Ryan Day received a lot of criticism during his tenure at Ohio State for not winning The Game. Sure, Day had won it his freshman year, but since that first win, Michigan had turned the tables on what was a lopsided rivalry in the 2010s. Michigan seemed to win every game by being the tougher team, pulling away late after wearing you down with tough, physical runs for the first three quarters.
2025 began as a repeat of past sins, with Michigan scoring on its first drive by ripping off big plays down the field. Then Julian Sayin followed up with a horrible interception, trying to hit Jeremiah Smith in double coverage. In past years, Michigan would have continued its momentum to pull out a close victory – but this Ohio State team is completely different.
Carnell Tate and Jeremiah Smith were not forgotten this year, as Day was able to lean on his confident receivers to pick up critical first downs and keep the Buckeyes on schedule throughout the game. More importantly, they were able to expand Michigan’s defensive line, which allowed Bo Jackson to have his freshman game, totaling 166 combined offensive yards.
One of Day’s biggest criticisms was that he wasn’t willing to lean on his passing game when Michigan’s defensive front took over in The Shoe last year. He learned from those mistakes, but also didn’t stray from the slow, methodical offense that led them to an undefeated appearance in the Big Ten Championship.
He threw a big shot to Smith on 4th down when the game looked shaky, then late in the half, with Ohio State no longer able to finish on the ground at the goal line, Day trusted Sayin and Brandon Inniss on a quick hook route up the middle to give the Buckeyes some breathing room before halftime. These types of plays have been against Ohio State every time since 2021, and today they showed why they are significantly better than an average Michigan team.
Most importantly, when you talk about Ohio State this year, you have to praise this defense. They were in bend-but-don’t-break mode in the first half, and in the second half they became the ’85 Bears. Michigan ran just 18 plays in the second half and held the ball for 6:20 of game time. Michigan’s offense had no answers for the blank playmakers, and on offense, Day followed Jim Harbaugh’s script, bleeding the game dry to earn the victory.
This Ohio State team is clearly the best in the country, but they will have their biggest test of the year against Indiana. Will the defense be able to slow down the best offense in the country? If today there was a preview of this match, then I certainly think they would do it.
