In the Ohio State Buckeyes’ game against the Michigan Wolverines, Ryan Day’s conservative decision to settle for a field goal at the end of the first half may have cost the team.
On Saturday afternoon, the Ohio State Buckeyes suffered a heartbreaking defeat to their bitter rivals, the Michigan Wolverines, losing their first game of the season and three in a row.
Head coach Ryan Day’s choice to end the half with a 52-yard field goal rather than running out the clock was one of the most contentious moments of that defeat.
Before calling a timeout and attempting the field goal—a kick that would ultimately go wide left—Day decided to waste nearly 40 seconds of game time, sending the Buckeyes into the locker room trailing 14–10.
After the game, Day defended his decision to the media by explaining it.
“Well, I felt like at 52 yards, it was worth a field goal there,” Day stated. “It was either fourth and three or fourth and two. You lose points if you are unable to get the fourth down. I thought the chance to kick the field goal there was worthwhile. I thought that was a wise decision.”
Fans and analysts, many of whom believed that day should have been more aggressive and gone for a touchdown while keeping the field goal in his pocket as a backup plan, were obviously not pleased with that decision.
And there is a point to be made, to be fair. In terms of game time, 40 seconds is a long time, and you have an opportunity to move your kicker closer for a last-ditch kick.
Day, though, has a different perspective.
“I thought that was the right thing to do to get some points at the end of the half, especially starting on the 2-yard line,” Day stated. It seemed like the right decision to me. You feel amazing if you succeed. You don’t if you don’t.
The Buckeyes lost the game 30–24 in the end, and they could have had a much better chance to tie it on their last drive if they had made the field goal.
