Oftentimes, the greatest success story germinates from the seeds of hate. And with whom does this narrative align the most in college football? None other than the Ohio State Buckeyes head coach, Ryan Day. That man might have lifted the College Football National Championship trophy at the end of the season, but nobody talked about the mental toil he had to go through. Was it because of his team and players? Not at all. It was the Buckeyes’ fan base that went against Day. So much so that even the head coach’s family was not spared from the harsh attacks. Well, now that the heat has settled and the Natty win is still fresh, OSU is back at No. 1 for something way less brag-worthy.

The Buckeyes had a more or less smooth season in 2024. However, their loss in one particular game left the fans truly upset. That was against their archrivals, the Michigan Wolverines. That defeat really knocked Day off his pedestal and sent fans into a frenzy, with “FIRE RYAN DAY” slogans blowing up all over social media. And it didn’t stop with online slogans and hashtags. This time, even Day’s family faced the harsh reality of the “passionate” fandom. As Bruce Feldman of The Athletic and FOX Sports reported, “R.J., his son, told me school was really rough. He had grown men coming after him. They hired their own, you know, security firm.” They even had to hear fans spew nasty insults about their dad, their hero. Comments like “Ryan’s a loser. Ryan can’t win big games. Ryan was born on third base,” just kept flooding in.

That’s how the term “Lunatic fringe” came about, a label for the Ohio State fandom coined by their own renowned alumnus, Kirk Herbstreit. And he had good reason to call it that. Having played quarterback at Ohio State from 1989-1993, Herbstreit knows the history firsthand. He shared, “I lived it myself and when I was there. We never beat Michigan and John Cooper was criticized.”

Finally, someone addressed all this. Elite College Football posted on IG on May 2 with a caption that said it all: “We Ranked the Most Toxic Fanbases in College Football ☠️.” No prizes for guessing who landed the top spot.

“The Buckeyes win in blowout fashion 🌰.” They came with a list of 10 programs with their toxicity rating. The rankings went like this- Michigan [6.8], Florida State [6.9], Alabama [7.6], Texas Longhorns [7.8], Tennessee [8.2]. Then at No.5 is Miami [8.3], followed by Colorado [8.5], Georgia [8.8], Florida [8.9]. And DRUMROLLS! Ohio State is at No.1 with a toxicity rating of 10.0. Now you know what made Day’s wife, Nina, come with a heartfelt plea. 

After seeing her mobile phone flooded with death threats for Ryan Day, Nina took matters into her hands. In an interview, she shared, “We shielded [our kids] from a lot of it because I didn’t want to scare them. I didn’t want them to stay up at night thinking anything bad was going to happen…My kids need to hear positivity around their father, around the program.” But what about Day? That man turned all the hate into purpose.   

Ryan Day led with kindness in a cruel arena

Some fans even urged Day to “follow in his father’s footsteps” when the head coach was walking on thin ice. But what made them comment so? Only Day’s fans know how the head coach had a difficult childhood. Things had already been tough for Day while he was growing up. When he was only 8 years old, he lost his father, Raymond, who committed s- – – – – e. So, only Day knows what it takes to fight the mental battles.

Even though his life got 100x tougher, thanks to the trolls, he found a way to give back to society. The Buckeyes’ head coach wanted to help those who had entered the dark tunnel to get out of it. So, right after winning the Natty, Day took a mission. In February this year, a Reddit user shared The Silver Bulletin’s news. The caption read, “After signing his contract, Ryan Day made a $1M donation to mental health programs at The Ohio State University Medical Center. Day has been a champion for mental health awareness after losing his father many years ago.” 

This was not the first time that the Ohio State Buckeyes contributed to improving the mental health of the masses. Back in 2022, Ryan Day saved Ohio State offensive lineman Harry Miller’s life. As he shared, “Prior to the season last year, I told Coach Day of my intention to ki-l myself.” Later on, Day too praised Miller for facing the tough times and choosing to defeat them. “It’s about Harry, and this is about his journey. I just see the courage to go step out and do that because you’re very vulnerable when you do something like this.” So, when the toxic fan base revved up their hate, Day knew what to do. He buried them in kindness.