Ohio State’s Ryan Day presents new challenge for Kirby Smart

Ever since Nick Saban retired as head coach of Alabama, the title for the best head coach in college football has been passed on to Kirby Smart. And since that occurred, there has always been some other coaches who have crept close to the Georgia football legend, but no one has ever surpassed him.

The one coach who has always been the closest is Clemson’s Dabo Sweeney, which makes sense because their accomplishments are very similar. But there is a new coach who has built a strong case to join Smart as the best coach in college football. And that is Ohio State’s Ryan Day.

Day and the Buckeyes for years have struggled getting to the very top of the sport. They have always been near the top since Day took over as head coach, but a National Championship is the one thing that eluded them. That is until Day and Ohio State won the title just last month.

One championship however isn’t enough to surpass Smart, but it undeniably makes it close. That fact is also seen in Day’s contract extension that he just received from Ohio State on Thursday.

Ryan Day becomes second highest paid coach

According to On3, Day has signed a seven year contract extension with Ohio State that will pay him $12.5 million annually. This puts Day directly behind Smart who makes $13 million per year.

This amount was likely chosen very strategically because Smart’s resume is still a little better than Day’s, but this is just another fact that shows how close Day is to Smart right now.

Now that Day has this mega extension, there is a good chance that Smart could receive another pay raise as well. As mentioned, he is the best coach in college football right now, so until someone takes that title from him he should always be the highest paid coach. So don’t be surprised at all if Smart inks a new deal with Georgia very soon.