Ryan Day: Expanded CFP Bracket Gave OSU Chance to ‘Peak’ and Play ‘Best Football’

It’s safe to say that Ohio State head coach Ryan Day is a fan of the new College Football Playoff format.

Following his Buckeyes 41-21 victory over Oregon in the Rose Bowl, Day acknowledged that the 12-team format has allowed his team to “peak” at the right time and said they need to capitalize on this momentum.

“I think we’ve learned a lot about our team,” Day said, per Jake Trotter of ESPN. “I think we’ve grown a lot as a team and we’re banking on this to be our best football this season.”

Day continued by saying that he sees the “passion” that his players are performing with and that the format rewards teams who get better throughout the season.

“You can see the passion,” Day said, per Trotter. “And I think the way that this format is and the way the playoffs are set now, it allows us an opportunity to grow as a team and to learn and to get better late in the season.”

Ohio State finished the regular season 10-2 with losses to Oregon and arch-rival Michigan. This left the team out of the Big Ten Championship and would have left them outside of the playoff field in previous seasons. However, the expansion allowed Ohio State to earn the No. 8 seed and still have a path to the National Championship.

Ohio State would defeat Tennessee in the first round before pulling off the upset victory over the Ducks. The Buckeyes will now face Texas in the Cotton Bowl semi-final game for a chance to play for a National Championship.