Ohio State and Northwestern meet on Saturday afternoon in the Big Ten Championship Game. But it wasn’t until mid-September that both teams, the players and coaches knew for sure that they would play this year and the season didn’t start until the end of October.
While all the Big Ten coaches wanted to take the field if it was safe to do so, Ryan Day and the Buckeyes were at the forefront of kickback against the Big Ten, encouraging the conference to play. Earlier this week, head coach Northwestern Pat Fitzgerald Day gave high credit for allowing the Scarlet and Gray, the Wildcats and the rest of the Big Ten to play in 2020.
“Starting in the off season, we naturally had a lot on our plate as head coaches and his leadership in the off season and his dedication to working his tail off to get this season going, ”Fitzgerald said of Day. “I’ve always respected Ryan incredibly well at the highest level and it was great to see what he was doing all summer.”
Fitzgerald said Day received his vote for Big Ten Coach of the Year, an award day shared with Minnesota PJ Fleck last year the first Buckeye to win Coach of the Year in 40 years.
But Fitzgerald didn’t just vote for Day, as he helped get the season back on track. The conference’s second longest permanent head coach has been watching the Buckeyes all season, not just this week, and is impressed that the sophomore head coach is bringing the Scarlet and Gray back to the Big One for the fourth year. Ten Championship Game. in line.
“They played clean on all three stages,” said Fitzgerald of Ohio State. “They haven’t really made many mistakes. Maybe they’ve had a few trick plays they’ve delivered or a gadget. But they’ve just been so healthy in everything they’ve done fundamentally, everything they do to schematically attack you, and then their talent in every position speaks for itself. So it will be a huge challenge for us on Saturday, but I look forward to the opportunity. “
While the Buckeyes and Wildcats have only played four times since 2008, the two teams have met in the past two years, both of which covered Day. In the 2018 Big Ten Championship Game, Day led the offensive coordinator and quarterbacks coach Urban Meyer‘s team that won 45-24. Last year, when Day took over as head coach for Meyer, the Scarlet and Gray traveled to Evanston and came home with a 52-3 victory.
In both games, Ohio State has had its way with a Northwestern defense expected to be the strength of its team every year. In 2018, the Buckeyes managed a total of 607 yards with quarterback Dwayne Haskins threw for 499. Last year, the Scarlet and Gray were able to take their foot off the gas with a comfortable lead in the third quarter, but still managed 480 total yards with Justin Fields throw for 201 before taking a seat on the couch.
What day and offensive coordinator Kevin Wilson doing well against Northwestern is finding favorable situations in which the state of Ohio can benefit. That could be a scheme they see working against the Wildcats’ defense or a player-on-player matchup they identify either pregame or once the match starts.
Two years ago, it was the Buckeye slot receivers from Johnnie Dixon and Parris Campbell, with a combined 14 catches for 218 yards and a touchdown, which shone against Northwestern in the game of the conference title. In last year’s route, the Scarlet and Gray rushed 279 meters with three running ridges over the 50-meter mark.
“I think there is nothing more valuable than experience,” Fitzgerald said of these last two meetings. “I think that group has been really consistent throughout the year and now we are taking on our toughest challenge. We thought we were going to be in for a huge challenge when we played Purdue and that’s nothing compared to Saturday’s challenge.
“We were certainly not very close last year. They probably had a better game against the two of them than we played. We’re just going to erase that from the memory bank. “
This season, Northwestern once again has a talented defense competing in the Big Ten Championship Game. The Wildcats have the country’s No. 2 score defense, allowing for just 14.6 points per game and No. 13 total defense, at just 313.9 yards per game.
Names like Paddy Fisher, Blake Gallagher, Chris Bergin and others have been in the games against the Buckeyes and gained that experience that Fitzgerald mentioned. Knowing what’s to come and stopping Day’s transgression are, of course, two different things.
On Saturday, Northwestern will face another prolific offense from Ohio State, top 10 in yards per game and top five in points per game. The Buckeyes’ worst offensive output this year was 498 yards, which came in the first game of the season.
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Fitzgerald is not surprised by these offensive numbers, and also believes the Scarlet and Gray have a talented defense that may be underrated in the Big Ten Championship Game. He’s seen the work Day has done with this team and the way he leads a group, like he did Big Ten coaching this off-season.
To win in this match against the eternal forces of the conference would mean a lot to Northwestern. It would also be a big deal for Fitzgerald against a coach and an opponent he highly respects.
‘They deserve it. You can’t take anything away from what they did on the field, ”Fitzgerald said of Ohio.
“Obviously (a win) would mean we would become Big Ten champions. And that’s the goal of 14 institutions a year and two of us will have the chance to compete for it. So that would be something that clearly didn’t happen during my time. So personally I would be very proud of the way our boys played and the way our coaches coached and enjoyed the coming Saturday night. I’m not gonna lie to you, it would be a great ride home on I-65. “