Columbus, Ohio -- Ohio State got off to a fast start in Ryan Day's debut as head coach, scoring four touchdowns on its first four possessions, eventually beating FAU 45-21 in front of the home crowd.
Day said earlier in the week he would allow himself to take in the moment in the tunnel before the game. He would allow himself to take in the experience and remind himself that he had the opportunity to be the head coach at Ohio State, and he did just that as he entered the stadium on Saturday.
"I gave a little dap to (director of football operations) Quinn (Tempel) on the way out and looked up at the stands, and looked at the full house running out of the tunnel and the smoke comes out, and that's my time to enjoy it," Day said. "And it's unbelievable, the hair stands up on your arms and the back of your neck. And you feel fortunate to be in that situation.
"That's my time. I'll try to make sure we do that every game."
Day had experience being Ohio State's head coach for three games in 2018 while Urban Meyer served a suspension, but this time it was Day's program for good.
He made sure to take in the moment, but once that was over he knew he had to coach and manage the game and break in a new quarterback with Georgia transfer Justin Fields. His new quarterback, while ranked No. 1 overall in the 2018 class, was still somewhat of an unknown in how he would perform in his collegiate debut.
Fields quickly answered any questions throwing three touchdowns and running for another in the first 10 minutes of the first quarter.
"I think I did good overall," Fields said. "Of course there's always room to improve, but we just have to keep working as a unit and just keep getting better in all aspects of the game." Fields finished the game completing 18 of his 25 pass attempts for 234 yards and four touchdowns to go along with 91 rushing yards and a touchdown on the ground. He got some help from the defense as well, which held FAU to -14 yards of offense in the first half.
Ohio State's head coach Ryan Day discusses Justin Fields' debut and his Buckeyes' overall performance in their 45-21 win.
It wasn't all perfect, though, as Fields is only a sophomore and still building chemistry and timing with his teammates while still learning the playbook. In his first test, though, with a new head coach, Day thought Fields passed the test while still having a lot to improve on.
"Protections, reads, decisions, a lot to build from off of today," Day said. "I thought overall, though, game management was decent. There was one time where he scrambled out and took a sack. Could have just thrown it away, and could have been second and 10, I think it was second and 14.
"A lot of things going on there. Overall pretty solid, and a ton to learn from. As you look at the film, sitting there for 74 plays, you're going to be able to teach off of those 74 plays."
Both Day and Fields acknowledged their excitement as they made their debut together, but also understood that the test will get harder in week two when Cincinnati, a team that finished 11-2 in 2018 and is coming off of a week one win against UCLA, comes to Columbus.
"The goal is to be 1-0 on Saturday," Day said. "I know it's cliché, but it's real. We're going to sleep on this thing tonight, but we know in the back of our minds that we've got a really good team coming in here, a hungry team, a well-coached team and we're going to have to play really good to beat them."