The pressure of “championship or bust” is nothing new at Ohio State, but heading into the 2024 season, the stakes were higher than ever. Coming off a bowl loss to Missouri and a hard-fought rivalry defeat to the ‘team-up-north’, the Buckeyes demanded their spark back, and the messiah didn’t disappoint. Ross Bjork’s arrival in 2024 and Ohio State winning the national championship may look like a coincidence, but it’s not. Bjork came on a whopping $2 million contract, and the President Walter Carter Jr., already declared Ross Bjork to be “highly intelligent and an effective leader….not to mention fierce competitor.”

That trust in Bjork’s leadership finally showed, with his NIL collective efforts that fueled Ohio State’s roster, along with a record-breaking academic performance. All he needed now was to give Ryan Day the much-needed confidence, and Bjork did that with his unconventional ‘free-spirited’ style. Björk sat on the former Penn State tight end Adam Breneman’s 12th September podcast episode and talked about his first interaction with Ryan.

“The first time I sat down with Coach Day, he asked me what’s your impression and I said Coach, you need to have some fun. And again, this was coming off, right? The program had just lost to Missouri, had lost to the team up north, the last game of the year. It’s only a four-team playoff. Season’s done, right? So it was tough. And I said, How do we have some fun? It’s Ohio State football. Let’s have some fun. Knowing the expectations are there,” said Bjork. Ross Bjork’s vision only deepened his trust in Ryan Day, and it became even more intense after seeing his plan. And the AD then did more than instill confidence in Ryan Day.

Bjork played a central role in launching the “Buckeye Sports Group” last year as he shut down past collectives to comply with the House v NCAA rules. The collective then aims to play a crucial role in paying the “athletes’ maximum allowed NCAA settlement” that would help the program in the long term, according to the AD. On the academic front, Bjork led OSU athletes to a 3.4 cumulative GPA across fall and spring semesters, which was the highest in OSU history. And for Ryan Day, all of these initiatives helped as the head coach continued to gain Bjork’s trust.

“Getting to know him (Ryan Day) personally, knowing what his plan was going into the spring of 2024, the fall of 2024, what the roster plan was. Very intentional, very methodical. Everything he does is with a purpose. I saw the first couple of spring practices that I saw, and I see parents at the practice. I see this culture of positivity. I see how much the players really respect him and the command that he has in the locker room. There’s genuine love there,” said Bjork. And for Ryan Day, the job doesn’t end with the 2024 natty.

It’s not that Ohio State didn’t have low points in the 2024 season, since the team lost against their arch-rival again, along with a loss against Oregon. But the culture that Ryan Day had built played a crucial role in rising from the setbacks and winning against top teams like Tennessee, Oregon, Texas, and Notre Dame in the playoffs. ” I think the fact that we did lose two games in the 24 season and still won the national championship, to me, only happens if you have a strong culture,” emphasized Ross Bjork.

As for the sentiment toward Ryan Day, it has changed for good, as CBS Sports noted, ” (Ryan Day) restored Ohio State’s place atop college football.” And maybe it wasn’t all possible without Ross Bjork giving Day the much-needed confidence and the mutual trust. However, now, the duo “laugh about” the whole first interaction, as Bjork told. The defending champion’s HC is committed to building sustained excellence through his distinctive approach.

Ohio State under Ryan Day is on track to be a blueblood dynasty

Ryan Day started his 2025 season with a statement, a 14-7 shutout victory over natty favorites Texas, as Ryan Day’s newly hired DC, Matt Patricia, showed his defensive masterclass. It was a statement also because many had expected OSU’s defense to regress after the departure of the previous DC, Jim Knowles. The win thus showed that what Ryan Day has built has more to do with the system he is implementing than an individual’s brilliance. And that’s exactly what makes blueblood programs into dynasties, like we saw with Nick Saban and Alabama. That said, Ryan Day has a very different approach to it.

“I’ve just seen this unbelievable leadership platform, the culture, the love, the respect. We have a player-parent forum and a parent association. I’ve never seen that. I’ve never heard of that. So, the players and the parents really, I think, have a kind of ownership in the program. And I think that’s a powerful tool. And then the football strategy, as good as it gets, has great assistant coaches, hired a great defensive coordinator, and promoted Brian Hartline as the offensive coordinator. So, he’s always making sure the staff is keyed up, is always at the highest level,” declared Ross Bjork.

Ohio State this year has everything from Julian Sayin’s finding his rhythm against Grambling (100% passing efficiency) to Jeremiah Smith and Carnell Tate bolstering their NFL prospects. Add that to a world-class defense led by Matt Patricia, Ryan Day sure has a realistic chance to win the natty again. However, Day would still have to pass the ‘team up north’ challenge on 29th November. The 2024 natty win has changed Ryan Day’s perception for good, and considering OSU’s roster quality and Michigan’s woes against Oklahoma, Ryan Day won’t have a hard time defeating Michigan.