During Saturday’s pregame Skull Session at St. John Arena, the message from Ohio State coach Ryan Day, linebacker Cody Simon and graduate assistant James Laurinaitis was consistent: They’ve talked all week about turning up the intensity, and they‘re ready to show it on the field against Western Kentucky this afternoon.
“As always, when we come to the Skull Session, we come to recognize the best damn fans and the best damn band in the nation. But today we’ve also come to let you know that this team is about to take the next step,” Day said. “We have to take the next step. We’re going to turn everything up today, and we’ll see you guys in two hours.”
“All week, we’ve been talking about turning up the intensity,” Simon said. “The culture here is built on fight. We fight for our brothers right next to us every play, every game. We just want to give you guys the best show possible and go out there and kick some butt.”
Laurinaitis, who became the first-ever graduate assistant to speak at a Skull Session, told the crowd inside St. John Arena that “you guys are gonna be extremely proud of these young men behind me.”
“They have practiced extremely hard. They’ve studied. They’ve prepared. They’re gonna go 4 to 6, A to B, plus 2, through the echo of the whistle today. I promise you that,” Laurinaitis said, imploring the crowd to “be the loudest fans in the country.”
