Quick hitters from Ryan Day's Week 2 press conference

COLUMBUS — Ohio State head coach Ryan Day met with the media Tuesday afternoon in the Woody Hayes Athletic Center to recap the Buckeyes’ season-opening, 23-3 win at Indiana and preview their upcoming home opener against Youngstown State.

Lettermen Row has a rundown of what Day said.

What Ryan Day said Tuesday…

• Day said that Ohio State got off schedule in the run game and can’t have that happen again. Only some of that can be attributed to former Ohio State senior advisor/analyst Matt Guerrieri being the play-caller for the Hoosiers. There were times where that “didn’t play into account at all,” Day said. The bottom line is Ohio State has to execute better.

• On having fewer possessions than normal — only 10 overall (vs. 15 against Indiana last year) — Day said that just means, with the new clock rule, Ohio State has to be more efficient. If you’re executing well and converting on third down, it’s not an issue, Day said. But you have to be more on top things now than you used to.

• When asked about Marvin Harrison Jr.’s lack of production, Day mentioned that Harrison was targeted eight times. But the Buckeyes will have to keep finding more ways to try to get him the ball, Day said. He noted that if Harrison’s touchdown had counted, things might look a bit different on the stat sheet. Day said that teams are going to continue to try to take Harrison out of the game.

• Day on the Ohio State offense in Week 1: “It was good enough to win in this game … but it won’t be good enough going forward to reach our goals.” Day said he thinks the Buckeyes learned some things on Saturday, especially when trying different personnel groupings. Ultimately, though, it comes down to execution.

• When asked about short-yardage third and fourth down situations, Day emphasized the importance of establishing the run. “We can’t be relying on the pass all the time,” Day said.

• When asked if his QB plan is the same as last week for this week’s home opener, Day said: “Yes, but trying to get Devin in more.” Day reiterated that he wanted Brown to play more at Indiana but had to go with his “gut” (i.e. sticking with Kyle McCord). Day still wants to learn more about both quarterbacks and wouldn’t give a definitive answer if the competition between the two of them is truly over.

• Day said knowing when to pivot from more conservative play calling to more aggressive play calling is part of the “art of coaching.” He said a lot of it has to do with trust, and the quarterback is a big part of that. Day said “if we can be on schedule with running the football … that makes a big difference as well. … The more our guys our work and the more we play, the more aggressive we’ll be.”

• Day described Chip Trayanum as a “big running back” versus a fullback. He talked about the versatility that Trayanum gives the Buckeyes, also as a receiver (Day noted Trayanum’s reception on 3rd-and-8 in the fourth quarter that set the stage for Ohio State’s final scoring drive).

• When asked about the next two weeks, Day said that the Youngstown State game is a good opportunity to improve. He also talked about how the matchup is cool with Jim Tressel having served as Ohio State’s head football coach and, more recently, as Youngstown State’s university president.

• The focus this week, when preparing to play Youngstown State, is on matching intensity and playing really hard, Day said. He credited Youngstown State for its effort against Kentucky last season, despite the lopsided score.

• Day, when asked about Ja’Had Carter — who didn’t play Saturday at Indiana but was in contention to start at free safety — said he expects Carter to get time versus Youngstown State. “He needs to have a good week of practice, but we hope to see him play this week,” Day said.

• Day was then asked about wide receiver Xavier Johnson, who got limited playing time at wide receiver versus the Hoosiers: “He didn’t get as much as we would have liked. That’s probably one of my biggest concerns about the number of possessions going down … we have a lot of guys who deserve to play. … Xavier deserves to play and he will.”

• Day said that Josh Proctor earned the start because of his consistency. He needs to keep doing that. Hartford and Carter will both be back there as well, and Ja’Had can also sub in for Lathan Ransom at strong safety. Day: “Josh has earned the right to be the starter.”

• Day said right tackle Josh Fryar was the only Buckeyes O-Lineman to grade out as a “champion” against Indiana. You saw flashes of Josh Simmons’ athleticism, but he wasn’t “consistent enough for what we need,” according to Day. Day said Carson Hinzman, making his first start at center, was “not bad” and “called a decent game” but still has room to grow.