Ryan Day previews rematch with Wisconsin in B1G Championship Game

The final piece in a flawless regular season, the No. 1 Ohio State Buckeyes routed their rival No. 14 Michigan Wolverines, 56-27, on November 30 in Ann Arbor.

Having clinched the B1G East title prior to “The Game” by virtue of their victory over No. 10 Penn State on November 23, Ohio State has now beaten Michigan in 15 of the last 16 meetings. The Wolverines’ lone win in this span (2011) came over a Luke Fickell-led Buckeyes team which stumbled to a 6-7 finish.

Looking for their third consecutive conference championship, Ohio State battles No. 8 Wisconsin in the B1G Championship Game at 8:00PM ET on Saturday on FOX. Taking place at Lucas Oil Stadium – home of the NFL’s Indianapolis Colts – Saturday’s action will be a rematch between these two programs.

Riding junior tailback J.K. Dobbins to the tune of 163 yards and two scores on the ground, the Buckeyes easily dispatched the Badgers, 38-7, on October 26 in Columbus.

Despite the lopsided margin the first time around, Ohio State head coach Ryan Day spoke very highly of Wisconsin during his weekly radio show on 97.1 The Fan (Columbus, Ohio).

Bill Rabinowitz of The Columbus Dispatch shared his comments on Twitter:

Day on the 38-7 score last time vs. Wisconsin: "I don't think that score represented what that game was and I think our players would say the same thing. .. I would be disappointed if we're overconfident going into this game."

— Bill Rabinowitz (@brdispatch) December 5, 2019

Day on Wisconsin rematch: "I think they did a great job against us, especially in the first half. … Of all the teams we've played, they've done the best job of stopping us. "

— Bill Rabinowitz (@brdispatch) December 5, 2019

Knowing the Badgers have little to lose, Day is also stressing the importance of not overlooking your opponent to his team:

Day said he showed a video to the team on Sunday of a track race in which the front-runner eased up at the end and pointed to the crowd and got caught at the wire as a cautionary tale against complacency.

— Bill Rabinowitz (@brdispatch) December 5, 2019

Day said the team has to be emotionally and mentally tough as well as physically tough as the finish line approaches.

— Bill Rabinowitz (@brdispatch) December 5, 2019

Toughing out a knee injury after an incidental low-hit from Wolverines sophomore defensive end Aidan Hutchinson, sophomore quarterback Justin Fields completed 14-25 passes for 302 yards and four touchdowns in the victory. Led by freshman Garrett Wilson, four different players caught a touchdown pass.

Totaling 47 scores in his first year on-campus, Day has like what he has seen from his Georgia Bulldogs transfer:

Day on Justin Fields: "I've been very impressed with his toughness, his poise, his leadership." Said he's still learning as a first-year starter.

— Bill Rabinowitz (@brdispatch) December 5, 2019

Receiving his first head coaching experience during Urban Meyer’s three-game suspension to open the 2018 season, Day boasts an unblemished 15-0 record as Ohio State’s head coach.