Sonny Styles has completed his career at Ohio State and is looking to be a top pick in the 2026 NFL Draft. As part of making sure Styles is selected high, his former coach at Ohio State, Ryan Day, is making the rounds, stumping for his former player.
Day spent some time on Wednesday morning with Kevin Clark of This is Football speaking of Styles, and shared the story of the moment the coach decided it was time to retire from basketball.
“Well, it started when he was in seventh and eighth grade because we were recruiting Lorenzo, his older brother. So they would come in, and I remember it was the last time I ever really played basketball one-on-one,” Day started. “We were in the indoor here, and we were having an event in July right before camp started. Lorenzo is here. We went into the basketball area, and we were messing around, and I said, well, ‘come on, little guy lets go play one-on-one.' He took two dribbles and dunked on me.”
The younger Styles is one of the top athletes in the draft, and that athleticism began at a young age, leading to a decision for Day.
“That was the last time I played basketball, because an eighth grader dunked on me,” Day finished.
Styles would go on to play both football and basketball in high school at Pickerington Central High School in Pickerington, Ohio. He teamed up with current Buckeye basketball player Devin Royal to lead his team to a high school state championship in basketball. Styles decided to go the football route, committing to Ohio State.
He saw playing time in 2022 as a freshman and became a starting safety in 2023 for the Buckeyes. Styles would move to linebacker and be named a first-team All-American in 2025.
While Day may never play basketball again, Styles may not be playing much either, as he will be off to the NFL. Styles is expected to hear his name called early at the draft when it starts on April 23.
