Patricia replaces Jim Knowles, who left shortly after the national championship game to take the same position at Penn State, while Hartline is taking the spot of Chip Kelly, who was hired as the offensive coordinator of the Las Vegas Raiders in the NFL.
Kelly also had the title of quarterbacks coach, a role that is going to Billy Fessler, who served as an analyst working with the quarterbacks last season and frequently received unsolicited praise from starter Will Howard.
Fessler is in his second stint with Ohio State, having worked with Justin Fields and C.J. Stroud in 2020 and ’21 before spending two seasons at Akron as quarterbacks coach then offensive coordinator.
Keenan Bailey also received a new title. Along with coaching tight ends, as he has done since 2022, he will serve as co-offensive coordinator in his 10th season at Ohio State. He has worked with running backs and receivers along with the tight ends in his tenure and has been regarded as a rising star in the profession for a few years.
Credit: DaytonDailyNews
Rounding out the coaching staff will be new offensive line coach Tyler Bowen, who spent the last three seasons at Virginia Tech, and Carlos Locklyn, who is set for his second season as Ohio State running backs coach.
“I am really pleased to announce the addition of Tyler Bowen and his family to our coaching staff,” Day said in a release. “He’s a terrific coach who will bring experience to the staff along with an excellent record as a recruiter.”
A Maryland native, Bowen has also worked at Penn State, Maryland, Fordham and for the Jacksonville Jaguars.
On the other side of the ball, Tim Walton and Matt Guerrieri were promoted to co-defensive coordinator and pass game coordinator, respectively.
Walton has been cornerbacks coach at Ohio State, his alma mater, since 2022 and has the title of secondary coach while also gaining a reputation as one of the nation’s top recruiters.
Credit: DaytonDailyNews
Guerrieri joined the staff as safeties coach last season after a year as co-defensive coordinator at Indiana. Prior to that, he spent one season as an analyst at Ohio State and spent 10 seasons at Duke, where he was a top lieutenant for Knowles.
Veteran defensive line coach Larry Johnson also is returning along with James Laurinaitis, who is entering his second season as the full-time linebackers coach.
Patricia, 50, is a career NFL coach who last worked in the college ranks in 2003, when he was a graduate assistant at Syracuse.
He left that post to become assistant offensive line coach for the New England Patriots then worked his way up to the team’s defensive coordinator.
He had that title under head coach Bill Belichick from 2012-17 after coaching the team’s linebackers then safeties.
In Patricia’s time with New England, the Patriots won three Super Bowls (2004, 2014 and ’16).
He also served as head coach of the Detroit Lions from 2018-2020 but was fired after posting a 13-29-1 record.
Patricia then went back to New England for a year as an assistant on the offensive side of the ball then spent 2023 on the staff of the Philadelphia Eagles.
“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 a news release. “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 is a former Ohio State player who has been a coach at Ohio State since 2017 and developed a reputation as one of the top recruiters and developers of receivers in the country.
He was promoted to offensive coordinator in 2023 but did not call plays then took a backseat to Kelly last fall.
Credit: DaytonDailyNews
“Brian did some of his best coaching this past season,” Day said in the release. “His loyalty and patience are going to pay off, and I think he’s going to be the best coordinator in the country.”
Ohio State is set to begin spring football March 17, about two weeks later than usual as a result of the 2024 season not ending until the win over Notre Dame in the National Championship Game on Jan. 20.
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