COLUMBUS, Ohio – Urban Meyer, who coached 17 collegiate teams to a record of 186-32, three national championships and  the third-highest winning percentage in the history of major college football, will retire from coaching following Ohio State’s appearance Jan. 1 at the Rose Bowl Game.

Ryan Day, the Ohio State offensive coordinator and quarterbacks coach who led the team to a 3-0 record at the start of this season, will take over as head coach of the program on Jan. 2. Day, 39, will be the 25th head coach in program history.

Meyer formally announced his retirement from coaching at a news conference where Ohio State Senior Vice-President and Director of Athletics Gene Smith also announced the hiring of Day as coach.

Meyer, the only coach to win national championships coaching teams in two different conferences, is completing his seventh season as Ohio State head coach after also coaching at Bowling Green, Utah and Florida. His Ohio State teams are 82-9, including a 7-0 record vs. Michigan and a 54-4 record in the Big Ten Conference with seven consecutive divisional championships and three Big Ten championships.

“It has been an honor to represent for the last seven years this football program, my home state of Ohio, this university and community that I care so deeply about,” Meyer said. “I am grateful to Buckeye Nation, the students, faculty, our administration and, most importantly, our student-athletes for their support and respect for this program during this time.”

Day is in his second year in Columbus after two seasons in the National Football League and 13 additional seasons in the collegiate ranks. The impact he has had on the program in such a short time has been considerable.

 “I am truly honored to be here and am so appreciative to President Drake and Gene Smith for the faith they have in me to lead this team,” Day said. “I love this program and its student-athletes and I want Buckeye Nation to know how hard we are going to work to ensure this program remains the very best in the country.