Saturday was a busy one at the Woody Hayes Athletic Center, even before the football side of things took center stage. Ohio State announced its 2026 Block O recipient and revealed seven captains for the upcoming season, then rolled straight into its 14th practice of fall camp.
That workout carried extra weight. Like the scrimmage a week earlier, it took place inside Ohio Stadium, with the Buckeyes now two weeks away from their opener against Ball State on Sept.
- Ryan Day made it clear earlier in the week that this stretch was the one that matters most.
"This is kind of the big week here," head coach Ryan Day told the Big Ten Network on Thursday. "We got out of the hotel on Saturday; classes started on Tuesday.
A big scrimmage coming up here this weekend. But I like the way the guys are working and we've got to keep grinding on this thing."
The practice itself was closed, and unlike after the previous scrimmage, Day did not address reporters when it was over. He is scheduled to hold a press conference on Monday.
Bucknuts spoke with several sources close to the program to piece together what the past week has looked like at the WHAC, including Saturday’s scrimmage. One thing stood out right away: people around the team were far less willing to share specifics this time around.
That’s not exactly a shock at this stage of camp. As the opener gets closer, Ohio State has every reason to keep certain details under wraps, especially with Texas looming in Week 2. Still, Bucknuts was able to gather a few nuggets from the scrimmage and the week leading into it.
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Sabans Ohio State run ended after the 1981 Liberty Bowl amid a reported disagreement in philosophy, but the split did not slow his climb. He went on to assistant stops at Navy, Michigan State and Toledo, along with NFL work, before becoming a head coach at Michigan State, LSU and Alabama. The rest of the story is familiar enough by now, with seven national championships in the background, which makes that brief, messy Columbus stop all the harder for Ohio State supporters to ignore. [Read more 🡒]