearances, he’s still 2-7 against AP top-five opponents. That won't lead to his termination, but it’s enough to create angst in Columbus and abroad."

Ohio State will likely be favored in the remainder of the games on its schedule, including matchups against No. 3 Penn State, No. 16 Indiana, and No. 24 Michigan. Those are all games that, on paper, the Buckeyes should be able to win. But in reality, Day's habit of coming up short when it matters most is starting to wear thin with the Buckeye faithful. Favored or not, these conference games down the stretch will matter a lot, and one more stumble - particularly on Nov. 30 - could be the final straw in Columbus for Ryan Day.

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