Ohio State vs. Oregon: Ryan Day did it again.

It was another big game for Ohio State under Ryan Day, so naturally the result was another crushing loss. The Buckeyes lost Eugene 32-31 despite having a 31-29 lead with four minutes left and then a first-and-10 at the Oregon 28-yard line with 28 seconds left, needing only a field goal to win the game.

We've come to expect performances like this from Day, who is now 1-7 against AP Top 5 opponents. Ohio State hasn't won anything significant with its current head coach at the helm since its 49-28 win over Clemson in the Sugar Bowl during the 2020 season, and even that immediately led to Alabama having to contend for the national title game.

Since then, the Buckeyes have lost three straight games to rival Michigan, lost at home to Oregon in 2021, missed the Peach Bowl against Georgia in 2022 and couldn't compete against Missouri in 2023. Clearly a challenge, but when you recruit as well as Ohio State, you'll be fine A hit rate of less than 50% is simply not sufficient in these competitions.

There were a plethora of reasons why Ohio State lost to Oregon on Saturday night, but chief among them is Ryan Day's amazing defensive team. Jim Knowles will take a lot of criticism for his performances in these big games, and some of it is warranted, but the main reason for the Buckeyes' defensive deficiencies in these moments is a stubborn, ineffective defensive coach.

Knowles came to Ohio State University and was known for his defensive system based on a basic 4-2-5 structure with a few twists. One of those twists was the JACK position, a stand-up edge rusher who functions as a linebacker/defensive end hybrid, capable of rushing the passer or retreating into coverage to confuse opposing offenses . The Buckeyes have a ton of players on their roster that would be perfect for this position, including guys like Arvell Reese and CJ Hicks who were basically recruited for this exact position.

So why isn't there a position at The Ohio State University that's so important to Knowles' plan? The answer is Larry Johnson.

Johnson has earned a reputation as one of the best defensive coaches in the country over his 26 years in the industry. He has produced nine first-round NFL draft picks throughout his career. Eight different Buckeye defensive lineman were named First Team All-American under Johnson's tutelage. He's nothing short of a legend in his industry, but unfortunately for the Buckeyes, that's all in the past.

Ohio State hasn't even come close to fielding a good defensive line since the 2019 season when Chase Young basically single-handedly destroyed opposing offenses. Despite having five-star prospect after five-star prospect at his disposal year after year, Johnson hasn't capitalized on it. In the two losses to Oregon and the three losses to Michigan, the Buckeyes managed a TOTAL of two sacks. One of them was from Cody Simon, meaning The defensive line recorded ONE sack in those five losses.

The one constant in all of these big game failures has been the lack of pressure from the defense, and Johnson is to blame for that. Stuck in his habits, Johnson takes on his four opponents without any creativity, relying on each player to simply win their one-on-one duels. That's all well and good…until you get into a talent-equivalent game. There's hardly a simple stunt by Ohio State's defensive linemen that involves four guys running right into their blockers and staying there until the game is over.

But what about the JACK position from Knowles' plan? Shouldn’t that mess up the pass rush? Sure it would be if Knowles were allowed use the position.

Larry Johnson and Jim Knowles have been vying for the JACK position since the defensive coordinator arrived on campus. Instead of resolving the dispute and telling the rest of his coordinators that they need to adapt to the man who is supposed to be the defensive head coach in Knowles, Ryan Day has allowed LJ to play the seniority card and win the battle at the top. Knowles essentially only has control of two-thirds of the defense, and the piece he's missing is both the most important and the least effective.

It is complete madness to allow this to continue. Maybe in the beginning they let Johnson run his unit the way he wanted because he had a proven track record, but those days are over. The defensive line played no role at all in all of these big game losses, leaving the back end of the defense torched while the opposing quarterback was able to file his taxes in the backfield before making a throw.

The only thing Johnson did effectively over the last five years at Ohio State was cost the team football games. Even his recruiting has taken a significant hit, with the Buckeyes missing out on several five-star prospects in recent seasons amid rumors of the 72-year-old's retirement circulating. He doesn't do anything with the few five-stars he lands, while the five-stars he misses, like Oregon's Matayo Uiagalelei, had a sack and two tackles for a loss Saturday night against the Buckeyes – more than Jack did Sawyer and JT Tuimoloau combined.

There are plenty of other reasons why Ohio State lost to Oregon on Saturday night. Ryan Day messed up the clock horribly at the end of the game because he didn't know the rules of the clock on the pass interference call, even though he was paid $10 million as a football coach. Ohio State turned the ball over and allowed an onside kick. Denzel Burke looked like Tuf Borland trying to chase down Devonta Smith on every defensive tackle. ALL of these things played a role in the loss.

The constant in these big-game losses, however, was a poor defensive line led by an assistant coach well past his prime while actively shutting down the defensive coordinator. Knowles hasn't been great by any means, but he'll have to try to overcome the frontline's deficiencies, which is nearly impossible when the quarterback has all day to throw. He schemes effectively against both opposing offenses and his own defensive line, which is a crazy thing at ANY program, let alone a place like Ohio State.

Ultimately, this is the fault of Ryan Day as the program's CEO. He could snap his fingers tomorrow and end this argument for good, but he's too scared to hurt feelings. As a head coach at a program of this size, this is completely unacceptable. It's time to be the big man in the room and leave behind a system that is clearly not working.