COLUMBUS, Ohio (AP) — Ohio State athletic director Ross Bjork said Thursday he is “absolutely” confident Ryan Day will return as football coach in 2025.

After the Buckeyes lost to Michigan for the fourth straight season, calls mounted among Ohio State fans to fire the sixth-year coach. Bjork said in an interview on 97.1 The Fan that Day is the man for the job regardless of how the Buckeyes perform in the College Football Playoff. They host Tennessee in a first-round game on December 21st.

“Coach Day is great,” said Bjork, who came from Texas A&M last summer to replace the retiring Gene Smith. “Working with him is great. He completely understands. He loves being a Buckeye. That’s why we will support him at the highest level.”

During an interview with 10TV’s Dom Tiberi, Björk pointed out that this was Day’s first job as a head coach.

“I think what people maybe lose sight of a little bit is that this is Coach Day’s first job as a head coach. And he took a monster job,” said Björk. “We have to use his strengths. We must continue to support him.”

The 13-10 loss to Michigan, followed by an ugly melee between the teams, put the coach in a precarious position. He and his team were booed off the field by the home fans. In the end, Björk released a statement expressing his support for the coach.

“The reason we had to say something after the game (at Michigan) is because we’re still breathing, we’re still alive,” Bjork said. “The season is not over yet. The book is not closed.”

In response to the brawl, an Ohio lawmaker said he plans to introduce a law that would make displaying flags in sports a felony. Bjork told Tiberi that he believes the conversation should start on campus with athletic directors, coaches, staff and athletes.

“I hope we can achieve this through a sporting effort. And then maybe there can be some guidelines for what happens when it happens,” Bjrok said.

Thanks to the playoffs, Day has a chance to get revenge on Ohio State’s huge fan base with a win against the Volunteers – and perhaps even more in the 12-team tournament.

Regardless of what happens, Björk says Day will be back next year.

“Coach Day and I just got along so well,” Bjork said. “I was really, really impressed. Every time I talk to him I learn something. He is innovative. He recruits at the highest level. He has a great staff.”

Day did not want to directly address his job status last weekend.

“When you leave things like that for the first time, it’s very emotional,” he said, referring to the loss at Michigan. “And over time you have to refocus because you know that what you did in the past has no bearing on what happens in the future. Everything is ahead of us.”

With the College Football Playoff and the Big Ten losing the East and West divisions, there is always the possibility that the Buckeyes and Wolverines will play each other three times – in the regular season, the Big Ten Championship and the playoffs. Bjork said even though Ohio State lost to Michigan, the Buckeyes still had a lot to play for.

“That’s the great thing about Ohio State – we’re always in conversation. We always have a chance,” Björk told Tiberi. “Again, we are still alive. We don’t like losing this game in particular, but let’s try to get going. That’s what we signed up for.”

His failure to consistently beat Michigan is one of the few flaws on Day’s coaching record. Day was hired as coach Urban Meyer’s staff in 2017 and was the hand-picked successor when Meyer retired after the 2018 season. With an overall record of 66-10, he is well respected in the coaching community.

“Huge respect for what he’s done in his coaching career, what he’s done there at Ohio State and the success they’ve had year after year,” Tennessee coach Josh Heupel said.

Day is now in trouble because losing the game is viewed by Buckeyes fans as an unforgivable sin.

“What we need to do is this whole ‘championship or bust’ mentality. That’s what you want as a goal, but it has to be about the process,” Björk said. “I think we may need to change some of the conversations a little bit. I think we might need to do things a little differently.”