Quick hitters from Ryan Day's first 2024 training camp press conference

COLUMBUS — Ohio State head coach Ryan Day met with the media after the first practice of training camp Thursday. Lettermen Row has a rundown of what he said.

Let’s dive in.

What Day said Thursday…

+ Day talked about laying down “bricks” for the foundation of this 2024 team. This offseason was about putting the right people in the right seats. He’s confident in the foundation so far, but preseason is going to be critical. “This is what everything else is built on,” Day said. He emphasized that the Buckeyes have to “bring it” throughout August.

+ Day was asked if there’s a different sense of urgency for him this year, and he said, “no.” There’s always a sense of urgency for the Buckeyes but especially this year because of the guys who came back to leave Ohio State with some hardware, Day said.

+ Day said every team period of 12-15 minutes Thursday, they were getting 40 plays in. That’s what they get from the split-field work, which they’ll do the first four practices of training camp.

+ Day was asked about the quasi-NFL structure of the expanded College Football Playoff schedule and how his NFL experience — as well as that on his staff can help — and he said they’ll have to see. Ultimately, football is still football, but there will be some changes to their approach with a potentially longer season, Day said.

+ Day was asked about third-year offensive lineman Tegra Tshabola at right guard. Day said the first thing is, you have to show what you’re doing — you have to know your assignments, and Tshabola’s shown that. The second thing is, you have to show how to do it. And then you have to do it consistently over time. Tshabola has checked off those first two boxes, Day said. Whether he finds himself on the field is going to come down to consistency.

+ Day said third-year offensive lineman Carson Hinzman wasn’t practicing today because of an illness. The trainers decided to hold him today, and they’re expecting that he’ll be back out there Friday.

+ When asked about sophomore wide receiver Carnell Tate, Day said the “limit for Carnell is through the roof.” He’s not someone you typically hear, but you feel out there, Day said. Day emphasized how much precision Tate has with his route running. “He’s going to have to be a major contributor for our offense,” Day said.

+ Day said Ohio State is at the 85-scholarship limit after allocating the remaining scholarships. He didn’t specify who received those final scholarships, though.

+ Day said he’s hoping the starting quarterback competition is settled in the first week to 10 days, but it depends on how it shakes out. “You’d like to have that done in the first couple weeks,” Day said.

+ Day was asked more about the split-field strategy, and he said it’s a great way to get players moving around and a way to pile up more reps, in particular for the quarterbacks. He said the negative is you’re not always ones-on-ones, but they have 21 other training camp practices to do that.

+ Day said, looking back, they haven’t always had five scholarship running backs. So he’s not overly concerned about the depth at the position, but it’s going to be on the true freshmen (James Peoples and Sam Williams-Dixon) to step up. He said they have six total guys in the room, and the goal is to be at least “four deep.” He said it wasn’t ideal with walk-on TC Caffey going down earlier this summer — he was going over a bag and tore his ACL. That happened so late in the offseason that they couldn’t replace him. But Day has confidence in running backs coach Carlos Locklyn.

+ Day said the humility of Jeremiah Smith is “special.” “We’re all excited about it,” said Day, in reference to the bright future of the first-year wideout.

+ Day was asked about the medical retirement of linebacker Kourt Williams. Day said Williams was unfortunately decimated with injuries. It was hard for him to step away from the game, but he still had a great leadership role with the Buckeyes, and he recently gained internship experience with the NFL League Office in New York.

+ Day said Ohio State is going to need returning starting left tackle Josh Simmons to play great this season if the team’s going to accomplish its goals. Day said Simmons has come a long way compared to where he was at a year ago, in terms of understanding scheme, technique, etc.

+ Day said “praise and criticism” are the same thing — it’s really just someone’s opinion. “When you press play, what are you putting on film?” Day said. It comes down to, “What do you want to be?” Day said he wants the Buckeyes’ identity to be that of “the hardest playing team.”

+ Day said being tough is being able to sustain and wear someone down. He said you talk about effort, attitude and focus — it’s all the things that take no talent that come with toughness. Then, of course, the skill element is factored in.

+ Day was asked about his evaluation of the quarterbacks. He said he thought they looked more fit, moved better, and the ball came out with more pace. “Our guys have to learn how to say it in the huddle,” Day said, noting the difference with communication now that they have helmet technology rather than the signaling they used to use.

+ Day was asked about second-year defensive back Jermaine Mathews Jr. lining up at “nickel” Thursday, after Mathews spent most of his snaps last year at outside corner. Day said Mathews has a lot of twitch. The key for him right now is discipline, Day said. But the talent is clear.

+ Day was asked about what’s driving Tshabola. Day talked about how Tshabola wants to be here, and it’s going to pay off if he finds a way to attain consistency. He has an opportunity to play a big role in the offense this season.

+ Day said there was more zip on the ball and more accuracy for Will Howard today versus when he first arrived. Day also noted more “discernment” from Howard.