Ryan Day: 'We've been preparing for this moment all year'

The wait for one of the most highly anticipated college football games of the season ends this weekend as Michigan and Ohio State square off yet again with some of the highest stakes in the rivalry’s history.

For the second consecutive season, both the Buckeyes and the Wolverines enter The Game as undefeated teams ranked within the top three of the College Football Playoff Rankings, with the winner advancing to the Big Ten Championship game with high chances of advancing to the College Football Playoffs.

The quarterback battle in this year’s edition is between Kyle McCord and JJ McCarthy, who were both in the same recruiting class and recruited by each school. Ohio State head coach Ryan Day was asked about that aspect of the matchup ahead of Saturday’s game, but instead decided to focus on the overall preparedness and anticipation from his team as a whole.

“Well I think there’s a lot going on here, and I think what we’ve done all season is in preparation for this game,” Day said. “The way that we’ve prepared, the way we’ve evaluated each game, the way we’ve talked about each game, our focus in the offseason, our focus on the preseason, and our focus during the season.”

When it comes to rivalries in college football, The Game is hard to top, which will be played for the 119th time on Saturday. The hatred between the two schools exists for the entire year, and is not just exclusive to the game this weekend. Which Day expressed by speaking more on how the Buckeyes have had the Wolverines on their minds through everything they’ve done this season leading up to game day.

“So like I told the guys on Sunday, we’ve been preparing for this moment all year and so now we need to just continue on the routines that we’ve been on and be the best team we’ve been all season. But at the same time focusing on those things, and it’ll be the same for Kyle,” Day said.

Day has just one win over Michigan during his tenure with the Buckeyes, but Wolverines head coach Jim Harbaugh will notably not be on the sidelines for Saturday’s game as he continues to serve a three-game suspension amid Michigan’s sign-stealing investigation.

Ohio State’s preparedness will be put to the test soon, as they face Michigan in Ann Arbor on Saturday at noon ET in a game airing on FOX.