Eddie George showers Ryan Day with praise over bounce back from Michigan upset

Eddie George obviously wasn’t happy to see Ohio State lose to bitter rival Michigan for a fourth consecutive season.

But given how the Buckeyes bounced back from that regular season-ending setback in The Game, rolling through the first three rounds of the College Football Playoff in dominating fashion to make Monday’s CFP National Championship Game against Notre Dame, the Ohio State legend is proud of how his alma mater has responded.

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And the Tennessee State head coach is giving embattled Buckeyes head coach Ryan Day all the credit.

“They showed exactly who they were. When you get punched in the mouth like that and you lose a (rivalry) game – and people say, you should’ve beat Michigan … on paper, yes. But in that game, that rivalry, … it’s a war, and that’s a tough game to coach,” George said on Wednesday’s The Paul Finebaum Show on the SEC Network. “And for Ryan (Day), it comes along with the territory at Ohio State. Sorry, but not sorry, that’s how it’s is. But he’s a phenomenal coach, I think he’s done an outstanding job of getting these kids focused on the task at hand.”

Buckeye legend and now Tennessee State head coach @EddieGeorge2727 isn't happy his alma mater lost to Michigan, but he's happy with how they've responded with a run to the CFP title game pic.twitter.com/j9MmpwObeE

— Paul Finebaum (@finebaum) January 15, 2025

Eddie George: Ohio State’s Playoff response ‘more impressive than actually beating Michigan’

Since that 13-10 setback to Michigan on Nov. 30 in Columbus, Day’s fourth straight loss in The Game rivalry series, Ohio State has outscored its Playoff competition by a combined score of 111-52. That run began with a dominating 42-17 win over ninth-seeded Tennessee in a first round home game on Dec. 21. The Buckeyes then got sweet revenge against Big Ten champion Oregon, 41-21, in the Rose Bowl national quarterfinal on New Year’s Day, blowing out the undefeated Ducks after losing 32-31 in Eugene during the regular season. Nine days later, Ohio State scored 14 unanswered points in the fourth quarter to beat fifth-seeded Texas 28-14 in the Cotton Bowl national semifinal.

And it’s Day’s ability to rally the troops after such a setback that George believes has the Buckeyes on the verge of for what could be their first national championship-winning season in a decade.

“Because this thing could’ve gone off the rails, coming off a loss against that team up North, playing a hot Tennessee team at home. Had they not won that game, I’m pretty sure the talk would’ve been louder about making a (coaching) change,” George continued. “But for them to have gone on this run the way that they have, in dominating fashion. Took on Tennessee and it wasn’t close. Oregon in the Rose Bowl (against) the Big Ten champion, and it wasn’t close. Played Texas tough. They took away Jeremiah Smith and they had answers. The defense played great. (TreVeyon) Henderson stepped up. Will Howard stepped up. It was complimentary football, and they’re playing at a very high level.

“How you respond to adversity, to me, is probably more impressive than actually beating Michigan and going on this run. So now we’re finding out exactly who Ohio State is.”