Ryan Day got the last laugh on Lou Holtz.
The Ohio State apparently heard Lou Holtz’s critique of his team as soft earlier in the week and let the nation know he wasn’t happy about it after the No. 6 Buckeyes pulled off a thrilling 17-14 win over the ninth-ranked Notre Dame Fighting Irish on Saturday night in South Bend, Ind.
The 44-year-old Day was fired up when it was over, criticizing the former Irish coach Holtz, who called out the Buckeyes toughness in predicting a Fighting Irish victory earlier this week.
“I’d like to know where Lou Holtz is right now,” Day said during a postgame interview with NBC. “What he said about our team, I cannot believe. This is a tough team right here. We’re proud to be from Ohio.
“It’s always been Ohio against the world, and it’ll continue to be Ohio against the world. But I’ll tell you what: I love those kids. We’ve got a tough team.”
The 86-year-old Holtz, who led Notre Dame to the 1988 national championship, took some big shots at Day and Ohio State football program before kickoff.
“Notre Dame wins by 10. I believe that in my heart. … Notre Dame is a better football team than Ohio State,” Holtz said on “The Pat McAfee Show” on Friday. “And let me tell you why. We have the best offensive line in the country. Sam Hartman won’t even get his jersey dirty all year. He has time to throw the football. … We have great running backs. This team is averaging about 10 yards per carry. We have great receivers, so offensively, we’re set. Defensively, our defensive line’s better.
“You look at Coach (Ryan) Day — and I coached at Ohio State under Woody Hayes. We won the national championship when I was there. I’m proud of that. However, (Day) has lost to Alabama, Georgia, Clemson and Michigan twice. And everybody that beats him does so because they are more physical than Ohio State. And I think Notre Dame will take that same approach.”
Holtz’s Irish were close to having the last laugh but fell just a second short.
Ohio State quarterback Kyle McCord converted play after play on the final drive, capped with a perfectly executed 1-yard scoring plunge by Chip Trayanum with 1 second left to give the Buckeyes the win — and Ryan Day the last laugh.
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