UpDAYtes: Ryan Day speaks ahead of Ohio State’s season opener against Ball State

Reilly Cahill
Wed, 02 Sep 2026 04:19:12 +0000
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Head coach Ryan Day speaks with wide receiver Jeremiah Smith (4) at fall training camp on Aug. 6, 2026. Credit: Cassandra D’Angelo | Sports Photo Editor.

The wait for Ohio State football is almost over.?

On Saturday, football in Ohio Stadium will return as the Buckeyes look to extend their season-opening win streak to 27 games against Ball State.?

Ahead of the Ohio State’s season opener and senior day, head coach Ryan Day spoke in the Woody Hayes Athletic Center Tuesday.?

Here are three takeaways from Day’s press conference.

Jim Tressel to be honored into the Ring of Honor and Maurice Clarett named Victory Bell ringer at Saturday’s game

Two members of Ohio State’s 2002 national championship team will be honored Saturday, in different ways.?

For the first time since 2014, a member will be added to Ohio State’s Ring of Honor: former Buckeye head coach and current Ohio Lt. governor Jim Tressel.?

Tressel will become the third head coach inducted into Ohio State’s Ring of Honor, joining former Ohio State coaches Paul Brown and Woody Hayes.?

Despite his accolades as a coach, Day described what else about Tressel stands out to him.

“When you look at the success that Jim Tressel had here, you look at the record, the rivalry game, the national championship game, it speaks for itself,” Day said. “But to me, it’s the impact that he made on so many different people. When you talk to his players, when you talk to his coaches, when you look at the impact he’s made on the state, I think that’s probably what’s most significant there.”

Maurice Clarett, the running back for the Buckeyes’ 2002 championship team, will be the ninth person to ring the Victory Bell, prior to Saturday’s kickoff, after the tradition began last season.?

“We all felt that [Clarett] being the bell ringer on the day that coach Tressel was recognized was the right thing to do,” Day said. “We asked him and he wanted to do it.”?

Week one mindset

Just one season ago, the Buckeyes opened their season against Texas, who was ranked as the No. 1 team in the country at the time.

This year, Ohio State opens its 2026 campaign against Ball State as heavy favorites. The Buckeyes have beaten Ball State’s conference opponents, the Mid-American Conference, in 39 straight games.

Despite the difference in stakes from last year, Day described he’s looking for the Buckeyes to execute in areas that the team can control.?

“In this game right here, what the first thing you want to do is you want to play clean,” Day said. “We can control everything that happens before the snap, so whether it’s procedural things, alignments, communications, we’ve got to be great at all the things before the snap and we’ve got to play with great fundamentals, take care of the football and then be smart post-snap.”

Day is focused on the team not creating self-inflicted wounds.?

“Great teams don’t beat themselves,” Day said.?

Balancing playcalling choices for Saturday?

While the Buckeyes open Saturday’s game as a big favorite, a question surrounding how much of their playbook they’ll use looms.

“It’s something that we talk about as coaches, but at the end of the day, you can’t get too cute with that,” Day said. “You’ve got to go out there and play, there’s only so many games you’re playing and guys got to get game reps of what we’re doing.”

Day said while the team wants to save some of its best parts of its playbook as the season progresses, he’s focused on continuously building the team’s identity.?

“There’s certain things you want to save, and there’s certain things that as the season goes on you want to keep in your back pocket, but good teams have tendencies and we’ve got to identify our identity,” Day said.