Sources: Ryan Day’s Ohio State staff welcomes Bill O’Brien as OC
Bill O’Brien, a former NFL head coach, is expected to join Ohio State as the next offensive coordinator, sources informed ESPN on Thursday. According to insiders, coach Ryan Day has been considering hiring an experienced coordinator this summer who would enable him to relinquish playcalling responsibilities. This decision could lead to changes within the OSU program.
In 2023, O’Brien was the offensive coordinator for the New England Patriots. He has a wealth of experience in both college and the NFL as a playcaller and quarterback developer. Ohio State will have an offensive coordinator in O’Brien who previously worked with Tom Brady, Deshaun Watson, and Bryce Young at Alabama during some of their greatest seasons. Under O’Brien’s coaching, Young won the Heisman Trophy in 2021, and Alabama’s scoring offense, which averaged 39.9 and 41.1 points per game, placed them in the top 10 in both of his seasons as coordinator. This season, Ohio State’s offensive has decreased to 30.5 points per game from 44.2 the previous campaign.
O’Brien led the Texans to a winning record five times and made it to the playoffs four times in his seven years as an NFL head coach (2014โ2020). In 2020, he had a 0โ4 start and was let go after 52โ48 games. O’Brien has head coaching experience in the Big Ten as well. In 2012, he succeeded Joe Paterno as head coach of Penn State, going 15-9 in his first two seasons. The most memorable thing about his tenure there is that he helped Penn State deal with the aftermath of Jerry Sandusky’s misdeeds by acting as a reliable recruiter.
In 2010, when O’Brien was coaching the quarterbacks, Brady was named the NFL MVP. (The next season, O’Brien was formally named offensive coordinator; New England did not list an offensive playcaller for that season.) Day has made major program changes in the wake of three straight defeats to Michigan and a two-game losing streak to close up the 2023 campaign. Ohio State made the decision to not rehire two assistant coaches, the safeties. special teams coach Parker Fleming and head coach Perry Eliano.
Following the conclusion of the Ohio State season, a number of draft-eligible players have returned for a second season, and the school’s collective appears ready to make a big investment as evidenced by the high-profile signings made through the transfer portal. Star wide receiver Emeka Egbuka, tailback TreVeyon Henderson, and guard Donovan Jackson are among the offensive players that are back for a fourth season. All were thought to be guys who would seriously contemplate the NFL going into the previous season.
Will Howard, a former Kansas State quarterback, transferred to the Ohio State Buckeyes for his final year of eligibility through the NCAA transfer site, and Quinshon Judkins, a two-time All-SEC tailback, transferred from Ole Miss. Seth McLaughlin, a center from Alabama, was also added by Ohio State to the portal. O’Brien began working at Brown in 1993 and is a 1993 graduate. Prior to becoming an offensive coach on the Patriots staff in 2007, he held positions at Georgia Tech, Maryland, and Duke.