Did Ryan Day play football? Revisiting Ohio State coach's D2 college playing career

Ryan Day was named the head coach of Ohio State ahead of the 2019 season. He had been a college coach since 2002 and with the Buckeyes in some capacity since 2017.

Day had big shoes to fill, taking over for Urban Meyer. The new head coach had most recently served as the offensive coordinator, but had also been the quarterbacks coach. Day had 16 years of coaching experience under his belt, but Ohio State was his first shot at being a head coach. 

Before he picked up the coaching whistle and eventually led Ohio State to an appearance in the 2025 Cotton Bowl, Day played college football. He wasn't a highly touted prospect, but played both quarterback and linebacker during his career. Day played quarterback for the University of New Hampshire for three seasons. 

Here's more information on Day's football playing career before becoming a coach.

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Did Ryan Day play football?

University of New Hampshire

Day was born in Manchester, New Hampshire in 1979. He stayed local his entire childhood, eventually attending Manchester Central High School. Day played quarterback and defensive back while in high school. He was named the Gatorade Player of the Year for New Hampshire during his senior season.

This led him to enroll to play at the University of New Hampshire. His offensive coordinator was Chip Kelly. Day went on to set nine different career records at UNH. Only his record for most pass attempts in a game (65) still stands, per the team website. 

COLLEGE FOOTBALL AWARDS

• SN 2024 All-America team
• Player of the Year: Travis Hunter
• Coach of the Year: Curt Cignetti

Ryan Day stats at New Hampshire

His exact college stats aren't readily available since he graduated in 2001. That being said, he had 653 pass completions in his career along with 53 touchdowns, a 59.9% completion percentage and 8,492 yards of total offense. All were records at the time. Day has the third-most passing attempts in program history (1,089) and is fourth in total passing yards (7,670). 

Day, while paired with Kelly from 1999-2001, finished a combined 15-18 over those three years. Once he graduated in 2001, he stayed at New Hampshire and became the tight ends coach.