Miami’s defensive preparation for the Cotton Bowl now comes with an added challenge. With offensive coordinator Brian Hartline stepping into his new role as head coach at USF, Ryan Day will reclaim offensive play-calling duties for the College Football Playoff. Rather than weakening Ohio State, the move has raised concern about what a more hands-on Day could mean for the Buckeyes’ attack. According to former NFL linebacker David Pollack, that shift is something Miami should be wary of.

“Hartline is a really good football coach,” Pollack said on the 23rd November episode of his show See Ball Get Ball. “He’s a good coordinator. Ryan Day is a smart man because Hartline is distracted, whether you like it or not—it’s part of the job. He’s taking another job, building another culture, and working the transfer portal.

“One thing I’ve always appreciated about Ryan Day’s play calling is how well he challenges safeties. It’s never just dink-and-dunk football. He stretches the field horizontally and vertically, taking shots and forcing defenses to stay disciplined. He knows how to keep defenses distracted, giving them something to look at one way before attacking another area. That ability to stretch safeties and push the ball vertically is real. I do think Ryan Day calling plays is something to bring up, and I actually think it’s a good thing for Ohio State.”

Pollack’s reasoning isn’t without merit. Day previously called offensive plays during his first five seasons as Ohio State’s head coach before delegating those duties to Chip Kelly in 2024. When Kelly left for the NFL, the responsibility shifted to Hartline for the 2025 season.

Now, with Hartline’s focus redirected toward building a new program in Tampa, the play-calling wheel returns to Day, which restores a structure Ohio State has relied on before. But even when he wasn’t the one making the call, Day emphasized that his voice never left the process.

“There’s not a game that’s gone by where I’m not involved or listening to every call,” Day said. “I’m making sure it’s what we’ve agreed upon going in. So it’s similar to the way it was before.”

That structure remains intact. Day stressed that Ohio State’s game planning continues to be collaborative, with co-offensive coordinator and tight ends coach Keenan Bailey, running backs coach Carlos Locklyn, quarterbacks coach Billy Fessler, and offensive line coach Tyler Bowen all contributing to the process.

Hartline, meanwhile, begins his first head coaching role at USF, a move that transpired through this season’s coaching carousel. He replaces Alex Golesh, who departed for Auburn following a 9-4 season. USF viewed Hartline as the ideal candidate to build on that success. Day had already outlined how responsibilities would have been shared if Hartline had remained fully available, but the reality of him juggling two major roles made that scenario unlikely.

“Right now, as we move forward, he’s coaching the receivers,” Day said. “It’s a lot on his plate. It’s a lot to manage. We’re taking it day-to-day. Going into the game, it’ll be a group effort. Everybody will be involved in the play calling. Ultimately, it’ll be my decision.”

The difference now is where final authority resides, and that authority belongs to the head coach once again.

Can Ryan Day become a back-to-back CFP champion?

Ryan Day was on the verge of winning it all until his side faced Indiana in the Big Ten Championship. The 13-10 loss gave the Buckeyes a triple loss: losing the B1G title, their unbeaten streak, and the higher playoff seeding spot, all to the Hoosiers. That must’ve put a bad taste in Day’s mouth. However, he still has something to fight for.

And that is the opportunity to become back-to-back CFP supports, which is still a strong possibility for the Buckeyes. They already skipped a round due to the seeding and now face Miami in the quarterfinals.

Ohio State enters the matchup as the No. 2 seed with a 12-1 record, still reeling from a 13-10 loss to Indiana in the Big Ten Championship that cost the Buckeyes a conference title, an unbeaten season, and a higher playoff seed. The Hurricanes, seeded 10th at 11-2, earned their place with a 10-3 win over Texas A&M. On paper, the Buckeyes are favored by 9.5 points.

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Winning the CFP again would erase the blemishes left by Indiana, as Ohio State would become the first team to repeat as champions since Georgia in 2021 and 2022.