What Ohio State head coach Ryan Day said about playing at Wrigley Field
INDIANAPOLIS - Ohio State's Ryan Day understands the significance behind the Buckeyes' Nov. 16 game against Northwestern.
The Buckeyes won't be at Ryan Field, where OSU has averaged 39 points per game and outscored the Wildcats 158-50 across the last four games in Evanston.
Instead, Ohio State will visit Northwestern at Wrigley Field, the Friendly Confines, where NU will host two games this season as Ryan Field gets built from the ground up.
Day said the experience will resonate with players on OSU's roster who played baseball or players who are from Chicago.
"Emeka Ebuka played baseball," Day noted.
However, he pointed to the players who are from Chicago – such as Carnell Tate, Zach Hayes and Nolan Baudo – as pieces of the program that can help educate others about what it means to play in a venue like Wrigley.
"They may understand the tradition of Wrigley Field, maybe more than some other folks on the team," Day said.
Ohio State isn't a stranger to playing in different venues. The Buckeyes played in the College Football Playoff after the 2022 season, losing to the eventual national champion Georgia, and have played in a New Year's Six bowl game or greater in every season under Day.
It won't be a shock to the system for Ohio State, but a different venue the program can look forward to.
Day said the Buckeyes won't make more out of the trip to Wrigley than it needs to be, which would be a November win for Ohio State as the Buckeyes will most likely be in the running for a berth in the expanded College Football Playoff.
"I've been to Wrigley before, it's a great place," Day said. "We'll explain that to them, we're not going to make it bigger than it is. It'll probably be more exposure to those who've had exposure to it."
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