Ohio State Buckeyes head football coach Ryan Day and his family have experienced both the highs and lows of leading one of the most storied programs in college football. Known for having some of the most passionate fans in the country, Buckeye Nation showed a darker side following Ohio State’s narrow 13-10 loss to archrival Michigan on November 30.
Despite Day’s impressive 66-10 record over six seasons, a vocal minority of fans took to social media and message boards, demanding his dismissal. What began as criticism quickly escalated into something far more troubling.
The situation became so severe that Day had to hire 24/7 armed security for his home after their address was leaked online. His wife, Nina Day, revealed that her personal phone number was also made public, leading to a flood of threatening calls and text messages. The threats extended to their children, including death threats directed at their 16-year-old son, R.J., prompting Nina to consider moving their family out of Ohio.
“It was very difficult,” she shared with The Columbus Dispatch. “There were a lot of tears. We shielded [our kids] from a lot of it because I didn’t want to scare them. I didn’t want them to stay up at night thinking anything bad was going to happen.”
The toxicity surrounding Ohio State football
Nina expressed her frustration with the negativity surrounding her husband, noting the toll it has taken on their family. “My kids have only heard the negative things about Ryan for too long,” she said. “There’s only so many times you can hear, ‘Ryan’s a loser. Ryan can’t win big games. Ryan was born on third base.’ My kids need to hear positivity around their father, around the program. It’s only healthy. I want my kids to enjoy this moment because they deserve it.”
The hostility didn’t stop there. Nina disclosed that some fans even suggested Day follow in the footsteps of his father, who tragically took his own life when Ryan was just eight years old. While she emphasized that these threats came from a small segment of the fanbase, she acknowledged the larger societal issue at play.
“It’s very disappointing to me what some people are capable of,” she said. “People are very mean. They’re very negative. They’re nasty… but there’s definitely a percentage of people that are just ruthless in their hate.”