Ryan Day (American football)

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Ryan Day
Ryan Day during 2019 Fiesta Bowl.jpg
Day during the 2019 Fiesta Bowl.
Current position
TitleHead coach
TeamOhio State
ConferenceBig Ten
Record33–4
Annual salary$7.6 million
Biographical details
Born (1979-03-12) March 12, 1979 (age 42)
Playing career
1998–2001New Hampshire
Position(s)Quarterback, linebacker
Coaching career (HC unless noted)
2002New Hampshire (TE)
2003–2004Boston College (GA)
2005Florida (GA)
2006Temple (WR)
2007–2011Boston College (WR)
2012Temple (OC/WR)
2013–2014Boston College (OC/QB)
2015Philadelphia Eagles (QB)
2016San Francisco 49ers (QB)
2017Ohio State (co-OC/QB)
2018Ohio State (acting HC/OC/QB)
2019–presentOhio State
Head coaching record
Overall33–4
Bowls1–2
Tournaments1–2 (CFP)
Accomplishments and honors
Championships
2 Big Ten (2019–2020)
3 Big Ten East Division (2019–2021)
Awards
Big Ten Coach of the Year (2019)

Ryan Patrick Day (born March 12, 1979) is an American football coach and former college football player. He is the 24th and current head football coach at Ohio State University, a position he has held since 2019. Day was also the acting head coach for the Ohio State Buckeyes for the first three games of the 2018 season. He attended the University of New Hampshire, where he played quarterback and linebacker for the Wildcats from 1998 to 2001 before he began his coaching career in 2002.

Playing career[]

Day attended Manchester Central High School in Manchester, New Hampshire.[1] As a quarterback and defensive back, he was the state's Gatorade Player of the Year for his senior season.[1] Day attended the University of New Hampshire. Playing for then-offensive coordinator Chip Kelly, Day set four career records at UNH, including completion percentage and touchdowns.[2]

Coaching career[]

Early career[]

Day was the offensive coordinator for Temple in 2012, as well as the offensive coordinator for Boston College from 2013 to 2014. He was hired as the Philadelphia Eagles' quarterbacks coach on January 22, 2015.[3] Then, in 2016, after his mentor Chip Kelly was relieved of his duties in Philadelphia, Day was hired in the same role by Kelly, who became the head coach of the San Francisco 49ers. On January 3, 2017, Day was hired to replace co-offensive coordinator Tim Beck of the Ohio State Buckeyes. After being linked to the Tennessee Titans offensive coordinator position in January 2018, Day was promoted to offensive coordinator and primary play caller at Ohio State.

Ohio State[]

2018 season[]

On August 1, 2018, he was named acting head coach at Ohio State when head coach Urban Meyer was placed on administrative leave[4] when news came to light of Meyer's knowledge of events surrounding then-fired Zach Smith's domestic violence accusations made by Smith's estranged wife. Day won all three games during Meyer's absence. On December 4, 2018, Ohio State announced that Meyer would retire as head coach after the 2019 Rose Bowl and be replaced by Day on a full-time basis.[5][6]

2019 season[]

In 2019, Day's first season as a full-time head coach, he led the Buckeyes to a perfect 12-0 regular season record, the Buckeye's first undefeated regular season since 2013. Despite being predicted to finish second in the Big Ten East Division according to the 2019 Cleveland.com preseason poll,[7] the Buckeyes clinched the division following their November 23 victory over rival Penn State, and secured a spot in the Big Ten Championship,[8] which they would go on to win, beating Wisconsin 34-21.[9] The Buckeyes were named the number two seed in the College Football Playoff and lost to the Clemson Tigers in the Fiesta Bowl. On December 3, 2019, Coach Day was named the Dave McClain Coach of the Year by the media.[10]

2020 season[]

Day's second season was significantly shortened due to the Big Ten Conference's policies regarding the COVID-19 pandemic. The Buckeyes' regular season was shortened from 12 games to 8 games,[11] and then down to 5 because of cancellations due to the pandemic.[12][13][14] After starting the season 4-0, Coach Day was forced to miss the December 5 game against Michigan State after testing positive for COVID-19.,[15] which the Buckeyes would go on to win 52-12. What would have been Ohio State's sixth regular season game, which was against archrival Michigan, was cancelled due to COVID-19 concerns within the Michigan program. This was the first time since the 1917 season that Ohio State and Michigan did not play each other. The Big Ten's coronavirus policies would have prevented the Buckeyes from playing in the 2020 Big Ten Football Championship Game, as they did not meet the six-game threshold put forth by the conference.[16] However, on December 9, 2020 the Big Ten administrative council voted to remove the six game minimum, allowing Ohio State to advance to the conference championship.[17] The Buckeyes played in the Big Ten Championship game on December 19, where they beat the Northwestern Wildcats 22-10.[18] Ohio State was selected as the number 3 seed in the College Football Playoff, where they faced number 2 Clemson in the 2021 Sugar Bowl.[19] Ohio State defeated Clemson 49-28, and advanced to the 2021 College Football Playoff National Championship, to face number 1 Alabama.[20] The Buckeyes lost to Alabama 52-24.[21]

2021 season[]

The 2021 season, Day's third full season as head coach, began with the Buckeyes ranked fourth in both the AP and coaches' poll. After an early season upset by Oregon, Day lead Ohio State through a 9 game win streak behind Heisman finalist CJ Stroud. Ohio State had wins against then 20th ranked Penn state and 5th ranked Michigan State. Going into the Michigan game, Ohio State was ranked 2nd and Michigan was ranked 5th by the College Football Playoff committee. Michigan defeated Ohio State for the first time since 2011. This loss effectively eliminated Ohio State from the College Football Playoff, the first time this has happened since 2018. Ohio State was selected to play against Utah in the Rose Bowl[22]

Head coaching record[]

Year Team Overall Conference Standing Bowl/playoffs Coaches# AP°
Ohio State Buckeyes (Big Ten Conference) (2018)
2018 Ohio State 3–0[n 1] 1–0[n 1]
Ohio State Buckeyes (Big Ten Conference) (2019–present)
2019 Ohio State 13–1 9–0 1st (East) L Fiesta† 3 3
2020 Ohio State 7–1 5–0 1st (East) W Sugar†, L CFP NCG† 2 2
2021 Ohio State 10–2 8–1 T–1st (East) Rose†
Ohio State: 33–4 23–1
Total: 33–4
      National championship         Conference title         Conference division title or championship game berth

Personal life[]

Day was born and raised in Manchester, NH, and met his wife, Christina Ourania Spirou, whom he calls Nina, when they played together on the same tee ball team when she was seven and he was six.[23] Married in June 2005, the Days have three children, Ourania, Grace, and Ryan Jr.[24]

Day was raised by a single mother, Lisa Day, following the death of his father, Raymond Day, on January 20, 1988, of suicide.[25] June 5, 2019, Day admitted publicly, for the first time, his father was a victim of suicide, when he was nine years old, with two younger brothers, Chris, seven, and Tim, five[citation needed].

In the same interview[citation needed], Day shared with the reporter his journey from anger and jealousy as a small boy, to one of an adult who understands, now, the profound effect mental illness can have on not just the individual, but also the family. More than anything, he wanted to help remove the stigma attached to suffering from, and openly talking about, mental illness in today's youth. Because of this, since becoming head coach at Ohio State, Day and his wife have chosen to partner with an organization focused on lifting that stigma, On Our Sleeves, a movement begun at the Nationwide Children's Hospital. An extension of this partnership is The Christina and Ryan Day Fund for Pediatric and Adolescent Mental Wellness, which the Days donated $100,000 to initiate the fund.[26]

Notes[]

  1. ^ a b Ohio State head coach Urban Meyer was placed on administrative leave for the first three games of the 2018 season. Day served as acting head coach in his absence. Ohio State credits the first three games of the season to Day and the remaining 11 games, including the Rose Bowl, to Meyer.

References[]

  1. ^ a b Coppola, Frank (August 26, 2001). "There is little doubt about Ryan Day's role at UNH". Seacoastonline.com. Retrieved February 1, 2015.
  2. ^ Shorr-Parks, Eliot (January 23, 2015). "Here is what you need to know about Eagles' new quarterbacks coach Ryan Day". NJ.com. Retrieved February 1, 2015.
  3. ^ Shorr-Parks, Eliot (January 22, 2015). "Eagles hire Boston College offensive coordinator Ryan Day as quarterback coach". nj.com. Retrieved January 26, 2015.
  4. ^ Harrish, Kevin (August 1, 2018). "Ryan Day Tabbed Interim Head Coach During Urban Meyer's Paid Administrative Leave". Eleven Warriors. Retrieved August 1, 2018.
  5. ^ Sallee, Barrett (December 4, 2018). "Ohio State coach Urban Meyer set to announce retirement, Ryan Day to replace him with Buckeyes". CBS Sports. Retrieved December 4, 2018.
  6. ^ "Ohio State's Urban Meyer retiring; Ryan Day promoted to head coach". The Advocate. Associated Press. December 4, 2018. Retrieved December 4, 2018.
  7. ^ https://www.cleveland.com/osu/2019/07/michigan-named-big-ten-football-favorite-in-clevelandcom-2019-preseason-poll.html
  8. ^ West, Jenna (November 23, 2019). "Ohio State Beats Penn State to Advance to Big Ten Championship Game". Sports Illustrated.
  9. ^ "Buckeyes comeback to beat Wisconsin 34-21; claim 3rd consecutive Big Ten title". December 8, 2019.
  10. ^ "Ryan Day named Big Ten Coach of the Year by conference media". 10tv.com. December 3, 2019. Retrieved December 3, 2019.
  11. ^ "Eight-Game, 2020 Ohio State Football Schedule Announced". Ohio State Buckeyes. September 19, 2020. Retrieved July 4, 2021.
  12. ^ "Ohio State at Maryland Football Game Canceled". Ohio State Buckeyes. November 11, 2020. Retrieved July 4, 2021.
  13. ^ "Ohio State / Illinois Football Game Canceled". Ohio State Buckeyes. November 27, 2020. Retrieved July 4, 2021.
  14. ^ "Michigan-Ohio State game called off for Saturday". ESPN.com. December 8, 2020. Retrieved July 4, 2021.
  15. ^ "Day on OSU's week: Hopeful worst is behind us". ESPN.com. December 5, 2020. Retrieved July 4, 2021.
  16. ^ "Big Ten: Any COVID cancellations a 'no contest'". ESPN.com. October 22, 2020. Retrieved July 4, 2021.
  17. ^ "Ohio St. into Big Ten finale after rule adjustment". ESPN.com. December 9, 2020. Retrieved July 4, 2021.
  18. ^ "Ohio State vs. Northwestern score, takeaways: Buckeyes win Big Ten behind Trey Sermon's record-setting game". CBSSports.com. Retrieved July 4, 2021.
  19. ^ "College Football Playoff matchups announced: Alabama-Notre Dame, Clemson-Ohio State". NFL.com. Retrieved July 4, 2021.
  20. ^ NCAA.com, Zach Pekale |. "No. 3 Ohio State defeats No. 2 Clemson 49-28 in the College Football Playoff | NCAA.com". www.ncaa.com. Retrieved July 4, 2021.
  21. ^ "Alabama beats Ohio State 52-24 in College Football Playoff National Championship". WPTV. January 12, 2021. Retrieved July 4, 2021.
  22. ^ "2022 Rose Bowl: Ohio State vs. Utah is old vs. new in Pasadena". December 14, 2021. Retrieved December 16, 2021.
  23. ^ Laviola, Erin (December 4, 2018). "Christina Spirou Day, Ryan Day's Wife: 5 Fast Facts You Need to Know". Heavy.com. Retrieved November 14, 2021.
  24. ^ "Christina Spirou Day". www.facebook.com. Retrieved November 14, 2021.
  25. ^ "New Hampshire, Hillsborough County, Manchester, Cemetery Records, 1800-2007," database with images, FamilySearch (https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/3:1:33S7-958D-QXRS?cc=1930346&wc=M6GS-BTL%3A226982001%2C227057201 : accessed 14 November 2021), Pine Grove Cemetery > Cowie, John J. - Dorst, Catherine (Kathryn) > image 1060 of 2014; City of Manchester. Pine Grove Cemetery, New Hampshire.
  26. ^ "How Ryan Day's past inspired a push to raise awareness about mental health". sports.yahoo.com. Retrieved November 14, 2021.

External links[]

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