Ohio State head coach Ryan Day walks onto the field ahead of Ohio State’s game against Rutgers Nov. 7. Ohio State won 49-27. Credit: Mackenzie Shanklin | Photo Editor
The Buckeyes will have to take on Illinois without their head coach.
An Ohio State spokesperson confirmed that Buckeye head coach Ryan Day tested positive for COVID-19 and will not travel with the team to Champaign-Urbana, Illinois, when they play the Fighting Illini Saturday. Defensive line coach Larry Johnson will serve as head coach of the Buckeyes this week.
“I have spoken with Coach Day, and he is doing well physically,” Ohio State athletic director Gene Smith said in a press release. “Our team wants to play this game, and we’re going to do everything we can to help make this happen.”
Ohio State will undergo more polymerase chain reaction testing Friday afternoon to ensure those traveling to Illinois are negative for COVID-19. The team will delay its departure to Saturday morning.
The team is still below the Big Ten threshold that would force Ohio State to cancel its game against Illinois.
Although Big Ten guidelines force student-athletes to miss competition for 21 days to undergo cardiac evaluations, a coach must isolate for 10 days before being cleared to return. Purdue head coach Jeff Brohm underwent a 10-day isolation period in October.
This story was updated Friday at 4:06 p.m. with information about a coach’s required isolation period.
