#FireRyanDay. It’s hard to imagine that this was the mood of the Buckeye Nation just two months before their national championship win. The 13-10 loss to Michigan, their fourth in a row in The Game had people calling for Day’s head. Notable analyst Paul Finebaum termed them as the “most talented team in the country” but “one of the worst coached teams”. This would have been excruciating for Day, who had compared the pain of losing to Michigan being as hurtful as losing his father. However, Day was able to use that adversity and channel a title-winning campaign and now he has his reward.

The upset loss to Michigan was a gut punch for Day. It was his first loss to an unranked opponent and Michigan’s only ranked win in a seven-win season. After reportedly spending $20 million to build one of the most high-profile rosters in college football, losing to their rivals, despite being big 19.5–point favorites was unthinkable. Hence, when the news of OSU extending Ryan Day’s contract came out on Thursday, Michigan fans were rejoicing.

Two weeks after leading his team to a first national championship after a decade, Day agreed in principle to a seven-year contract extension through 2031. Day will earn $12.5 million in annual compensation as a result, making him college football’s second-highest-paid coach behind Georgia’s Kirby Smart, who takes in $13.3 every year. With his contract due to expire in 2028, OSU has moved swiftly to ensure the long-term future of Day, though the contract is pending approval by the university’s Board of Trustees.

The details of the new contract list his annual payments at $2 million as base salary, $7.25 million for media services, $1 million for sponsorship services, $1 million retention bonus, and $1.25 million for “apparel, shoe and equipment” services, according to the term sheet obtained by Sportico. The deal also calls for Day to receive 75 hours of private jet time for recruiting and other school-related purposes, as well as 50 hours for personal use.

Day earned a $1 million bonus for leading Ohio State to the natty and was happy to extend his stay at the program. “I want to thank President Ted Carter, director of athletics Ross Bjork and the Board of Trustees for the confidence and trust they have in me to oversee this program,” Day said in a statement released by OSU. “My family and I are incredibly grateful to be a part of the Ohio State community, this football program and Buckeye Nation,” he said.

He succeeded Urban Meyer as head coach in 2019 and has since registered a 70-10 record. His 87.5% winning percentage is the highest among active coaches in college football. Day has led OSU to the College Football Playoff in four of his seasons at the helm and has not lost more than two games in a season. But he has a Michigan problem.

After winning his first game against Michigan in 2019, he suffered a 42-27 loss in 2021. In 2022, OSU was outplayed 28-3 in the second half and gave up 252 rushing yards in a 45-23 loss. A third straight defeat followed in 2023, despite an improved defensive showing as they fell  30-24. The 2023 loss was the Buckeyes’ longest losing streak since John Cooper lost three straight from 1995-97.

Then on November 30, 2024, Day became just the fourth coach in OSU history to lose four in a row to the Wolverines, He joined A.E. Herrnstein, John Wilce, and John Cooper as the only other Buckeyes coaches to have the infamous record.

Fingers were pointed at the mental resolve of Day and that of the OSU players and whether they had it in them to beat Michigan. However, the team was able to respond in an emphatic fashion going on a winning run that culminated in a title win over Notre Dame.

Before the championship game, Day talked about how the defeat against Michigan spurred his team onto an incredible run. “I think when you look at the guys that we have in our program, you see guys that are tough. You see guys that are resilient. You see guys who care about each other. You see guys that love being Buckeyes.

No great accomplishments are ever achieved without going through adversity. That’s just the truth. And so we’ve gone through our share of adversity. That’s life. I told those guys that. We’re not focused on what’s coming down the road, we’re not focused on what’s happened in the past. We’re focused on right now,” Day mentioned.

They won five games over top-five teams in 2024 on the way to the title, a record for a college football team in one season. During their playoff run, they decimated Tennessee 42-17 in the first-round game and then swept aside Oregon 41-21 in the Rose Bowl.

This was followed by a sensational 28-14 win over Texas in the semifinals highlighted by defensive end Jack Sawyer’s iconic 83-yard sack, scoop, and score.

While Day and OSU fans will celebrate the new contract after the national championship win, Michigan fans were having their own fun at the expense of Day’s wretched record against their program.

Michigan fans poked fun at Ryan Day’s $12.5 million move

Some analysts out there said it’s a national title or bust for Ryan Day following his Michigan mess-up. Well, he probably didn’t expect a comeback that rephrased it. It’s a national title and a pay raise. Ryan Day made a heroic stint in his sixth year, giving the Buckeyes their national title.

Following the news of the new contract, OSU’s director of athletics Ross Bjork reiterated the faith the program has in Day. Even after the loss to Michigan, Day was not in danger of losing his job, even if an early playoff exit had come according to Bjork.

“I just enjoy working with coach Day,” Bjork said. “I think he’s awesome to work with − the staff, the culture in that building, being around the players. The environment is really fun to be in. For me, that piece of it is exciting. And in today’s environment, you have to have stability. You have to have continuity, especially when it’s going at a high level.” But Michigan fans turned Day’s extension into banter claiming it would lead to their program’s continued dominance over their rivals.

”Michigan fans love this move,” a fan noted. ”As a Michigan fan… LETS GO!” one user shot another sarcastic remark.

Ohio State’s NIL collective, the 1870 Society, recently made a collaboration with Michigan’s NIL collective for a joint fundraising competition. Both of the schools’ fanbases were legitimately unhappy at the move, questioning the impact on their arch-rival. Seeing the massive figure of Ryan Day’s latest contract, one Michigan fan made the taunt obvious, asking, ”Did Michigans NIL help pay for it?”

Meanwhile, fans continued with their taunts with one writing down, “This is great news for Michigan” and another fan echoed the emotion, predicting, “Six more years of losing to Michigan.”

If Ohio State fires Day without cause, will owe Day $11.5 million for each year left on the contract, or $80.5 million if Day was terminated ahead of the 2025 season. However, if Day left OSU before January 31 next year, he would owe $6 million before it comes down to $4 million and eventually $2 million.

Meanwhile, another neutral observer of the fiasco pointed out, ”Michigan fans out here celebrating every last thing they can before the sanctions drop😂.”

Michigan are under investigation for the sign-stealing scandal during their national title win in 2023. They have already submitted a strong response to the NCAA, but a final verdict is awaited.

For now, their fans are hoping to continue their winning-streak against OSU, now that Day has extended his contract. We will see whether the new contract leads to Day finally snapping his abysmal streak against the Wolverines.