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Ryan Day talks staff changes, spring practice and more during National Signing Day presser
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Ohio State head coach Ryan Day had more than just recruits to talk about during his National Signing Day press conference.
Earlier this morning, he announced the promotion of both Parker Fleming and Matt Barnes to new positions on the coaching staff. Fleming is now the special teams coordinator while Barnes will be the secondary coach.
It also looks like they plan to start spring practice during mid-March and have the annual spring game in April.
During the presser, Day talked about incoming freshmen, Ohio State’s recruiting class, staff changes, schematic alterations, spring practice and plenty more. It was a pretty informative presser on National Signing Day.
Here’s the rest of what Day said during his presser:
Ryan Day on Parker Fleming: “He's really bright. He's very sharp. He'll step into our offensive meetings, he can go over to defense, and I think the guys on the team feel like he's a wealth of knowledge.
“I think he's done a good job of connecting with the players.”
— Dan Hope (@Dan_Hope) February 3, 2021
Day says not having fans in the Horseshoe probably impacted them on defense some at home, and also hampered the momentum they would have normally had with a second-half lead.
"It did have an effect on our players."
— BuckeyeScoop (@BuckeyeScoop) February 3, 2021
Day says there will still be a lot of other assistant coaches involved with the special teams.
— BuckeyeScoop (@BuckeyeScoop) February 3, 2021
Ryan Day was asked about the hiring of consultants. “I am taking a hard look at that, taking a look around to see if there is someone that is the right fit.” – #Buckeyes
— Kevin Noon (@Kevin_Noon) February 3, 2021
Day said the tentative plan is to start spring practice in the middle of March and have spring game on April 17.
— Bill Rabinowitz 🗞 (@brdispatch) February 3, 2021
Day says Kerry Coombs is the defensive coordinator and Matt Barnes is the secondary coach. This will allow Coombs to take a step back and a wider approach and bounce around a little bit more, which he thinks is really going to help this year.
— BuckeyeScoop (@BuckeyeScoop) February 3, 2021
Ryan Day said that while Ohio State hopes not to lose any players, he anticipates there will be some players who look to move on if the one-time transfer exception goes into effect later this year. So that's part of the roster management equation for the Buckeyes.
— Dan Hope (@Dan_Hope) February 3, 2021
“Promoting from within is something I believe strongly in.” – Ryan Day on the coaching moves. #Buckeyes
— Kevin Noon (@Kevin_Noon) February 3, 2021
He says they have good enough personnel, and there were moments when they did the wrong things schematically and could have done a better job coaching.
He says with a full spring, they can do a better job getting guys prepared for this fall.
— BuckeyeScoop (@BuckeyeScoop) February 3, 2021
Day said that none of the defensive coaches will have the co-coordinator title that Greg Mattison had.
— Bill Rabinowitz 🗞 (@brdispatch) February 3, 2021
Day says that with the way the spring and summer played out last year, they think they'll be able to do a much better job this season.
— BuckeyeScoop (@BuckeyeScoop) February 3, 2021
Day says all of the guys who have not declared for the NFL are planning to come back for another year.
— BuckeyeScoop (@BuckeyeScoop) February 3, 2021
Asked about the 15 early enrollees, Day says they had to quarantine for a week, but they're "really, really impressed with the quality of people in this class."
He says they're really tight together even though many hadn't met in person until they got to campus.
— BuckeyeScoop (@BuckeyeScoop) February 3, 2021
He says they already know each other really well from all the time they spent together on Zoom.
He says they haven't done a ton of working out because some of them are still in the quarantine phase, but they're really excited about this group.
— BuckeyeScoop (@BuckeyeScoop) February 3, 2021
Ryan Day said he was very impressed with how early enrollee wide receiver Marvin Harrison Jr. arrived at Ohio State. “He looked like a whole different person when he walked in the building.”
— Dan Hope (@Dan_Hope) February 3, 2021
Ryan Day on the new class of early enrollees: “These 15 guys have a chance to be special.”
— Dan Hope (@Dan_Hope) February 3, 2021
Day on the early-enrollees: "Really, really impressed with the quality of people in this class." Said they're already a tight unit even though they hadn't been around each other physically because of the pandemic. "The maturity of these guys is off the charts."
— Bill Rabinowitz 🗞 (@brdispatch) February 3, 2021
Ryan Day said he was “really impressed” with how defensive back Lathan Ransom stepped up late in his freshman year.
— Dan Hope (@Dan_Hope) February 3, 2021
Day says he feels better going into this season with the secondary than he did last year. They're going to be young, but the numbers are back where they want them to be.
Part of last season is that with the shortened schedule they didn't get to play as much depth.
— BuckeyeScoop (@BuckeyeScoop) February 3, 2021
Day says the young quarterbacks will end up being really good friends as they spend a lot more time together.
— BuckeyeScoop (@BuckeyeScoop) February 3, 2021
Day says they're looking for versatility and accountability at the running back position. You have to be able to hold onto the football or you can't play running back at Ohio State. And then can you run all the different plays, can you get extra yardage, and hit the home run?
— BuckeyeScoop (@BuckeyeScoop) February 3, 2021
Day says they can't go crazy with overhauling everything. They have to start with the guys they have and then figure out schemes to put them in a place to be successful.
— BuckeyeScoop (@BuckeyeScoop) February 3, 2021
Ryan Day: “We're planning on having a somewhat normal spring.” Ohio State is still under COVID-19 protocols, but in terms of timeline, Buckeyes will have about six weeks of winter workouts followed by a standard spring practice schedule.
— Dan Hope (@Dan_Hope) February 3, 2021