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Scarlet Sunrise: Ryan Day, Kirby Smart share mutual respect on Selection Sunday

IMG_7408by:Andy Backstrom•12/05/22•

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No. 4 Ohio State will square off against No. 1 Georgia in the Peach Bowl on New Year's Eve. (Matt Parker/Lettermen Row)

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Ryan Day, Kirby Smart share mutual respect on Selection Sunday

Ohio State is headed to its fifth College Football Playoff, and the third of Ryan Day’s head coaching tenure. The four-team field was revealed Sunday morning: No. 1 Georgia, No. 2 Michigan, No. 3 TCU and No. 4 Ohio State.

The Buckeyes are making the trip to Atlanta for a date with the top-ranked and defending champion Bulldogs in the Peach Bowl on New Year’s Eve. Day and Georgia head coach Kirby Smart participated in a joint Selection Sunday press conference for the CFP semifinal matchup.

“Tremendous amount of respect for Kirby and his staff and team and what they’ve done here,” Day said. “Certainly winning last year and then going undefeated this season, playing at a high level.

“Congrats on winning the SEC Championship.”

Smart returned the praise shortly thereafter.

“A lot of respect for Ryan and Ohio State University,” he said. “What a tremendous job he has consistently done year in and year out with that program. Just a lot of respect for the way they play the game. We’ve watched them, studied them in years past, in offseasons spoken to their staff members. Just always knew that an opportunity to play them would probably come along but not knowing when it would happen, and it came to fruition this year.”

It’s been a while since Ohio State and Georgia have played. A long while, actually. The last time, and only time, the programs met was in 1993. The Bulldogs prevailed, 21-14, in a Citrus Bowl matchup.

Now, they find themselves facing off in the CFP. It’s a showdown that many predicted to occur in the National Championship before the season began. Ohio State’s second-ranked scoring offense will be up against Georgia’s second-ranked scoring defense. It’s good on good, Big Ten on SEC.

Even though Ohio State and Georgia haven’t played each other in about 30 years, the programs are quite familiar with each other. They overlap in recruiting battles annually. Additionally, they evaluate one another from a distance to see what each is doing differently on the field.

“I haven’t studied them this season,” Smart admitted. “In offseasons we try to go out and watch the best teams in the country and what they do and try to get better at it.”

Smart added: “In the past, we’ve seen they have elite players and tough, physical guys across the NFL — it’s littered with Ohio State players. That’s been in the past. I haven’t been able to look at Ohio State so far this year.”

Day chipped in: “Like Kirby said, we always look at Georgia and look at how they do things in the offseason, sometimes during the season. So to say that we’re knee deep in a game plan, I can’t tell you that. We watch them from afar, and they have very, very good players and a good scheme.”

CFP chair explains why Ohio State is No. 4

USC’s loss to Utah in the Pac-12 Championship opened the back door to the CFP for Ohio State. The Buckeyes’ 22-point loss to Michigan in their regular season finale is now the third-worst defeat by an eventual CFP team. Nevertheless, Ohio State is in as the No. 4 team.

CFP chair Boo Corrigan — also North Carolina State’s athletic director — joined ESPN’s CFP Selection Show Sunday morning to explain why the Buckeyes, not Alabama, grabbed the last spot as well as why TCU held at No. 3, despite its overtime loss to Kansas State in the Big 12 Championship.

“I think you look at the big wins as part of this,” Corrigan said, when asked about Ohio State edging No. 5 Alabama for the last spot in the four-team CFP field. “And the win that Ohio State has over Notre Dame, the win they have over Penn State. Compare that to Alabama with the wins over Texas, Mississippi State, some other close games.

“Keep in mind that the Michigan game did get away from [Ohio State], but it was a one-score game early in the fourth quarter. And, as we looked at the total body of work that we had, the committee was comfortable with Ohio State at No. 4 and Alabama at No. 5.”

As for TCU being above Ohio State in the seeding, Corrigan pointed to the Horned Frogs’ body of work being stronger than the Buckeyes’. TCU went through the Big 12 undefeated and is tied with Georgia for the most wins (eight) versus Football Power Index top-50 teams this season.

For the full story on Corrigan’s CFP selection explanation, go here.

CFP bid gives Buckeyes ‘shot of adrenaline,’ chance to play for title

The Lettermen Row crew followed the CFP rankings all season. That coverage culminated in a chaotic week that saw Ohio State drop from No. 2 to No. 5, only to then move up to the elusive No. 4 spot after USC, previously No. 4, fell to Utah in the Pac-12 title game.

Lettermen Row staffers Tim May, Spencer Holbrook and Andy Backstrom were back in the Woody Hayes Athletic Center to break it all down after Buckeyes head coach Ryan Day met with the media for his press conference to preview top-ranked Georgia.

It was a roller coaster week for Day, who experienced the lowest of lows following the Michigan loss and then renewed hope once USC went down Friday night before getting to temporarily exhale Sunday after learning of the program’s second chance at a national title. So what will the Buckeyes do with that chance? How is Day approaching the CFP this time around, and what did he learn from The Game?

The trio of Lettermen Row insiders recap Day’s comments and give their thoughts on Selection Sunday, as Ohio State is heading to Atlanta for New Year’s Eve.

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