Ryan Day talks defensive improvement, guarding against complacency with 'dangerous' Maryland team on horizon

Ohio State is night and day better than it was a season ago. Last year, the Buckeyes finished 13-1. They won the Big Ten.

Not too shabby, right? However, the team is much better this year. We’re seeing it. Tuesday night, the College Football Playoff committee will likely say as much.

RELATED: Ryan Day on first CFP rankings: ‘It’s for the fans’

Ohio State has been dominating not just because of its improvement of the balance on offense, but the defense as well. Chase Young gets all the publicity, but it’s more than Young. The entire defense has been elite this year compared to where it was a year ago.

Ryan Day talked about that and trying to overcome the potential of being complacent against a struggling Maryland team this Saturday:

OSU coach Ryan Day on defensive turnaround: "These guys are all a year older. The scheme has changed. There's a lot that goes into it. This team's hungry and they all enjoy playing with each other."

— Nathan Baird (@nwbaird) November 5, 2019

Day said Maryland is dangerous because they have playmakers on offense. (That's true, but Terps are really hurting in the trenches.)

— Bill Rabinowitz (@brdispatch) November 5, 2019

Day on guarding against overconfidence vs. Maryland: "You're dealing with 18, 19, 20-year old young men. You have to make sure you're on top of them."

— Bill Rabinowitz (@brdispatch) November 5, 2019

Here’s Day also talking about the CFB Playoff, as the first set of rankings are set to release Tuesday night:

More from OSU coach Ryan Day on the CFP rankings: "In the team meeting I said, 'Congratulations, you're relevant in November.' There's something to be said for that."

— Nathan Baird (@nwbaird) November 5, 2019

Ohio State-Maryland is scheduled for a noon ET kickoff Saturday at home. The game will be televised on FOX.