Ryan Day shares Ohio State's mindset ahead of pivotal 2024 season

There's only one goal in Columbus this season.

Yes, beating Michigan is vital and is especially important for Ohio State head coach Ryan Day, but the Buckeyes have bigger fish to fry than the Wolverines in 2024.

You might say OSU is in "championship or bust" territory. At the very least, that's the mindset Day revealed many of his players have while speaking at Big Ten Media Days on Tuesday.

“I think our guys came back for a reason," Day said, per On3 . “There’s a group of guys, probably 10 or 12 guys, that could have gone to the NFL and came back for a reason. They didn’t come back just to play, they came back to win something. So owe that to them. The coaches, the young guys, we owe that to those guys who decided to come back to give them everything they need to go chase a championship.”

The Buckeyes will have some new faces, of course. Kansas State transfer Will Howard is the favorite to be the starting quarterback and the OSU was able to steal star Alabama safety Caleb Downs after his incredible freshman season with the Crimson Tide. OSU also signed five-star wideout Jeremiah Smith , who was the No. 1 overall recruit in the 2024 class.

Still, senior defensive end Jack Sawyer is back for another run after notching 6.5 sacks last season and senior defensive tackle Tyleik Williams will be looking to improve on his three-sack season.

The senior cornerback duo of Denzel Burke and Jordan Hanock may be the best in all of college football, and on the offensive side of the ball, the Buckeyes boast senior running back TreVeyon Henderson (926 yards and 11 touchdowns last season), senior wide receiver Emeka Egbuka (515 yards and four touchdowns last season) and senior left guard Donovan Jackson, who only allowed three sacks in 20-plus games.

Ohio State is stacked on both sides of the ball. Yes, that's a lot of hype, but with great hype comes great expectations.

“We have some goals in mind and we want to get those things done, but there’s great opportunity this year and great excitement around the program,” Day continued. “Once all that dust settles from this visit we’ll get back to work next week in preseason camp and focus on what matters.”