January 20 of 2025 will be a day marked forever in the Ohio State Buckeyes history. The school crowned itself national champion for the ninth time in program history, after a highly-contested clash with the Notre Dame Fighting Irish. Following the win, head coach Ryan Day made a sincere statement to Will Howard and the rest of the team about the future.
Day has been thoroughly criticized, scrutinized, overstated, and taken for granted. Yet, on January 20, he was anointed and elevated into the exclusive ranks of national champion head coaches. Deservedly so, Day etched his name into the annals of Ohio State history.
The Buckeyes faced significant adversity throughout the NCAA season. Despite an impressive 10-2 record, much was said about Day’s program lacking character in crucial games—a narrative that was decisively put to rest during the playoffs.
Ohio State won the first-ever 4-team College Football Playoff bracket in 2014. Ten years later, with the postseason expanded to 12 teams, the Buckeyes once again demonstrated their prestige and emerged as the top program in the nation.
Head coach Ryan Day of the Ohio State Buckeyes leaves the field after beating the Notre Dame Fighting Irish 34-23 in the 2025 CFP National Championship at the Mercedes-Benz Stadium on January 20, 2025 in Atlanta, Georgia.
After an incredible and hard-fought matchup between the last two schools standing, the Buckeyes, fueled by a clinical performance from Will Howard, emerged as champions. An emotional Ryan Day delivered a powerful and heartfelt message to his players postgame.
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” This is the tightest group of guys that I’ve ever been around before, and to think that we’re not going to be together again is not something that I’m looking forward to,“Ryan Day admitted, via On3. “All we do is spend time together. It’s like being around a family. You know, I’m going to miss these guys. They’re great people.”
Weather the storm, unleash the celebration
The journey wasn’t always smooth—rain poured down on the Buckeyes in Columbus on many occasions, but that’s often the case for successful teams. After an embarrassing home loss to the Michigan Wolverines, marked by a chaotic and incident-filled ending, Ohio State came together and decided to grab the bull by the horns.
Will Howard #18 of the Ohio State Buckeyes holds the Leishman Trophy after defeating the Oregon Ducks 41-21 in the Rose Bowl Game Presented by Prudential at Rose Bowl Stadium on January 01, 2025 in Pasadena, California.
“We stuck together, we hung in there like a family does when things get hard,” Day stated. “It’s the reason why you get into coaching: see guys overcome things, learn life lessons, and reach their dreams. That’s what happened tonight.”
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Will Howard’s message
Will Howard fully embraced the Buckeyes’ identity after transferring from the Kansas State Wildcats during the offseason. Moreover, the group Ryan Day assembled welcomed him in, making him look like he had been in Columbus since preschool.
“I don’t have words they changed my life in more ways that I can say,” Howard admitted after the game, via ESPN. “Coach Day and these guys here completely changed my life. I can’t believe God gave me the chance to be a Buckeye, there’s nothing like.”
Will Howard #18 of the Ohio State Buckeyes celebrates after beating the Notre Dame Fighting Irish 34-23 in the 2025 CFP National Championship at the Mercedes-Benz Stadium on January 20, 2025 in Atlanta, Georgia.
Howard also addressed how the team turned things around after what seemed like a devastating loss to Michigan, one that threatened to tarnish their entire season.
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“It made us come together, and it really challenged us, man,” Howard stated postgame. “We were in a rough spot and I just gotta give all the credit to the guys in that locker room for coming together, and not letting that separate us, but letting it make us come closer. I really don’t think we’d be here if it wasn’t for some of the adversity that we faced this year, and it makes it that much sweeter.”
