Ohio State Head Coach Ryan Day Wants Loud Crowd For Big Ten Opener

"Let’s go make this the loudest it’s ever been.”

Ohio State head coach Ryan Day is hoping for a raucous atmosphere at the Horseshoe for Saturday’s 7:30 p.m. kickoff against the Wisconsin Badgers. The matchup serves as the Big Ten opener for both teams.

“I’m excited we have a night game. I’m excited to see Buckeye nation come out and support all our guys,” Day said.

Saturday night marks fourth home game, and third night game for the Buckeyes. Ohio State knocked off Notre Dame under the lights to open the season and then blew out Toledo under the lights last week.

“It’s been good for recruiting. Those are long days,” Day said. “St. John Arena was rocking. The stadium was rocking.”

The Buckeyes first played at home under the lights in 1985 and had just four night games before 2000. Night games used to be a rare occurrence for Ohio State, now they’ve become the norm.

“I do like when a noon game is done by about 4:30 and you can go home and enjoy the rest of the day,” Day said with a laugh this week during his regular media availability.

But when pushed, the head coach really doesn’t really prefer when his team takes the field but did say there’s something special when the light’s come on at the Horseshoe in Columbus.

“The electricity of the Horseshoe for a night game, there’s nothing like it,” Day said. “I also love seeing Buckeye Nation, 105,00 people strong.”

The matchup with Wisconsin is the 27th night game in Ohio Stadium history and only the 13th time it has been against a Big Ten Conference opponent. The Buckeyes are 20-5 in home night contests and have won nine of its last 10.

It’s also the first time the two teams have met in the regular season since 2019. Ohio State and Wisconsin squared off two times that season, first in October where the Badgers hung with the Buckeyes until the second half but just couldn't keep up. Ohio State rolled 38-7.

The next matchup came in the Big Ten Championship Game, where the Buckeyes overcame a slow start to win 34-21 to lock up their third-straight conference title.

If Saturday night is any indication, it could be another preview of a post-season matchup between the two programs.

“We have played them, so it’s not like we haven’t seen them at all,” Day said. “Some (crossover) teams you don’t see for three or four years. We played them twice that one year and certainly keep an eye on them.”

The game matches the programs with the most Big Ten divisional titles since the conference moved to a divisional format in 2011: Ohio State has won or shared 10 consecutive division titles.

Wisconsin has won or shared five division titles.

“I was thinking about the game in ’19, that was a noon game. This is a night game,” Day said. “Buckeye Nation has got all day to get excited and get fired up. Let’s go make this the loudest it’s ever been.”

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