Ryan Day: Ohio State wasn't 'outmatched' vs. Michigan, would be 'dangerous' in CFP

Columbus — Michigan football couldn’t have scripted the moment any better. 

As Ohio State head coach Ryan Day took the podium after the Wolverines’ 45-23 win in Columbus, the room was mostly filled with silence — that is, except for the playing of “Mr. Brightside,” Michigan’s pseudo-anthem dating to last season, from right outside of OSU’s football building.

Just as J.J. McCarthy did against his defense for most of the day Saturday, Day hung in there with heat in his face and delivered a Hail Mary for the Buckeyes’ playoff hopes. 

Asked whether he thought his team still deserved to be in the College Football Playoff conversation after the three-score loss, he said, “I thought we were in it and we were fighting there at the end. It obviously got out of control down the stretch, but it wasn’t like we were outmatched in terms of overall play, I don’t think.

“So yeah, as we get to those decisions, I think you gotta look at the body of work and what we’ve done. We’ve got a lot of good pieces on this team and came up short today, but I think if we were able to get a shot in the top four, we’d be a dangerous team.”

That statement is debatable. Ohio State was the better team in the first half, but they don’t give out trophies for that. The Buckeyes were thoroughly dismantled in the final 30 minutes of play, getting outscored 28-3 and rushing for 19 yards while allowing 242, and accumulating 177 yards of offense that ultimately didn’t make nary a positive difference in the result. 

"We had a lot of juice coming outta the locker room, but we just didn't do it," Day said. "Winning at halftime and it felt like we were in a decent spot to go play. My message to the team was, 'We gotta win the first six minutes of the third quarter right there and then go from there,' and that didn't happen."

Michigan's victory marked the Wolverines' first win in Columbus since 2000 and the first time that they've won back-to-back games against the Buckeyes since 1999-2000.

In past seasons, Ohio State’s playoff chance probably isn’t even a conversation. There was certainly no whispers regarding whether Michigan had a chance to make it in 2018, after OSU defeated the Wolverines in historic fashion.

But as front-runners continue to let their playoff standing crash and burn, well, it’s certainly a conversation. Their loss on Saturday means they’re still one of five teams with one loss or less, and that’s pending two tough games to close the season for Pac-12 favorite USC (10-1) and Big 12 favorite TCU (11-0). 

OSU quarterback C.J. Stroud agreed with Day’s assessment that the team can still be one of the nation’s top four teams, but quickly turned his focus to Saturday’s loss.

“I definitely think there’s still an opportunity to make the playoff,” Stroud said. “But I mean, this is “The Game,” man. This is — like, this is the one.”

nbianchi@detroitnews.com

Twitter: @nolanbianchi