Ryan Day addresses doubters with powerful message after Ohio State natty

Ohio State coach Ryan Day changed the discourse around his tenure as coach of the Buckeyes with a dominant run in the College Football Playoff that culminated in a national championship. Toward the end of November, Day was on the hot seat after his team lost 13-10 to rivals, the Michigan Wolverines, despite being 20-point favorites.

During Monday's segment of the "Tonight Show starring Jimmy Fallon," the newly crowned national championship-winning coach spoke about his team's journey to national champions (2:50):

"I think that's the story of this team. I think there's so many people that can learn from this team. We have an unbelievable group of guys that decided to come back and forego going to the NFL.

"And there's a point at the end of the year where there's nobody who thought we were gonna do this. And there was a group of guys that did, they decided we were going to win. And they started with a home game against Tennessee, we got some momentum going there."

He continued:

"We went out to L. A in the Rose Bowl and played No. 1 Oregon and we won that game. And then we went to the Cotton Bowl and in one of the most iconic games in Ohio State history, just an unbelievable play by Jack Sawyer with a sack-fumble at the end of the game to win.

"And then to finish with the national championship trophy. But there was a point there where a lot of people doubted us and the resilience of these guys to come back and finish and win."

Analyst had bold assessment of Ryan Day's historic season

When Ryan Day lost his fourth consecutive game to the Michigan Wolverines, several analysts joined Ohio State fans in calling for him to be fired. One of the most vocal analysts was ESPN's Paul Finebaum who put Day on the hot seat during the College Football Playoff.

During Thursday's segment of the "Matt Barrie Show," Finebaum spoke about Day's journey from the loss to Michigan to the championship (1:30).

"Had they won that game, however sloppy it may have been, they then go to the Big Ten Championship game," Finebaum said. "They have another game against Oregon – they may win it, but [there is] nothing to gain from it.

"They may have laid the egg somewhere else, sitting there, maybe waiting for Notre Dame or maybe somebody else. I think the fact that they got to sit there and stew."

Finebaum added:

"Quite frankly, Ryan Day and the Buckeye Nation need to personally call and thank Sherrone Moore and the University of Michigan and thank them.

"Maybe even let them hold the [national championship] trophy. I don't think Michigan will ever hold the national championship trophy again now that Jim Harbaugh is gone...there's no way this would've happened."

The unlikelihood of the Ohio State Buckeyes' national championship after the lows of the loss to the Michigan Wolverines continues to raise discourse on how Ryan Day pulled off the stunning win.