Ohio State head coach Ryan Day never lost his team’s support.

During the months of confusion leading up to the Big Ten’s reinstatement of fall sports on Wednesday, Day pushed through the uncertainty and low moments, keeping Ohio State football unified as a team.

“We all know Coach Day is our leader,” junior quarterback Justin Fields said, referring to Day’s leadership through the pandemic. “At least me personally, I got to know him more at a personal level. You know, he has told me that he really hasn’t been able to sleep since the season got cancelled.”

Leadership in times of crisis is what separates great teams from the rest of the pack. On Wednesday, Day said finding that leadership in the face of a grim future was difficult, but had to be done.

“You wake up the next day and you figure out ways to continue to lead,” Day said. “And that’s, again, going back to what leadership is. It’s during times like this that when things are hard, when there’s just uncertainty. You just keep pushing forward.”