Ryan Day Named College Football Program's 'Archvillain'

With the 2025 college football season a little over a month away, ESPN has named each top 25 team's archvillain. 

According to ESPN, Ohio State's most notable villain heading into the fall is Michigan head coach Sherrone Moore. Although his first season with the Wolverines wasn't a huge success, he did lead the team to a win over the Buckeyes in November. It's the type of win that'll buy him a year or two of patience from the fans in Ann Arbor. 

Interestingly enough, Ohio State coach Ryan Day also cracked this list from ESPN. However, he's not considered Michigan's archvillain. 

Instead, Day is listed as the No. 1 rival standing in Penn State's way. That makes sense considering he has never lost a game to the Nittany Lions. 

"Penn State coach James Franklin and the Nittany Lions have been unable to get over the hump against Ohio State, especially since Day took over in Columbus," Jake Trotter wrote. "The Nittany Lions have dropped six straight to Day, culminating with last year's defeat, as fourth-ranked Ohio State rallied to topple the third-ranked Nittany Lions in State College 20-13. 

"This season, Day will have a new starting quarterback and inexperience on both sides of the ball coming off last year's national championship. Penn State will counter with one of the most experienced teams in the country, headlined by veteran quarterback Drew Allar and running backs Nicholas Singleton and Kaytron Allen. Franklin even hired away Day's defensive coordinator, Jim Knowles. The Nittany Lions travel to Columbus on Nov. 1 in a showdown that figures to carry major playoff implications."