At the exact halfway point between Ohio State’s regular-season finale against Michigan and the Buckeyes’ College Football Playoff game against Georgia, we thought today would be the perfect time to have Kyle Jones on Real Pod Wednesdays to break down what happened against the Wolverines and what could happen against the Bulldogs.

Eleven Warriors’ scheme expert joins us right from the jump of this week’s episode to dive into more than 30 minutes of X’s and O’s chatter, and we don’t beat around the bush, starting right off the bat with a conversation about what didn’t work in the loss to Michigan and why Ohio State used the game plan it did against the Wolverines.

We also discuss whether Ryan Day should (and why he probably won’t) give up offensive play calling and evaluate the overall progress of Ohio State’s defense in Jim Knowles’ first year before looking ahead to the impending matchup with Georgia and assessing the Buckeyes’ chances of beating the Bulldogs.

In the second half of the show, Dan and Griffin discuss all of the other headlines surrounding Ohio State football this week including the hiring of Keenan Bailey as tight ends coach, why Gene Smith felt compelled to make a statement calling for “additional support” of NIL collectives and what questions remain for Ohio State’s 2023 recruiting class with one week to go until the early signing period.

The rundown of topics discussed on this week’s show:

• 0:55: Most of Ohio State’s game plan against Michigan was actually sound despite the results
• 6:58: Ohio State’s offense played not to lose, which it can’t do in big games
• 10:00: It doesn’t look like Ryan Day will give up play calling, but there’s a case that he should
• 15:27: Jim Knowles’ defensive turnaround was always going to be a multi-year process
• 17:45: Ohio State ran a different defensive scheme against Michigan rather than being who it’s been all year
• 19:12: Georgia is a great team, but its film isn’t as impressive as many of Ohio State’s previous CFP opponents
• 22:24: Ohio State’s receivers should have opportunities to make plays against Georgia, but they have to take advantage
• 25:25: Georgia’s offense isn’t necessarily spectacular in any area, but it’s extremely well-coached
• 28:33: Ohio State must make Georgia throw deep and must know where Jalen Carter is at all times
• 31:59: The Buckeyes are capable of beating Georgia, but they can’t play the way they did down the stretch
• 33:50: Keenan Bailey’s promotion is well-deserved
• 35:47: Ohio State won’t name a new offensive coordinator until after the season, but an internal promotion appears likely
• 38:15: Most of Tuesday’s Ryan Day press conference wasn’t about Georgia, which speaks to how crazy December is
• 42:58: Ryan Day says NIL has become “the conversation” among recruits, and it’s telling that Gene Smith felt the need to make a statement
• 47:20: Fans deserve more answers about where the NIL collective money is going, and they don’t deserve guilt trips if they don’t donate
• 53:47: Ohio State’s 2023 recruiting class could use another jolt of star power
• 57:25: Marvin Harrison Jr. should have won the Biletnikoff Award, but being a unanimous All-American ain’t bad
• 58:56: C.J. Stroud, Justin Fields and Dwayne Haskins are three of Ohio State’s best quarterbacks ever, but none will have a tree in Buckeye Grove
• 1:00:03: Ohio State’s win over Rutgers was still a good win even if Tanner Holden’s three shouldn’t have counted
• 1:02:22: The Buckeyes might actually be favored to beat North Carolina on Saturday