Ryan Day isn’t taking anything for granted these days.

The Ohio State head coach has been in the crosshairs of criticism from the media and Buckeyes fans for the past few weeks after that unforgivable home loss to a 6-5 Michigan team.

So, even after Day’s team came out like a ball of fire in Saturday night’s first-round Playoff game against Tennessee, he knew there was still a long way to go as the teams went to halftime. The 21-0 lead that Ohio State ran up in the first quarter had been shaved to 21-10 at halftime, and Day was concerned.

“I thought early on, we got in a good rhythm throwing the ball. Defense got some good stops. They just kind of took it down the field right there, and they get the ball to start the 2nd half,” Day said. “We have to come out and get a stop, win the first 4 minutes.”

Tennessee quarterback Nico Iamaleava got loose a little too much on the ground for Day’s liking. The freshman had 13 carries for 36 yards in the opening half, and his 2-yard touchdown run with 20 seconds left in the half pulled the Volunteers within 11.

“Knock back the line of scrimmage,” said Day, regarding what his team needs to do in the second half. “They had a huge draw and then a couple of those stretch runs, so we’ve got to knock the line of scrimmage back and tackle better.”