COMMENTARY: Buckeyes ranked No. 2, but can Day beat the elite?

Ohio State was ranked No. 2 in Monday’s preseason college football coaches poll.

Expectations of a national championship are brimming in central Ohio, but aren’t they almost every year?

Coach Ryan Day deserves credit for keeping Urban Meyer’s recruiting infrastructure in place that is the foundation for a tremendous record.

Make no mistake, Day is a terrific coach when he has an overwhelming talent advantage, which he does 11 or 12 times every year. That’s how you fashion a 56-8 record in five years, including a 39-3 mark in the Big Ten.

Alas, it’s those other 1 or 2 games every year that Day was hired to win, and proven overwhelmingly that he can’t win in a five-year sample size, that are problematic.

Day has drawn the ire of everyone from Lou Holtz to Paul Finebaum, not to mention a loud segment of the Ohio State fanbase, for his finesse teams that flinch against powerhouse foes particularly late in the year.

Those critics have ample ammunition. Day’s record against the best is simply disastrous.

Day is 1-6 vs. BCS Top 5 teams, 1-4 as an underdog, 1-3 vs. Michigan, 1-3 in the College Football Playoffs and 0-3 vs. the SEC.

Keep in mind, the BCS rankings are the most legitimate ratings as they take place later in the year and are reflective of in-season success.

The one game Day’s Buckeyes have won against a top BCS team was a 49-28 beating of No. 2 Clemson on Jan. 1, 2021. That’s it.

You know what? The critics have a fair point, because that’s not good enough in Columbus.

With a tradition few can match, and resources beyond nearly everyone in college football, that kind of record against top-flight opponents is inexcusable at a place like Ohio State. It’s better suited to floating down the Olentangy.

It wasn’t just that Urban Meyer was 83-9 in seven years, or that he handed Day a 13-1 Big Ten title team that buried favored Michigan 63-39 in the former’s final game at Ohio Stadium, then went on to win a Big Ten title and the Rose Bowl and slotting at No. 3 in the 2018 final rankings.

It’s that Meyer’s teams consistently handled their business against the elite. Meyer was 7-0 vs. Michigan, 7-0 as an underdog, 5-2 vs. top 5 teams, 2-1 in the playoffs.

Obviously Day isn’t in Meyer’s league, but who is? Still, Day must be better than one signature win in five years, and that’s exactly what his record is today.

Former Michigan coach Jim Harbaugh taunted Day that the Buckeye coach was born on third and believes he hit a triple. It’s hard to argue when Harbaugh consistently beat on Day head-to-head.

Harbaugh has moved on to the NFL, but Sherrone Moore already has as many wins against the Buckeyes as Day has against the Wolverines.

For those pondering who could Ohio State get that would be an improvement, there’s an incredibly simple response: How tough will it be for a college football coach at Ohio State to win twice against a Top 5 BCS team in five years?

That would be an improvement on Ryan Day’s mark to date.

So yes, the Buckeyes are extremely talented again this season. Obviously they are highly rated, and a favorite to reach the freshly expanded playoffs.

Day should get credit for that.

But unless the Buckeyes start closing their campaigns with wins against elite teams, it’s going to be another hard Day’s night in Columbus in 2024.

Ryan Day is 1-6 vs. BCS Top 5 teams

Dec. 28, 2019: National Semifinals No. 3 Clemson 29, No. 2 Ohio State 23

Jan. 1, 2021: National Semifinals No. 3 Ohio State 49, No. 2 Clemson 28

Jan. 11, 2021: National Championship Game No. 1 Alabama 52, No. 3 Ohio State 24

Nov. 27, 2021: No. 5 Michigan 42, No. 2 Ohio State 27

Nov. 26, 2022: No. 3 Michigan 45, No. 2 Ohio State 23

Dec. 31, 2022: National Semifinals No. 1 Georgia 42, No. 4 Ohio State 41

Nov. 25, 2023: No. 3 Michigan 30, No. 2 Ohio State 24