As the head coach of the Ohio State football team, you are told from day one that beating Michigan is the top priority. Ryan Day hasn't been able to do that since 2019, but he did just win a national championship. ESPN's Kirk Herbstreit knows what Day has been through because of those losses.

After Ohio State’s shocking loss to Michigan to end the regular season, Kirk Herbstreit stood strong in Ryan Day’s corner as the criticism mounted. The Buckeyes then put together a redemption story for the ages,

That, more anything anything, has impressed ESPN’s Kirk Herbstreit.

Ryan Day and Ohio State capped their memorable College Football Playoff run with a national crown Monday night.

ESPN's Kirk Herbstreit, whose son plays for Ohio State, became visibly emotional while discussing the Buckeyes' CFP title win over Notre Dame.

He wasn’t the only one sending a message to Ryan Day, but Kirk Herbstreit’s words echoed what many others were saying: more respect for the head coach after leading Ohio State to a National Championship.

ESPN analyst Kirk Herbstreit was visibly emotional after his alma mater Ohio State defeated Notre Dame to win the national championship on Monday night,

Ohio State football's victory over Notre Dame brought the emotion out of Kirk Herbstreit. Herbstreit played for the Buckeyes.

After Ohio State lost to Michigan in the regular season finale, many assumed it was only a matter of time until Ryan Day lost his job. What happened next is history. Day and the Buckeyes regrouped and went on a tear in the College Football Playoff.

Herbstreit — a Centerville, Ohio, native — graduated from Ohio State after playing with the Buckeyes from 1989 to 1992.

Kirk Herbstreit wasn’t able to hold back his emotions after Ohio State won the national championship on Monday night. A day later, Herbstreit revealed there was more happening in his life that previously had not been shared widely.