INDIANAPOLIS (AP) – Kevin Warren introduced Ohio State’s Ryan Day at Big Ten media day, the final coach to take the stage at the two-day event, and the two men exchanged a hearty hug and smiles before posing for a photo.
“I want to congratulate Commissioner Warren on a great couple of months leading this conference into the future,” Day said Wednesday as he began his 15 minutes at the podium to talk about the Buckeyes.
A little less than two years since Warren was pilloried inside and out of the Big Ten for the conference’s decision to postpone the fall football season because of the pandemic, the 58-year-old is now sitting atop an expanding empire that has never been more powerful.
Earlier this month the Big Ten announced Southern California and UCLA will join the conference in 2024. In the coming weeks, Warren and the Big Ten are expected to unveil the conference’s new media rights deal that could be worth $1 billion annually.
To put it in sports terms, Warren’s comeback has been more impressive than Ohio State erasing a 14-point deficit to beat Utah in the Rose Bowl.