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The Buckeyes had been doing great, not letting any team score more than 14 points. But then came Oregon, and they scored 32 points against them! Ohio State’s coach, Ryan Day, talked about how he feels about his defensive coordinator, Jim Knowles.
“I go in the meeting and I have hard conversations with everybody and I know what the plan is moving forward and I’m involved in that plan,” Day said. “I got confidence in all those guys on that side of the ball and I know what we need to get done and we’re going to get it done.”
In the big game against Oregon, things weren’t looking good for Ohio State. Oregon managed to get 496 yards without turning the ball over once. The Buckeyes couldn’t break through; no sacks, just two tackles for loss.
Stopping Oregon isn’t easy, but compared to other teams like Idaho and Boise State, Ohio State’s defense seemed to struggle more. Those teams kept Oregon under 496 yards.
Ryan Day trusts Jim Knowles but isn’t just watching from the sidelines. He’s jumped into defensive meetings more this week than before. “Ultimately, it’s my job to make sure that all three phases are the way they’re supposed to be,” Day explained.
“You put patches or Band-Aids on things,” Day continued, “and then, all of a sudden you get a loss and it gets ripped open and you have harder conversations.” He emphasized making bigger decisions and pushing harder after a loss.
Ohio State had a break last week to fix their issues from the Oregon game. They’re ready to face Nebraska next at noon ET on Saturday, airing on FOX.