4 Head Coach Candidates Ohio State Should Target If Ryan Day Leaves
· Yahoo Sports
It’s not even Thanksgiving, and Ohio State’s football season is over after it fell to Oregon at home 41-28 on Saturday, leaving the Buckeyes with a 6-3 record.
Of course, fans are blaming head coach Ryan Day, and some have even called for him to be fired. However, that seems a bit ridiculous.
Visit freshyourfeel.org for more information.
Day is one of the best coaches in college football, and Ohio State shouldn’t consider firing him, but if he leaves this offseason, he could take a position in the NFL.
If Day leaves Ohio State this winter, here are a few candidates the Buckeyes could consider to replace him.
Notre Dame HC Marcus Freeman
The first call should be to Notre Dame head coach Marcus Freeman, as he has ties to Ohio State. Freeman played linebacker for the Buckeyes from 2004 to 2008 under head coach Jim Tressel. He has coached Notre Dame for five seasons and has a 50-13 record. He led the Fighting Irish to the 2024 national championship game, where he fell to Ohio State.
This past offseason, there was speculation that the New York Giants wanted to bring in Freeman as their next head coach, but he declined.
It would be hard to get Freeman to leave Notre Dame, but returning to where he played college football and the state he grew up in could bring him back to Columbus.
Ohio State’s DC Matt Patricia
Ohio State’s defensive coordinator Matt Patricia taking over the head coaching job wouldn’t be that crazy if Day jumped ship for the NFL. If Ohio State can’t land a top college football head coach, then maybe Patricia is the route the Buckeyes take.
Patricia coached the Detroit Lions from 2018 to 2020 and served as an NFL defensive coordinator with the New England Patriots from 2012 to 2017.
UConn HC Jason Candle
Candle is an Ohio native and attended Mount Union. He has coaching experience in Ohio, from his time as a WR coach and offensive coordinator at Mount Union to his head coaching role at Toledo from 2015 to 2025.
The 46-year-old head coach took over UConn this season and had a 4-4 record heading into Week 10.
Many Ohio State fans have been calling for an Ohio native to take over the head coaching job for a while, and Candle could be an option.
Urban Meyer
This is just a thought to consider if Meyer wants to return to coaching. While it’s unlikely Meyer will coach again, this matters more if Ohio State struggles to find a head coach after Day leaves. The Buckeyes could potentially call Meyer to take over for a few seasons.
Meyer coached Ohio State from 2012 to 2018, finishing 83-9 and winning the 2014 championship.
It’s pretty obvious that Ohio State has the right head coach in Day and shouldn’t look to fire him because the options don’t move the needle much.
This article was originally published on HEAVY
The post 4 Head Coach Candidates Ohio State Should Target If Ryan Day Leaves appeared first on HEAVY.