Ohio State made official on Thursday a series of football coaching hires and promotions, including Matt Patricia as defensive coordinator and Brian Hartline as offensive coordinator.
“Brian did some of his best coaching this past season,” OSU coach Ryan Day said in a statement. “His loyalty and patience are going to pay off, and I think he’s going to be the best coordinator in the country.”
Both hirings have been widely reported, as were the promotion of Billy Fessler to quarterbacks coach and the hiring of former Virginia Tech offensive coordinator Tyler Bowen as offensive line coach.
The Hartline promotion from wide receivers coach, a unit he will still coach, and that of Fessler comes after Chip Kelly’s departure to the Las Vegas Raiders. Patricia replaces Jim Knowles, who left to join Penn State.
Patricia was a longtime assistant under Bill Belichick during the New England Patriots’ dynasty. He was much less successful as head of the Detroit Lions from 2018-2020. He went 13-29-1 before his firing.
“I have been aware of and followed Matt’s successful NFL career for the past 15 years, or when he first started calling plays for those outstanding New England teams,” Day said in the press release announcing the hire. “I have also gotten to know him and, aside from his creative and outstanding abilities as a defensive coach, I think Matt is going to integrate into our program’s culture and values, which are the essence of who we are, very well.”
Hartline had the title of offensive coordinator two years ago for coach Ryan Day but did not call plays, as he is expected to in 2025. He is regarded as the top wide receivers coach in the country for his success recruiting and developing elite receivers. Under Hartline, Chris Olave, Garrett Wilson, Jaxon Smith-Njigba and Marvin Harrison Jr. became first-round…
Source link : https://sports.yahoo.com/article/ohio-state-football-makes-official-165832566.html
Author : The Columbus Dispatch
Publish date : 2025-02-20 16:58:00
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