What I Know, What I Think, What I Wonder – The Coaching Carousel Edition

I know the coaching carousel is a crazy business and there’s really no way to make it less crazy. Most coaches are climbing a ladder, and they’re trying to recruit high school kids to each rung on which they are currently standing. But that doesn’t necessarily mean the climbing has stopped. The coaches all have a job to do, but it’s also understood in the business that almost everybody is looking for something better. It’s hard for that to then not come across to recruits or players who have signed.

I think being the Ohio State offensive coordinator is going to rejuvenate and refuel Chip Kelly now that he’s not torn in so many different directions. The fact that he signed a three-year deal is a signal that he’ll be here for at least two years. He and Ryan Day are projecting the idea that Kelly isn’t a stopgap.

I wonder who Ohio State’s next play caller will be after Chip Kelly. This should be a good opportunity for Brian Hartline to learn at the feet of two experts. It doesn’t get much better than Kelly and Ryan Day, so I assume he’s going to be soaking it all in should he want to pursue calling plays.

I know that I initially had some questions about Chip Kelly as a recruiter but Ryan Day is the true quarterback recruiter, so I don’t believe that’s a concern. And Kelly on staff certainly isn’t going to hurt matters with quarterbacks.

I think Chip Kelly’s contract also signifies what I said earlier – he’s looking forward to coaching again. And he’s going to have more talent than he’s had in a long time with which to work. Ohio State is an enticing place to work. It’s one reason why you have an analyst like Todd Fitch sticking around making $250,000 per year (at least last year), rather than going and making that much or more somewhere else as a position coach. This is going to be his fourth year at OSU, and this is after spending many years as an offensive coordinator at other places. When Ryan Day talked about how players around the nation took notice of OSU’s juniors returning and they see OSU as a destination, the current Buckeyes also see the same in the coaching staff. Many could leave but they haven’t. Brian Hartline could leave. James Laurinaitis could be in the NFL right now or a full-fledged assistant elsewhere at big-time schools. Keenan Bailey has hung around despite having opportunities elsewhere. Coaches like working for Ryan Day.

I wonder how big the blowouts would have been if any of the 2019 LSU, Clemson, or Ohio State teams were in the playoffs in 2023.

To read the rest of this extended edition of What I Know, What I Think, What I Wonder, you can click here, but you’ll need to be a premium subscriber. Additional topics include the downside of coaching movement, the upside of a former Buckeye quarterback making his way in the coaching profession, players learning from mercenary coaches, much more on Chip Kelly, positive thoughts on Josh Simmons, the benefit of Bill O’Brien’s brief stay at OSU, the hurt feelings of Southern Football, and much, much more.

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