Ryan Day reveals attributes, recruiting prowess he's looking for in Ohio State's next RB coach

Ohio State is in search of a new running backs coach after Tony Alford made the surprise decision to leave for rival Michigan earlier this month.

Buckeyes coach Ryan Day met with the media on Tuesday and discussed what he is looking for in a new running backs coach to replace Alford.

Ohio State has an incredibly talented roster and group of running backs, so it’s important to find the right guy who can help make the group even better.

“I think when you’re bringing anybody into the program, you’re trying to figure out what is their expertise. I shared this with the team, I think it’s important – we want to be the best team we can possibly be next year. We have a bunch of talent. But it’s not about individuals, it’s about the team,” Ryan Day said. “You need each other to reach a goal. That’s what’s special about football. So the running back coach has to be an expert at coaching the running backs.”

Ohio State returns star running back TreVeyon Henderson and added Ole Miss star Quinshon Judkins out of the transfer portal this offseason.

Day wants to bring someone in who will work well with the rest of the coaching staff and make his running backs better.

“You have to bring value every day. When you stand in front of a group of men, especially a group like we have in that room, your competency has to be at a high level. When you stand in front of anybody in this building, you’ve gotta know what you’re talking about. And it’s about building trust,” Day said. “And you do that through competency, through connection with somebody, and then your character and who you are as a person. And so when you have trust, you can really develop guys at a high level.”

Day is also looking for someone who can help bring talent into Ohio State. The new running backs coach doesn’t have to necessarily come from a Power 5 school where he has recruited against the best of the best. But he needs to be capable of winning those recruiting battles when given the opportunity.

“Now the recruiting part is very, very important. And that’s about building relationships and building trust through the recruiting process. Would we like somebody that has recruited at a high level already here? Yea, I think that would be ideal. But that doesn’t necessarily mean that that’s going to make the best coach for that position,” Day said. “I think about myself coming in here – I had never recruited at a place like Ohio State before. But it worked out for me. And I think some other guys have been in that same situation before.

“Brian Hartline had never recruited at this level before. He played at this level, but he didn’t recruit here. So while it’s good to have the experience, we want to make sure we get the right guy. We’re being very, very thorough in the interview process. We’re going to ask a lot of questions. We’re going to take as much time as we need and make sure we get the right guy.”