The Ohio State Buckeyes will hire former NFL defensive coordinator Matt Patricia for the same role.
Ryan Day and the Buckeyes won the National Championship this year, but felt offseason attrition in a big way. Ohio State lost both its coordinators – Chip Kelly and Jim Knowles – to the Las Vegas Raiders and Big Ten rival Penn State, respectively.
After promoting Brian Hartline to offensive coordinator, Day decided to tab Patricia as his DC.
“Ohio State is finalizing a deal to hire Matt Patricia as the school’s new defensive coordinator,” ESPN’s Pete Thamel reported on Wednesday.
Ohio State’s hiring of Patricia is curious. At best. Patricia might have a resume that features Super Bowl championships and an NFL head coaching job. He might have three of those Super Bowls. But as most will tell you, he won’t receive any credit for those titles anytime soon.
Patricia had an infamously bad stint as head coach of the Detroit Lions. The Philadelphia Eagles hired him late last year, but he didn’t help them too much either.
So, in other words, Michigan fans likely already despised Patricia enough. They don’t need a reason, but the Buckeyes certainly just gave them one.
Resentment from the Ohio State fanbase followed this hire, as fans didn’t feel there was much to justify it. It’s a curious decision for a program that’s clearly still heading in the right direction. However, after a series of hiccups over the years, Ohio State might be susceptible to one here too.
About Chris Novak
Chris Novak has been talking and writing about sports ever since he can remember. Previously, Novak wrote for and managed sites in the SB Nation network for nearly a decade from 2013-2022