College football analyst shares how Matt Patricia hiring helps Ryan Day to excel at Ohio State

Less than a month after winning the national championship, the Ohio State Buckeyes lost both coordinators. Head coach Ryan Day filled both vacancies quickly and in very different fashion.

While Day went with a couple of young assistants for the offensive coordinator position in Brian Hartline and co-coordinator Keenan Bailey, he went for the more experienced Matt Patricia to handle the defense.

ESPN analyst Greg McElroy explained what the thinking was and how Patricia, a former NFL head coach with the Detroit Lions, will help Ryan Day.

“Ryan Day, will he have maybe a little bit more of a hands-on approach to what they’re trying to do offensively? Is he going to be calling short yardage? Is he going to be calling goal line or red zone? I don’t know that… But if he felt like getting involved he can. Why? Because he now hired a guy that’s been a head coach on the defensive side,” Greg McElroy said (3:47).

Last year Day went with almost an opposite approach, hiring Chip Kelly, who had head coaching experience in both college and the pros, as the offensive coordinator. Kelly’s presence allowed the head coach to become more of a manager and not worry as much about the X’s and O’s.

“He’s hired Matt Patricia to run the defense, so he won’t have to do anything for the defense, but he can oversee some of the youth within the coaching staff on the offensive side,” Greg McElroy added.

While Kelly left to become the Las Vegas Raiders offensive coordinator, former defensive coordinator Jim Knowles signed with Big Ten rival Penn State, so the Buckeyes will have to face off against him regularly.

Who will call plays for the Ohio State offense?

Before Chip Kelly arrived in 2024. Ryan Day had been the Buckeyes' primary offensive play caller at Ohio State. His decision to hand over play calling duties to Kelly netted a national title, and at least for now, he will continue down the same route with Brian Hartline.

In an interview with WBNS-TV, Day recalled Hartline’s journey to the position he holds now. In particular, Hartline decided to stay at Ohio State despite Kelly’s arrival last year.

“Some guys would say, wait a minute, ‘I’m going somewhere else. He didn’t name me the coordinator.’ Now, he’s going to be the coordinator. Now, he’s going to call plays. That loyalty and that patience is going to pay off, and I think he’s going to be the best coordinator in the country,” Ryan day said.

While Hartline has no previous playcalling experience, he’s been a part of the Buckeyes staff since 2017, and served as co-offensive coordinator for a couple of years.

Brian Hartline will now be Ohio State’s play caller on an offense that will have wide receiver Jeremiah Smith as its main weapon.