Ohio State AD Ross Bjork Sends Critical Message to Ryan Day

Ohio State Buckeyes head coach Ryan Day finally broke through last season, leading his team to a national championship after a few agonizing campaigns to begin his Ohio State tenure.

Now, Day should be permanently off the hot seat, and the Buckeyes can breathe.

On that subject, Ohio State athletic director Ross Bjork has sent a strong message to Day heading into the 2025 college football season during a recent interview with Bill Rabinowitz and Joey Kaufman of The Columbus Dispatch.

"Let’s lift the lid off that," Bjork said of the pressure surrounding Day. "Coach feels that. Now we can go. Let’s have fun. Let’s smile. Let’s do all the right things on and off the field. We have an amazing graduation rate. We have a 1,000 APR score. We’ve got amazing metrics in all kinds of different categories, and now we have that one metric that means everything. Everyone has seen a pep in his step. There’s a renewed sense of focus. We can let loose."

Day was certainly in a pressure cooker last year, especially after falling to the Michigan Wolverines for a fourth straight time. Last November's loss was particularly inexcusable, as Ohio State was obviously the far superior team. And to make matters worse, the Buckeyes lost at the Shoe.

Had Ohio State not plowed forward on its way to a national championship, there may have been a chance that Day could have lost his job. Instead, the Buckeyes put together one of the most dominant College Football Playoff runs you can imagine and captured the title.

Ohio State is not expected to be quite as terrific this coming season, but one thing is for sure: a massive burden has been lifted off the shoulders of Day, so even if the Buckeyes don't deliver in 2025, Day can relax and simply look forward to the next year.