COLUMBUS, Ohio – Throughout the 2019 season, Ryan Day stressed a focus on the present and maximizing the day, and while there is no opponent in sight right now, the focus has remained through this unusual time.

Ohio State, like college football teams across the country, is adjusting to life in which social distancing is the norm. While the situation has made advancement more difficult, Day and his team have looked to adapt to the times in order to best position themselves for success.

“It's just kind of been almost the way it's been for the last three years which is let's do the best we can to maximize today because tomorrow we're not quite sure what's gonna happen and so we're good at that, and I think that our staff did an excellent job,” Day said.

Face-to-face meetings and organized team workouts have disappeared, and in their place are video conferencing and individual workouts. While the new way of things is less efficient, there is still an expectation of excellence that permeates throughout the program.

Day has praised the communication that the staff has had with each other and its players. In a time in which ways to communicate are limited, Day and his staff have been able to maximize the tools at their disposal.

While meetings have been put in place to strengthen team unity, convey information on the COVID-19 situation and increase football knowledge, the physical element of training boils down to the personal accountability of each player.

Each position coach has provided his players guidance on how to stay in shape during this period away from the facility. While each player’s situation will largely dictate what he can or cannot do, Day commented on a position group that is especially vulnerable during this time: the offensive linemen.

While Day stressed the importance of working out, he also noted that a key component of an offensive lineman’s daily routine is about maintaining the proper weight and body fat composition.

“We spend so much time on a daily basis through our nutrition and through strength and conditioning, sports science, on their body weight, and body composition, so that's huge,” Day said.

With football life being made more difficult, there is an opportunity for good things to come from the adversity. The new situation has created an opportunity to learn new things and develop a newfound appreciation for how things were before the quarantine.

One of the things Day noted as a positive that will come from this time away from the rest of the team is the increased comfortability with which teams can communicate with recruits. Day believed the ability to get in front of recruits through videoconferencing is one of the good things that this quarantine has pushed the Buckeyes toward doing in the future.

“I think for our team it’s going to make us stronger in that it gives them some personal accountability and not always having a coach bark at them,” Day said. “And I think the last thing is going to do is bring our team closer together because I think when you just talk to our team right now and our coaches, we just miss each other.”

The separation has definitely taken a toll on Day, who is beginning his second year as Ohio State’s head coach. While he and his staff is still able to communicate with each other and the players, there is still a big difference between video chatting and being able to be in the facility with the rest of the team.

“That's probably the hardest part of this,” Day said on not being with the team. “We don't get to hang around and be around our team, and that's a thing I keep telling the guys, ‘I miss you guys’ and we can't wait to get back together.”