RJ Day, the son of Ohio State's football head coach Ryan Day, took a surprising step in his collegiate career. The quarterback chose to commit to Northwestern Wildcats over his father's team.

RJ recently addressed the reason behind his decision in front of his father to Fan Stream Sports on May 11.

" I don't think that Ohio State will be a good fit for me. So it's not about the size of the school for me. And I have said this to pretty much anybody who has recruited me. It's about the fit and the people that are in the building," Day said.

He lands as the fifth member at Northwestern beginning in 2027 as a part of coach David Braun's class. RJ will play under Wildcats new offensive coordinator, Chip Kelly. 

Kelly also happened to coach RJ's father at New Hampshire, where Ryan was a record setter from 1998 to 2001.

Before picking his college, RJ made a string of visits to colleges like Clemson, Iowa State, Kentucky, Northwestern, UCLA, and Virginia Tech. There was no shortage of offers either. South Florida also came calling, but RJ had made up his mind on Northwestern.

However, everyone is confused as to why RJ felt compelled to pick Northwestern over Ohio State.

"I want to do something on my own.. A lot of my life has been about being someone's son. I feel personally that I want to go do something for myself, make a name for myself instead of just being someone's son," RJ clarifies.

Looking to come out of his father's shadow seems to be why RJ has distanced himself from aligning with Ohio State.

Despite not having his father to guide him at Northwestern, he will get to play under coach Kelly, who had helped his father become a star at New Hampshire.

RJ Day Unites With His Father's Former Coach

RJ won't get to work with his father Ryan Day at Ohio State but will have a familiar face in Chip Kelly supervising him. Kelly will be the perfect mentor for RJ. It was under Kelly that Ryan found great success during his collegiate career.

Kelly was Ryan Day's offensive coordinator during his time at New Hampshire. It was under him that Ryan set nine school records. Kelly even reunited with his former student as OC at Ohio State, guiding the Buckeyes to the 2024 National Championship.

Many believe it was Kelly's presence that made RJ choose Northwestern. Even RJ has accepted that influence he has over his family.

"It's really surreal when you think about the relationships that we've had with those two as a family over the years. Coach Kelly coached my dad in college, so that adds another layer to it," said RJ

RJ Day is no doubt a talented player, and his career-leading passing yards in college back it up. He accumulated (5,714) passing yards and (54) touchdowns at DeSales High School. 

He set single-season program records in both categories (2,710 yards, 25 touchdowns) as a junior last fall, according to Chicago Sun Times.

Read more at the Michigan Football Community

Written by

Sourav Ganguly

Edited by

Rishab Nandi