Day picked up an “ugly” 21-10 win against No. 5 Notre Dame on Saturday night, and despite a sluggish offense, got something else he was looking for. “That was something we spent a lot of time in the offseason saying, ‘We’ve got to be able to win badly on offense, we’ve got to stop the run on defense,’” Day said. “Everybody counts the same. And you have to figure out based on who you’re going against, how do you want to win that game? When you have that flexibility, man, it’s going to pay off down the road.” 2 Related Ohio State’s offense, which was No. 1 in the nation last year in efficiency, outperformed Saturday against lofty preseason expectations that pegged the Buckeyes as a strong favorite to finish in the College Football Playoff. With top wide receiver Jaxon Smith-Njigba sidelined with an injury suffered in the first quarter, Ohio State struggled early against a tough Notre Dame defense. The Fighting Irish, led by popular first-year coach Marcus Freeman, a former Ohio State linebacker, walked into Ohio Stadium and before an announced crowd of 106,594 gave the Buckeyes all they could late in the fourth quarter. Ohio State, which won games by an average margin of 29.1 points last season, was held scoreless in the second quarter and trailed 10-7 at halftime. With less than five minutes left in the fourth quarter, Ohio State sealed the win — thanks in large part to a 14-play, 95-yard drive that spanned 7:06 to give the Buckeyes a 21-10 lead. “We were struggling early, just trying to get a connection, trying to build that rhythm, but towards the end, we started to get it, started to click more,” said Ohio quarterback CJ Stroud, who finished 24 of 34 passing for 223 yards and two touchdowns. “It’s kind of weird being out there again, to be honest, seeing the fans, dealing with all the outside noise, just trying to lock in.” In the fourth quarter, Stroud completed 9 of 10 passes for 107 yards and a touchdown. While it wasn’t exactly a game-changing, Heisman Trophy-worthy performance, it reminded everyone of his playmaking abilities. Ohio State entered this season as the No. 2 team after losing to rival Michigan and finishing at No. 6 in large part because of offensive firepower returning from a team that led the nation in scoring and yards per game last year . The Buckeyes have several Heisman hopefuls, including Stroud and running back TreVeyon Henderson, but when Smith-Njigba was injured in the first quarter, the Buckeyes were left on the edge early. Last year, Ohio State averaged 27.2 points in the first half, the most of any team in the FBS. The Buckeyes had seven Saturday night. “The first few games are a little boring,” Day said, “and losing Jackson threw us a little bit.” The defense, which was the problem for Ohio State last year, was the highlight on Saturday. It was a strong debut for first-year defensive coordinator Jim Knowles, who was hired from Oklahoma State. The Irish finished with 253 yards and scored on their final six possessions. “They called us soft all last year and we had to sit there and eat,” Ohio State defensive back Lathan Ransom said. Day said toughness was something the whole team wanted to prove. “We wanted to be known as something other than just being talented,” he said. Notre Dame’s game plan was to hold the ball, control the clock and keep the Buckeyes’ offense off the field. The Irish were able to do that in the first quarter, but finished with just 3 of 13 third-down conversions. Day said he could see more teams try to do the same this fall, but he’s not worried about the passing game ahead. Eventually, there were other, lesser-known players who showed up for Ohio State, including former running back Xavier Johnson, whose 24-yard touchdown run made it 14-10 Ohio State late in the third quarter. “I love these guys,” Johnson said, “so with my feet empty, with all of that, none of it mattered. It was all about the team and the glory of God. “I was able to do what I was trained to do.” In the end, they all were — even if they weren’t pretty. “It was a huge emphasis to win that way,” Day said. “And it starts with defense. You can play really good, strong defense like we did tonight, and we can run the football — we know we’re going to run the ball, we know — but if we want to go where we need to be, we have to be to reach our goals, we need to be able to do those two things.”
