Ryan Day said he "had an inkling" Ohio State's headsets might go down during Saturday's game at Michigan -- so the Buckeyes coach had a backup communication plan already in place.
Ohio State lost the ability to communicate over the headsets during the second half of its 27-9 win over the Wolverines.
The Buckeyes had quarterback Julian Sayin come to the sideline between plays and get the calls directly from Day before going back to the huddle, until the problem was fixed later in the half.
"I was just getting us through it until we got the headsets up and running, which took a little while to get done," Day said Tuesday. "But yeah, just by chance we had planned for it, and so we were ready to go."
Day was then asked why he had the inkling.
"You just got to be ready for anything," Day said. "When you go into any big game, you're always trying to put contingency plans in place for anything that could possibly happen."
Sayin said, after the game, that running to the sideline before each play reminded him of playing in high school. Day said he met with his assistant coaches Friday to go through the contingency plan.
"I think some of the guys on the staff were looking at me sideways," Day said, "like, 'Why would you think that would happen?' I said, 'I just don't know. We just got to be ready for anything.' It's funny how your mind works."
Day then winked, drawing several laughs.
In August, the NCAA Division I Committee on Infractions penalized Michigan after investigating the school for stealing signs through advance scouting. The NCAA fined the Wolverines at least $30 million, imposed recruiting restrictions and suspended coach Sherrone Moore three games, including next season's opener, noting it had "overwhelming" and concerning evidence of a cover-up by Michigan staff. The NCAA committee also levied an eight-year show-cause penalty for former Michigan staffer Connor Stalions and a 10-year show-cause for former coach Jim Harbaugh, now coach of the Los Angeles Chargers.
The top-ranked Buckeyes will face No. 2 Indiana in Indianapolis on Saturday, with the College Football Playoff's top overall seed on the line.
Day said his team had already put the Michigan win in the past and is "locked in" on winning the Big Ten title.
"This is going to be an electric atmosphere," he said. "It's a great opponent. This is a very important game for us. We got to go play our best."