Let me put the result in plain text for you:
Let me tell you about my sister-in-law the proud Ohio State Buckeye. She grew up less than an hour away from campus. She graduated in 1998. Her three siblings attended Ohio State. Her parents too. And when it comes to Ohio State football, she is both fervent in support and gentle in judgment — you’re getting the benefit of the doubt if you coach or play for her team.
Ryan Day ended it. Until he revived it, with such force that Ohio State (13-2) is heavily favored to beat Notre Dame (14-1) in Monday’s CFP national championship game in Atlanta. Day is one win from joining Woody Hayes, Jim Tressel and Urban Meyer as Ohio State coaches with national titles to their names. He’d have the same number as Tressel and Meyer, and two fewer than Hayes. He’s on the verge of authoring, said longtime Buckeyes chronicler Doug Lesmerises, “the greatest month in Ohio State football history.”
The ones who supported Day through three straight losses to excellent Michigan teams, who rightfully pointed to his overall success and representation of the program, can’t be blamed for finally throwing up their hands after the fourth straight. There’s still no satisfactory explanation for a 13-10 home loss to the middling 2024 Wolverines on Nov. 30, arguably the most shocking outcome that rivalry has seen.
The ones who were out on Day before that, who seemed to have even the most patient of Buckeyes seeing things their way six weeks ago, can’t be blamed for believing in him like never before as of today. It’s a dizzying, fascinating study in the misery of being right and the joy of being wrong. And vice versa. And back and forth. Until Day either wins them over for good or sets a new standard for success while embattled.
What makes me mad is all this stuff out there acting like that’s not fair, said Lesmerises, who spent 18 seasons writing about Ohio State and now hosts the “Kings of the North” college football podcast. It’s a results-based business, so of course fans react to results. It was completely reasonable to say, “I don’t know if this is the right guy anymore,” (after the 2024 loss) and completely reasonable to think, “This guy is awesome,” now.
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