Ryan Day's Wife Personally Reached Out To Kirk Herbstreit

01/07/2025 10:15 AM

ESPN college football analyst Kirk Herbstreit says that Ryan Day's wife personally reached out to him amid the blowback her husband was getting after Ohio State's loss to Michigan.

Day and the Buckeyes are two games away from winning the national championship. Ohio State went 10-2 in the regular season, losing to Oregon and Michigan. It was that second loss that infuriated the Buckeyes' fan base. Ohio State has now lost four straight games to Michigan. 

Herbstreit, who played collegiately at Ohio State, sounded off on the "lunatic fringe" portion of the school's fan base, for how it reacted to Day's fourth straight loss to Michigan.

"The lunatic fringe at Ohio State is as powerful as anywhere in the country. It used to be eight to 10, I think it's grown now to about 15 to 20. I'm sure they'll be happy tonight, fired up about what the team did, but God forbid they lose to Oregon. They'll want to fire [Day] again," Herbstreit said during Ohio State's win against Tennessee.

"First Take tried to fire him. They thought he was done, so I'll be excited to see what they talk about on Monday after this performance. They had him out, trying to find replacements. But here he is, he still has his hat on. He's still coaching."

Tuesday morning, Herbstreit appeared on On3's "Andy & Ari" show. He talked about his comments on the Ohio State fan base and what Day and his family have gone through.

Herbstreit said that he feels sad about how crazy some of Ohio State's fans can be toward Day and his family.

"I get defensive for them," Herbstreit said. "I feel bad for them. I feel bad that Ryan Day's son deals with stuff, and his wife, who just talked with me, one on one, asking me what I think. I mean they're devastated. I'm talking devastated. And that hurts me for them, that they deal with that."

"So when I speak out, I'm not just randomly speaking out. This is evidence and hardcore facts from players and coaches who confide in me."

Herbstreit previously said that he heard that Day needed 24/7, armed security at his house.

"I'm a friend of Ryan Day's," Herbstreit said onThe Pat McAfee Show. "He and I talk on a regular basis about more than just football, so I hear things that he and his family go through. Especially Nina, his wife. His son, who gets death threats from multiple, multiple people. And what it's doing to them as a family.

"...When I hear that, it really frustrates me that he has to deal with putting an armed guard outside of his house 24/7 for his own fanbase. That hurts my heart that that is a reality for the Ohio State coach."

All should be well in Columbus now, though.

Ohio State is set to take on Texas in the College Football Playoff semifinals on Friday night.

Kickoff is set for 7:30 p.m. E.T. on ESPN.