Postgame Quotes vs. Akron
8/31/2024 8:11:00 PM | Football
Aug. 31, 2024 - Ohio Stadium; Columbus, Ohio
Attendance: 102,011
Ryan Day, Ohio State head coach
On honoring Archie Griffin...
"You talk about the impact that a person's made in his life. They've been playing college football a long time. There's only one two-time Heisman Trophy winner, and that's Archie Griffin. I didn't get to see him play, but I did get a chance to see the impact that he made off the field, with people in the community and with charities. He's a great role model for our team."
On quarterback Will Howard's debut...
"I thought he had pretty good poise the whole day. He took care of the football, other than that one crazy decision there at the end of the first half there to force something. He's a more experienced guy, but he's in a new offense and a new environment."
On settling in in the second half...
"They were a little uptight early on, I think they were kind of worked up. You saw a couple of things off and we got ourselves off schedule. I thought Chip (Kelly) did a nice job of continuing and pushing the run, and you can see that start to take its effect in the second half. I thought we settled in and started to have more fun. We started to play looser, which is the way we needed to play."
On creating negative plays and turnovers on defense...
"Ball disruption is something that we spent time on this offseason, and also ball security. If you're going to win these games, we've got to make sure that we win the turnover battle. Anytime that you can get a defensive score, that's huge."
On not calling plays...
"I don't know what the film will show, but I felt like I was shaking over there. Chip (Kelly) is great because he knows what he wants to get done. He's got a long term vision about what he wants to establish and what he wants his offense to look like."
Will Howard, Ohio State quarterback
On what it was like to play in Ohio Stadium for the first time…
"It's a pretty freaking cool stadium. I've never been a part of so many different traditions. It makes it more engaging for everyone involved. Getting to experience all this stuff that I've heard about for the first time was really fun. Now that I've got it all under my belt, it's like, alright, now I've done it, and now it's business as usual from now on."
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On the team's second-half momentum…
"I think we did some good things in the first half. We made some good plays here and there but, really settling into a rhythm, I think that came in the second half. We got that ball in the third quarter and started driving."
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On the run game…
"Coach Kelly says all the time, 'You're the run game coordinator. You've got to get us in and out of the right plays.' We have to all be working together, with all systems on the same wavelength."
On honoring Archie Griffin…
"It shows that you don't forget about those greats before you, and you remember it. A lot of the reason we're doing these things are for the people that came before us and the people that are here now and the people that are going to come after us and it's carrying on that Buckeye legacy."
Lathan Ransom, Ohio State safety
On his perspective and emotion...
"I have had such a change in perspective. No matter who we're playing, no matter what it is, whether it's practice, whether it's a game, whether it's a scrimmage - I'm just happy to be on the field. So you know, to make a play on the field, that's just my emotion playing through. That's my emotion I've been holding in."
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On making improvements...
"We did a lot of great things last year, but there's still always stuff to improve on. I think that we're going to continue to do that."
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On different players stepping up...
"I think that's what so special about our defense. That by just us doing our job, you never know who's going to make a play. There's always an opportunity for any of us to make a big play in the game. I mean everyone just does their job."
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Denzel Burke, Ohio State cornerback
On Lanthan Ransom...
"It's hard when you get the game taken away from you for two years. Just being able to see the plays he produced on the field, it's amazing. I'm more than happy for him and the sky's the limit for him."
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On making interceptions...
"It's kind of like an instincts thing, I guess you could say to just create practice habits throughout the week and whatever happens in a game, happens."
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On the game flow...
"You know we wanted to destroy the first half, but it's the first game. We've got to get those little jitters out. I feel like we adjusted in the second half and we took over."
On his drop on the first drive…
"When I came back to the sideline, I was just mad at myself. I mean, it's football. If you play receiver you're going to drop the ball. So, I just moved on."
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On his first playing time playing in The Shoe…
"Being out here on the field and playing and getting the full experience of walking out of the tunnel was something I'll never forget."
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On his chemistry with Will Howard…
"Our chemistry is going very good right now. I mean it's just something we build is going to practice and to just continue to build on that to look even better."
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On the pressure of his first game…
"I don't really feel pressure. I just want to go out there and play football and win games. I know all the hype around me was crazy coming in. I just wanted to come in and be a guy who works and just not be about all hype. So, I just wanted to impress my coaches, impress my peers around me and my teammates."
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On the coaches trust in him…
"I think I built that during practice. I feel like they trust me a lot, knowing that I made a mistake they know I'm bounce back from them. So, I mean, it's just a trust in them that they have in me to go out and continue playing football and make plays."
Joe Moorhead, Akron Head CoachÂ
On the decision to pull the quarterback...
"He had a lower-body injury so he couldn't go back in and it kind of took away our two-quarterback package, but we had repped Tahj [Bullock] throughout the course of the week as a primary quarterback and had a game plan for him. It's disappointing because I thought Ben [Finley] did some positive things, but it also gave us an opportunity to gain some valuable reps."
On what he learned in today's game...
"I learned that Ohio State is an incredibly talented team that is very well coached. This looks like a team that can play for a national championship. That's what I learned about Ohio State. Certainly not indicative to the final score, but I thought we in all three phases did some really positive things."Â
On how the non-conference schedule prepares the team for its conference schedule...
"I mean, it's a double-edged sword; yes, it does prepare you right for the games and season where the competitive balance is a little bit more equal, but at the same time, we got our quarterback knocked out."
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