COLUMBUS, Ohio — The Buckeyes are 3-0 after a 63-10 win against Western Kentucky at Ohio Stadium on Saturday. Head coach Ryan Day met with reporters immediately following the Buckeyes’ win.
Quarterback Kyle McCord also spoke to the media. Here are the highlights of what was said. You can also view the full press conferences below.
Ryan Day
+ On the second quarter, Day said they needed to take the next step, they know what they’re about to jump into. “That was a good week of work out there. It started last Sunday.” They knew they had to turn this up and build some momentum. “This is what it is going to be like moving forward.”
+ On analyzing the game this week, Day said they have to find the plays that can cost them in a close game. This game wasn’t perfect.
+ On the defensive performance, Day said the second half turnovers were huge and they were getting the stops. We had good momentum and passion, there were some good collisions and hits going on. “That’s what we’re looking for, guys flying sideline to sideline and getting their hands on the ball in the secondary.”
+ It was big to get some explosive runs in and move the ball well on the ground. He liked the efforts on third down. Those are things they are going to have to do to continue to be efficient, but when they are moving the ball well on the ground it helps in the pass game.
+ Steele Chambers showed up in a big way. The linebacker play was fast, downhill, and decisive.
+ On the offensive line, Day said they were challenged and they responded. He liked the emotion and how fired up they were on third downs.
+ On the biggest difference in this game, Day said the style of the game allowed them an opportunity to go play and compete but they were turning it up this week in practice in a big way. “Notre Dame starts now. Normally we start on Sunday but we’re starting game prep tonight.”
+ “These guys like to get challenged and we pushed them hard this week. It was a good sign that they responded.”
+ Kyle McCord had his best week of practice this week. McCord responded and wasn’t fazed which is good because there’s going to be tough moments.
+ The defensive line was into it and Day liked the competitiveness. “There’s a lot there to go on. But their overall attitude was really good. I felt them out there today, which was a good sign.”
Kyle McCord
+ On responding to the strip sack with a touchdown pass, McCord said he thought he responded well. The strip sack was his fault, he needed to make a better decision, but the players around him lifted him up and told him to keep pressing. It was good to respond by putting points on the board. He needed to use the next play mentality and now he can grow and learn from it.
+ On using this going into Notre Dame, McCord said this was their most complete game as an offense and they continued to take strides, ran the ball well and passed well. It was a big confidence boost and now they can take steps from this.
+ It was nice getting the official nod from Day to be the starter but the more reps he takes the better he feels. He has been attacking every rep like it’s in a game. Getting all of the reps at No. 1 helped in practice this week and he used that confidence boost in practice, subconscious or not. He trusted himself more and good things came from it.
+ The offense realized the level of preparation early on in the season wasn’t what it needed to be and they learned from that this week and took it to another level.
+ On the efficiency of the offense, McCord said the biggest thing today was that they ran the ball well. They did a good job running in between the tackles and getting out on the perimeter and that opened up the entire offense.
+ Having a game like this gives the offense a boost of confidence going into next week and they can continue to ramp up the intensity week by week in practice and continue on this trajectory.
+ His job is to keep the offense on schedule and get the ball to the playmakers and they all did a good job today. “It was about time that we were firing on all cylinders.”
+ Notre Dame is ranked Top 10 for a reason. “It’s going to be a good matchup, primetime, it’s one of the reasons you come to Ohio State, to play in games like that.”
63-10 is more like a top ten team. ND should be a good game (for once). I’ve taken for granted that OSU would beat them but this year it’s not such a sure thing. This will be a good warmup for Penn State a month from now in the first Big Ten elimination game. Just win.