The born on third base criticism of Ryan Day never made much sense.
That’s the funny thing about insults. They don’t necessarily need the benefit of truth to stick. They’ve just got to have the right degree of punchiness, and Jim Harbaugh’s years-ago barb directed at Day had that in spades.
Now comes Day’s chance to quiet even his harshest critics. If Ohio State wins a national championship with a 5-11 freshman thrust into starting quarterback duties, it’ll rank as Day’s finest hour.
Forget about "standing on third base" acting like "he hit a triple,” as Harbaugh once said of Day. An Ohio State national championship, with Luke Fahey taking snaps, would be
a bat-flipping grand slam.
A career-defining moment, too, for Day.
He’s just the type of coach, and Ohio State is just the type of program, that could pull it off.
Ryan Day can prove he's just the coach Ohio State needs
I’d want Day as my guy making critical in-game strategy decisions about like I’d want a butcher cutting my hair. Wouldn’t be my first choice.
A game-day savant, Day is not, but he’s a proven culture builder and an ace quarterback developer.
J.T. Barrett. Dwayne Haskins. Justin Fields. C.J. Stroud.
Day helped polish each of those quarterbacks.
Fahey’s recruiting profile lagged behind each of those blue-chippers. Consider this the greatest quarterback development challenge of Day’s career, and there’s no time to spare.
Fahey passed five-star Tavien St. Clair on the depth chart and positioned himself for the assignment when Julian Sayin injured his throwing arm two weeks ago against Indiana. Sayin is out indefinitely.
Day hasn’t named his starter for No. 2 Ohio State’s game against No. 25 Southern Cal, but it seems telling Fahey got the pinch-hit assignment against Indiana.
Day must swiftly assess and adjust to what his new starter can do, just as Urban Meyer did in 2014 when Braxton Miller and then Barrett suffered injuries. Ohio State won the national title with Cardale Jones, a third-stringer turned starter.
Jones was built about like a tight end. Fahey looks more like a slot receiver. Both were three-star recruits.
Can Ryan Day deliver an Urban Meyer moment?
Ask me, and I say the ‘08 Tebow Gators rank as Meyer’s best team, the one that’ll be remembered 30 years from now. That team starred Tim Tebow at quarterback, with Percy Harvin, Jeff Demps and Chris Rainey dicing up defenses.
But, I rate Meyer’s coaching performance as more impressive in his two other national championship seasons. His 2006 Gators used Tebow off the bench in special packages, but that team started Chris Leak, a good but not elite quarterback.
Then, in 2014, Meyer’s Buckeyes overcame the Miller and Barrett injuries. That Ohio State championship in the face of adversity probably ensured Jones would never have to pick up a tab in C-Bus, and it cemented Meyer’s legend status.
What happens the rest of this season has the power to reshape how we think of Day.
Luke Fahey, the moment is yours
Day toned down some of the negativity surrounding his tenure when his Buckeyes rallied to a national championship two years ago. But, for some Buckeyes fans, that championship carries an asterisk, because Ohio State lost to Michigan, one of two losses that season.
Michigan’s offense is so bad this year, Day couldn’t excuse a loss in The Game next month, no matter who’s quarterbacking the Buckeyes. He’s armed with enough talent that we can fairly expect Ohio State to make the playoff without Sayin.
Day nearly said as much this week.
“When you have a veteran offensive line, when you have some veteran receivers around them, some running backs who are (proven), hopefully they're the ones that can compensate a little bit and adjust,” Day said, “so that we can do what's best for the quarterback.”
If any team is equipped to win in the absence of its starting quarterback, it’s Ohio State. This roster that oozes blue-chippers, and don’t discount the coach.
Harbaugh’s “third base” barb disrespected Day’s climb. In an industry full of nepo babies — Harbaugh himself is the son of a football coach — Day made his own name. He played collegiately at FCS New Hampshire. There, he bonded with his offensive coordinator, Chip Kelly, who became an instrumental mentor.
At most, Day benefited from being in the right place at the right time when Meyer’s missteps napalmed his tenure. Day became the obvious heir.
Think what you will of Day’s clock-management skills, but I wouldn’t describe him as someone born on third base.
As long as we’re slinging barbs, Harbaugh is the one whose lone national championship is forever tainted by a sign-stealing analyst in a cheap disguise.
There’s no disguising the challenge Day faces without Sayin, and still Ohio State retains the second-shortest odds to win the national championship.
Win big now, and maybe Day can put those silly "born on third base" narratives to bed once and for all.
Blake Toppmeyer is the USA TODAY Network's senior national college football columnist. Listen to his podcast, "College Football Unfiltered." Email him at BToppmeyer@gannett.com and follow him on X @btoppmeyer.
This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Ryan Day has heard ‘third base’ jokes long enough. Here’s how he ends them
