The Ohio State football program missed out on Caleb Downs when they were recruiting him out of high school. They fell second to Alabama, which was disappointing for them. Once Nick Saban retired, that gave Ohio State the opportunity to bring him to Columbus.
When he was being recruited by Ohio State and Ryan Day after he entered the Transfer Portal, Day felt good about being able to bring him in. After finishing second, Ohio State was logically going to be the next choice. That doesn't mean that Downs didn't want Day to sweat a little.