Ryan Day – Ohio State Buckeyes as fresh as they have been all season

Ryan Day – Ohio State Buckeyes as fresh as they have been all season

LOS ANGELES — Even after 13 games and possibly three games left if Ohio State wants to win a national championship, coach Ryan Day said Tuesday his team couldn’t be in better shape.

“I feel like, under all circumstances, we are as healthy, strong and fresh as we have been all season,” Day said. “I think right now we are battle tested. I think we built depth and when we put the roster together we knew that this was going to be the case, that we had to be strong and impactful late in the season and continue to build on it as the season progressed.

Ohio State and Oregon meet for the second time this season on Wednesday in the Rose Bowl Game presented by Prudential. Ohio State (11-2) defeated Tennessee 42-17 in the first round of the playoffs on Dec. 21. Oregon (13-0) last played against Penn State on Dec. 7 in a 45-37 Big Ten championship game.

In the new 12-team playoff format, teams that lose in their conference championship games would have to play 17 games to win the national championship (and at least 16 games), making this the longest FBS college football season in history might.

“For us, it’s something you prepare for all season long, knowing what the season could look like and having a 365-day plan on how you want to prepare for those moments,” Oregon coach Dan Lanning said .

“I have to give a big shout out to our exercise science staff, our training staff and our weight room staff. Our team is relatively healthy. At this point in the season, no one feels great because of the time of year you’re in, but our players are setting some (personal bests) in the weight room or doing incredible feats at this point in the season. They’ve done it for sure they stay fresh.

Ohio State hasn’t avoided injuries. Center Seth McLaughlin and offensive tackle Josh Simmons both suffered season-ending injuries earlier this year, forcing the Buckeyes to add depth to their offensive line. Simmons is likely a first-round NFL draft pick.

“Even though we’ve had some injuries at certain positions, I feel like we’re playing as fast and brutal now as we have all season,” Day said. “So there’s a lot to do (managing a longer season). I’m not going to go into all of those things, but I think as we move forward in this format, it’s something we all need to think about.”

The mental strain of such a long season takes its toll on players and coaches alike. But no matter how loud the noise surrounding Day became, especially after the loss to Michigan, Ohio State offensive coordinator Chip Kelly said it was Day’s consistency that laid the foundation for Ohio State to come back with such retribution against Tennessee .

“He was great and he understood, when he took the job because he had been an assistant to Urban (Meyer), the magnitude of the job,” Kelly said. “There are a lot of good things about a job like this, but also a lot of difficult things. Ryan has handled it better than anyone and the way he is every day, our players are the same every day. That’s not it.’ Like we come in on a Sunday and say, ‘Oh, we’re going to change everything.’

“He has a certain consistency about him, even when things don’t go the way you would like, and our players appreciate that. And the longer the season lasts, the more this consistency pays off.”

Day said his mindset heading into that second game against Oregon was no different than it was earlier this month before the Tennessee game, when the Ohio State fan base was buzzing about the home loss at Michigan.

“Very similar…hungry and focused,” Day said. “Every opportunity to get on the field is an opportunity to prove people right and prove people wrong, and that’s just our team’s approach. We were looking forward to getting back on the pitch, but we’re also looking forward to playing this game, there’s still a lot of football ahead of us. And that’s really the focus. You have to learn from what happened in the past, and if you don’t, you will repeat it.

“As the season progresses, we’re both here in the Rose Bowl, and there are twists and turns along the way. You don’t know how you get to this point, but here we are and.” “An opportunity to play against a great team and it’s another opportunity for us to play against Oregon again in the same season.”

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