When you are the head coach of the Ohio State Buckeyes, you have two expectations: Beat Michigan and win a national championship.
That is also probably the order of priority.
Due to his consistent inability to do the former, current Ohio State head coach Ryan Day might need to do the latter this season to save himself and his job with the program. Or at least save his reputation and standing with the increasingly demanding fan base and program boosters.
With Saturday’s stunning 13-10 loss to Michigan, Day’s Buckeyes have now lost four consecutive games to Michigan. It is the first four-game losing streak against the Wolverines since the 1988-91 seasons.
This most recent one might have been the worst and most damaging of them all, not only for the season but also potentially for Day himself.
Ohio State entered the game as the No. 2 team in the country and was a three-touchdown favorite against a Michigan team struggling through a down, rebuilding year. Not only that, it was at home with a chance to clinch a spot in the Big 10 Championship game and put the Buckeyes in a position to potentially earn a bye week through to the quarterfinals of the College Football Playoff. Even if the Buckeyes did not win the Big 10 championship game and get the bye, it would have at least been a lock for a home playoff game.
Now, all of that is up in the air.
Ohio State needs a Penn State loss to Maryland to get back into the Big 10 title game, and assuming that does not happen, there is no telling how far down the rankings or seedings Ohio State might fall in the eyes of the playoff committee for losing at home as a three-touchdown favorite.
All of that just makes Ohio State’s potential path to a championship that much more difficult. If they lose in the playoffs — and especially early — it is going to be awfully difficult for Day to come back to Ohio State, given the expectations.
That might be an outrageous thing to say about a head coach who has never lost more than two games in a season and is 66-10 overall, but that is not what Ohio State is looking for.
Ohio State is looking for national dominance.
It is looking for rivalry dominance over Michigan.
It spent more than $20 million in NIL money this season to try and get both of those things.
Day has already failed to deliver on one of them (again).
If he fails with the other, there might not be much appetite to keep trying with him.
Given the recruiting base and talent that Ohio State has every year, it will not be difficult to find a coach that can keep beating Purdue, Illinois, Minnesota and the rest of the Big 10.
It needs — and demands — somebody who is going to beat Michigan and bring championships. Day has not really done either. He might be running out of opportunities.
