COLUMBUS, Ohio — Ohio State is now nine practices into its fall camp ahead of the season opener against Ball State on Sept. 5. Head coach Ryan Day met with reporters for his first press conference of the season on Saturday morning.
You can find the highlights of what was said below.
Ryan Day
+On whether he is taking more of a CEO role this year, Day said he feels strongly that they have a very good staff and that it’s important for the coordinators to lead their units. There’s experience at coordinator, and Day needs to be able to do what head coaches do.
+ Saturday’s practice was the first preseason scrimmage. “We are in a race against time to get better. We have to claw for every inch.”
+ On the growth of the running backs, Day said they were tackling in Saturday’s practice and there were some good runs from the group. The group continues to build depth. So far, Bo Jackson has stood out, while Ja’Kobi Jackson and Isaiah West are right there. Legend Bey is learning to play the position, but Day can see how he can become a real weapon for them.
+ On clarity with the offensive line, Day said Austin Siereveld was out for a few days, so the evaluation was not as streamlined, but Siereveld will be back this week and they will continue to work through it. Day said they have multiple players they feel good about putting in the game, but they are not where they need to be yet as far as identifying the best five and where certain players will be playing. However, they go to bed knowing they have enough. “They are playing with a lot of confidence right now. They came off that field feeling really good and that part is good.”
+ Day has been very encouraged by Chris Henry Jr. He came in with a different approach and took strides over the summer. He has made a lot of plays, is learning the offense well, is playing physical and is buying into special teams. “He doesn’t look like a freshman.”
+ On the linebacker unit, Day said they feel they have depth there and will likely rotate players. “We want to maximize their skill sets. They are into it, they are making the calls, and they are diagnosing plays quickly. Just nine practices in, but excited about how we can play depth there this season.”
+ On Julian Sayin, Sayin’s experience shows up in how assertive he is and how he has found his voice. Combined with his knowledge of the offense, Day said Sayin is having a lot of fun now.”Arthur Smith is going from Aaron Rodgers to Julian Sayin, and Sayin sees that as an opportunity.” Day said Sayin is doing a good job leading the players around him and that there’s still a lot of work to do, but that’s what this preseason time is for.
+ On moving Senior Day to the first game of the season instead of the last game: Day said the proposal came to him from the administration, and he had a lot of conversations about it. Everyone respects the strong traditions and they don’t want to disturb that, but when they look at what all goes on the last weekend in November and what has changed in football, they thought about keeping that game focused on that game and eliminating as many distractions as possible. Day also said they looked at college football as a whole and noted that recognizing someone like Brandon Inniss is a bit different than someone like Earl Little Jr. Day acknowledged this is a different way to look at it, but he brought it to the seniors to get their take, and they all overwhelmingly supported it and thought it was a great idea. This will allow them to recognize their efforts and then focus on the games.
+ On the freshman class overall, Day said the push for them is to get on special teams and get on the field. “You are certainly going to see some of those young receivers play, if Legend Bey continues to improve he will play, Jay Timmons will play, I’m missing some guys but there are some players in the backend who will play, and then players will make a push on special teams and we will see where they show up.”
+ On his takeaways from the scrimmage on Saturday, Day said the offense responded well to the rain and put together some nice, sustained drives, whereas the first scrimmage is usually a disaster on offense. Day also said there was physical play on both sides of the ball and they came out healthy. “There’s no rebuilding of anything around here. The standard is the standard. The staff and players will tell you the same thing.”
+ This upcoming week will be a big week for the defense to see how they can take the next step and improve.
+ On the tight end position, Day said it has been a mixed bag, but they have been doing a lot and will come out stronger. The question still remains: Who will be the players they can count on? They have good depth, but who is going to make the play? Who is going to be the guy they count on? The same goes for the defense. But the good thing is, they have the depth they need there.
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