Bill O’Brien, a former NFL coach, has joined Ohio State as the new offensive coordinator, the team announced on Friday.
According to insiders, coach Ryan Day of Ohio State has been considering hiring an experienced coordinator in order to relieve him of playcalling responsibilities. This move could lead to a change in the 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.
“[O’Brien] brings with him a wealth of knowledge — and a tremendous amount of success — at both the NFL and collegiate levels,” Day stated in a statement. “Over his career, he has developed some truly elite players and run NFL and Power 5 programs. He is an excellent and experienced offensive coach.” He strengthens our personnel and will be a great teacher and recruiter for us.”
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.
Over his seven years (2014–20) as an NFL head coach, O’Brien guided the Houston Texans to five winning seasons and four postseason appearances. In 2020, he had a 0–4 start and was let go after 52–48 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 designated as the offensive coordinator since New England failed to specify an offensive playcaller for that campaign.
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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. Perry Eliano, the assistant coach for safety, and Parker Fleming, the coach for special teams, were not rehired by Ohio State.
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 Buckeyes for his final season of eligibility through the transfer portal, while 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.
