It's officially week two for Ohio State as it looks to repeat success from week one, albeit against a massively different level of opponent as it travels to its first road contest of the season.
Ryan Day met with the media on Tuesday for his weekly game-week presser to preview the massive matchup. The Ohio State head coach discussed numerous topics ahead of the Buckeyes' showdown with Texas
on Saturday.Here's a look at some of the standout notes and quotes he had.
Big Games Like This Is Why Ohio State Is Ohio State
Whether it's the success in postseason play, games against Michigan, or the notable non-conference matchups that Ohio State has been a part of throughout the last few years, games like this are exactly why players want to come to Columbus. The Buckeyes are one of the most iconic programs
and brands in all of college sports, and matchups like Saturday will provide are exact moments of what makes college football special. This will be the second year in a row for the Buckeyes and Longhorns series, but will be the fourth time in the last five years that Ohio State played a signature non-conference matchup, the other being Notre Dame.
"We've played in probably -- this will be our fourth or fifth one that we've played like this -- it certainly gives you really good feedback where you are," Day said. "It's great for college football and this is going to be an unbelievable atmosphere down there with a great opponent. This is why you go to Ohio State, why you go to Texas, to play in games like this ... it'll give us a great data point of where we're at and early feedback on things. More importantly, the experience playing a game like this early in the season is one of the reason you recruit great players to come here -- for these types of games."
Legend Bey's Debut
It was a highly anticipated debut for Legend Bey on Saturday, and the Buckeyes' freshman didn't disappoint. He was used in the backfield and at wideout, something Day said going into the week would be a constant evolution throughout the season, and he finished with two receptions for 37 yards and a touchdown and six carries for 37 yards. There's no secret that Bey has the athleticism and big-play ability to be a factor -- now it's about ensuring the highs remain consistent, and the lows don't get too low. He's a freshman, so there will still be growing pains, but it's clearly evident that Ohio State, Ryan Day and Arthur Smith want to utilize the Swiss Army knife they have.
"I think you saw the talent and some of the youth," Day said. "But we are going to continue to build on that. He has the right attitude to come in here every day and get better ... he's transitioning from being a quarterback really to playing these other positions. We'll continue to bring him along as fast as we can because we all see what he can be."
Development Of Arch Manning
There's no hiding the fact that Arch Manning struggled last year and came into this season with some major question marks around his game. He seemed to answer a lot of those questions -- for now -- in the opener as he threw for 305 yards with four touchdowns and one interception. Last year, Manning struggled in what was really his first big-time game against the Buckeyes, going 17-of-30 for 170 yards and a touchdown and an interception. But Day clearly sees the versatility and athletic ability of Manning -- something Ohio State will be focused on come Saturday.
"He got better and better and better, and I thought he was playing some really good football at the end of the year ... did some things this past Saturday -- he can beat you with his legs, beat you downfield, make the throw he needs to," Day said. "He's really improved, and I give him a lot of credit for putting the work in ... he's going to be a great challenge to our defense."
Could We See Some Offensive Line Adjustments?
Neither Bo Jackson nor Ja’Kobi Jackson were successful on the ground in the first half of Ohio State's week one win -- with the team combining for just 35 yards on 17 carries in the first half. Coming into the season, the offensive line had questions, no doubt about it. It was also going to be the x-factor for this team. It did anything but provide confidence with the first-half performance. The second half was better, with the Buckeyes rushing for 202 yards after halftime and finishing with a 6.8-yard-per-carry average, but it didn't put down those concerns up front. There were two sacks and six tackles for loss given up, in addition to six more QB hurries and eight pressures. Day said his offensive line will be monitored throughout the week and a potential change could be made heading into Texas. Phillip Daniels, Austin Siereveld, Carson Hinzman, Luke Montgomery and Ian Moore were the starters last week.
"Some good, but some things we need to improve on," Day said. "Early on, we didn't run the ball the way we wanted to, then it opened up in the second half. We'll continue to evaluate that throughout the week to see if we have the right mix out there. The good news is we have flexibility if we need to. But we'll evaluate the week and see how that goes."
Depth Will Be Critical In The Eyes Of Day
Offensive, defensive or special teams -- depth is going to be a critical variable to the outcome of Saturday's showdown. Day stressed the importance of being able to match the depth of Texas, something he's not entirely sure is a known answer for his staff on the Buckeyes' side. Having one game under their belt is helpful, but with so many differences from Ball State to Texas -- including the obvious talent increase -- Day's priority is making sure they match some of the rotations and lineups that the Longhorns can put on the field.
"One of the things that we took away is we're going to have to play depth in this game," Day said. "They play depth; you see the amount of players they play. We're going to have to play depth, so it was good to have that(opening) game to get some information to say, okay, we feel good about how they played considering how they graded out"
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This article originally appeared on Buckeyes Wire: 5 takeaways from Ryan Day ahead of Ohio State showdown with Texas
