Ohio State Buckeyes head coach Ryan Day gave the Tennessee Vols a compliment on Tuesday morning while discussing his team's win in the College Football Playoff championship game. The Buckeyes capped off an incredible post-season run by beating Notre Dame 34-23 on Monday night to claim Ohio State's ninth national championship.

As much as Ohio State's passionate supporters — and some within the media — had written off Day, his family and his team never lost hope.

Those narratives seem silly now, even preposterous. That loss to Michigan at The Horseshoe feels like an eternity ago.