Unless your name is Ryan Day, you’ll know that different teams play with various styles and find unique ways to win. Unfortunately for the Ohio State faithful, Ryan Day forgot this important caveat and decided that Ohio State could only beat Michigan by running the ball right up the middle and being the tougher team.

As every college football fan knows, that didn’t work, and it probably wouldn’t work if Day were to try that again this year. Urban Meyer will never have to buy a drink in Columbus because he realized the best way to beat Michigan is by using your athletes. That should be the exact game plan Day uses to get the much-needed win over his hated rivals from up north.

When Ohio State was miraculously upset in November of 2024, Ryan Day’s world was flipped upside down. He couldn’t leave his house with the lunatic fringe harassing him or his family. 

Of course, that loss might’ve been the spark needed to push the Buckeyes to a national championship, but I’m sure if you asked Day, he would’ve liked to handle business and avoid any hot-seat talks in the process.

Following last season’s loss to Michigan, Day seemed to exercise his “big-game demons” and has made Ohio State look unbeatable ever since. Even with the changes made for Day, there are still some massive concerns for the Buckeyes this Saturday. The playbook has been relatively limited for Julian Sayin and company. The offensive formations have led to predictable play-calling and are a big reason the offense has struggled to establish the run at various points this season.

Fortunately for Day, he doesn’t have to deal with Mason Graham in the middle of the Michigan defense; however, their defensive line is still the centerpiece of their defense. Ohio State will have to rely on the trio of Julian Sayin, Jeremiah Smith, and Carnell Tate to win for them. That should have been the game plan last season, as anytime Smith was targeted, it felt like Michigan had to tackle him the second the ball was in the air to stop him.

I’d also love to see Ohio State use a little bit more tempo. The Buckeyes play at the slowest rate in the entire country, and a great way to help a young quarterback get into a better rhythm is to speed up the offense. It’ll tire out the Michigan defensive front, and simplify how many reads Sayin will need to make to keep the chains moving.

If Ohio State’s offense can do anything in the Big House, the defense should be able to piece the rest of the puzzle together. Ryan Day is the reason Ohio State isn’t a bigger favorite in this one, but he’s also the reason Ohio State is the defending national champs. I’m excited to see if he learns from last year and caps off an undefeated regular season in Ann Arbor.