Ohio State head coach Ryan Day was able to silence all doubters with his team’s run to the national championship.
Day was the target of widespread criticism after Ohio State’s shocking 13-10 loss to Michigan in the regular season finale. In the days after the loss, the Buckeyes coach and his family received threatening messages, with things escalating to the point where they enlisted 24/7 security outside their house.
In a new interview with The Columbus Dispatch, Nina Day, Ryan’s wife, called the last few weeks a “roller coaster, to say the least” which fortunately ended on a high note with Ohio State’s 34-23 win over Notre Dame in the College Football Playoff National Championship last Monday.
Unfortunately, Nina Day said the vitriol the family experienced after the loss to Michigan reached shocking levels, with people sending unsolicited text messages directing her husband to take his own life like his father had when Ryan was a young boy.
Things got so bad, Nina considered moving the family of Columbus.
“We had to figure out how to survive in our reality,” she said. “We didn’t know what the next five weeks were going to bring. We hoped for the best. We believed in Ryan.”
Ultimately, the decision was made to stay put, with Nina Day saying her children received much-needed support from their friends and schools.
“The schools were excellent in terms of communication with me and making sure they had a plan in action,” she said. “The teachers and principals were very supportive.”
Nina clarified that “a lot of good, good people” are getting lumped in with the so-called “lunatic fringe” of the Ohio State fanbase, crediting the supportive Buckeyes fans for having “helped us get out of that dark place, out of that hole.”
Still, it’s obvious that the entire ordeal took a tremendous toll on the family. Thankfully, it ended on the highest note possible.
Following OSU’s win over Notre Dame in Atlanta last week, Ohio State AD Ross Bjork called out the fans who went after Day and his family on a personal level.
“There’s no way he should go through the stuff, especially his family. It’s one thing to criticize playcalling, but the personal stuff is uncalled for,” Bjork said, per Ross Dellenger of Yahoo Sports. “And what I hope that people really take away from this is we have the best coach in the country.”
Related: Ryan Day Reportedly Had ’24/7′ Security Outside House After Michigan Loss