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Saturday, the scandal that has earned Urban Meyer his suspension of three games to start this season and that could make him lose his legacy of coaching will return in one of the biggest games of the third week. ESPN GameDay College he's settled in Fort Worth, Texas before the clash between Ohio State and TCU (which will be played at the AT & T stadium in Arlington at 8 pm ET) and the prevailing scenario is almost certain to happen. be the main coach who will not be on the right track. on the sidelines for a last match.
Although this is understandable to a certain extent, we must not forget that the Buckeyes managed well without Meyer under the direction of offensive coordinator Ryan Day (match days, that is to say that week 1 has allowed team Meyer every day except Saturday). Ohio State outscored its first two opponents – Power 5 Minnows Oregon State and Rutgers – with a combined score of 129-34 and was 1,300 rushing overall to 526. First-year starting quarterback Dwayne Haskins took part in the conversation % of his passes to over a handful of experienced receivers and averaged 273 yards per game with nine touchdowns. The Buckeyes have two tailbacks, J.K. Dobbins and Mike Weber, both averaging around 100 yards per game. And the defensive line is murderous, Nick Bosa already leading the pack in the bag (three for 31).
Before the season, many thought the Ohio State team had more talent than any other team in Meyer's first six seasons in Columbus. In which direction would the program go without its leadership for the first three games? His ability to motivate is part of what makes him one of the best college football coaches, with a record of 73-8 since 2012, including a national championship and two conference titles. The Buckeyes proved they were built to survive Meyer's absence.
This has helped to have a surplus of gifted players, but the credit also goes to Day, who will be one of the best candidates for vacant head coach positions that could be created during the off season. Day has experience at every level of football, from FCS to the NFL, but he has never been a head coach. Yet two days before training camp, he was selected by athletic director Gene Smith to replace Meyer in place of other top assistants Greg Schiano and Kevin Wilson, who have head coaching experience.
Day compared his early days as an interim head coach to "drinking with a fire hose," and he was not too proud to rely on Schiano and Wilson for advice or advice. # 39; s help. He receives daily text messages from coaching mentor Chip Kelly, with whom he played in New Hampshire and with whom he coached in San Francisco and Philadelphia: "You are made for that".
"If you know Ryan and you know how he was raised, it's about his preparation," says Sean McDonnell, who coached Day at New Hampshire and hired him for his first assistant job after getting of his diploma. "Throughout his coaching career, he has watched how people do things. It's just a natural progression for Ryan to take charge of something like this. "
Day was organized from the beginning, and he kept the players motivated and focused when the locker room could have orientated itself after a dramatic pre-season in which each day new information on Meyer's investigation against him. former assistant coach Zach Smith.
"I think Ryan has confidence in himself and is aware of his ability to do things right," said McDonnell when asked why players would react to this situation. "His system, his beliefs, his teaching are always a step forward. What I mean by that is that he is always optimistic when he talks to them, he always shows things and the children believe in him because of the journey he has made and he brings this knowledge with him.
"I just think that he was put in a situation and he was ready for that."
Meyer could return next week to a 3-0 record with a final non-conference match against Tulane to get ready before embarking on Big Ten play, starting with a trip to Penn State on Sept. 29. ride, win the Big Ten and do the college football playoff, how will we be reminded of the quarter of the regular season in which Day ran the show in the wider history of the? year? The upcoming higher stakes games could play a bigger role in Buckeyes' playoff summary, but that should not overshadow Day's success in running the Meyer machine at full speed in the coming months. 39; uncertainty.
Day worked under Meyer for almost three seasons (one as a graduate assistant in Florida). The last few weeks have shown that he is ready for the next stage and that leading TCU in the Ohio State prime time would only raise his profile outside of Columbus.
"I think this audition he was was very good," said McDonnell. "He had two midterms. We'll see how he goes in the final here. "
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