The Ohio State Buckeyes won the College Football Playoff national title last month with a victory over Notre Dame in the title game, but it sounds like the team will now have to replace one of the coaches who helped make that run possible.
According to a report from college football insider Pete Thamel of ESPN, Ohio State offensive line coach Justin Frye is leaving Ohio State to become the next offensive line coach of the Arizona Cardinals.
“Sources: Ohio State offensive line coach Justin Frye is expected to become the offensive line coach of the Arizona Cardinals. Frye is a veteran OL coach with stops at UCLA, Boston College and Temple. Frye was also offensive coordinator during his time at UCLA under Chip Kelly,” Thamel said in a post on X, the social media website that was formerly known as Twitter.
This season, Frye had his work cut out for him as the Buckeyes suffered two devastating injuries on their offensive line midway through the season, losing future first-round pick Josh Simmons at left tackle and eventual Rimington Award winner Seth Mclaughlin at center.
Despite losing their two best offensive linemen, Ohio State was able to rally and dominate the trenches throughout the College Football Playoff.
Now heading to Arizona, Frye is set to reunite with former Ohio State left tackle Paris Johnson Jr., who played for Frye for one season before becoming a first-round pick by the Cardinals in the 2023 NFL draft.
Frye now becomes the second coach Ohio State will have to replace this offseason after the departure of defensive coordinator Jim Knowles, who left to become the next defensive coordinator for the Penn State Nittany Lions.
We’ll have to see who Ohio State targets to replace Frye.
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