UPDATE: Oklahoma State defensive coordinator Knowles leaving for Ohio State

Dec. 7—After engineering the Oklahoma State defense's transformation into a nationally acclaimed unit, Jim Knowles is saying goodbye to Stillwater.

Knowles, the Cowboy football team's defensive coordinator for four seasons, is heading to Ohio State, coach Ryan Day announced Tuesday. Day disclosed his hire of Knowles in a statement that was widely circulated on social media after multiple prominent reporters shared it.

"I have offered a position on the Ohio State football staff to Oklahoma State University defensive coordinator Jim Knowles and he has accepted it," the statement read. "Starting Jan. 2, Knowles will be the Buckeyes' new defensive coordinator."

This means Knowles will start at Ohio State one day after the No. 9 Cowboys face fifth-ranked Notre Dame in the Fiesta Bowl. The No. 6 Buckeyes will also compete on New Year's Day, facing 11th-ranked Utah in the Rose Bowl.

Day alluded to this in his statement, saying the Buckeyes "will continue our planning and preparation for the game with our current staff of 10 assistant coaches." Kerry Coombs, a former NFL cornerbacks coach, has been Ohio State's defensive coordinator since January 2020.

The news about Knowles' new job broke only a few hours after he delivered a speech in Little Rock, Arkansas, as one of five finalists for the Broyles Award, which went to Michigan offensive coordinator/receivers coach Josh Gattis. Knowles became the second coach and the only defensive coordinator to represent OSU as a finalist since the award's establishment in 1996.

Knowles, OSU's defensive coordinator since January 2018, has guided the Cowboys to prominence in multiple categories. OSU leads the nation in team sacks (55 with 4.23 per game) as well as tackles for loss (8.5 per game for a total loss of 486 yards).

Several of the Cowboys' defensive players, including super senior linebacker Devin Harper, took to Twitter to react to the news of their beloved coach's departure.

"Blessing to a new beginning @CoachJimKnowles," Harper tweeted. "The best coach and person around!! Go be GREAT!!" He included a GIF that reads, "It's GOAT time," reinforcing his point about Knowles' greatness.

Freshman edge rusher Collin Oliver, who leads the Cowboys with 11.5 sacks, also shared a message for Knowles on Twitter.

"Although I hate to see him go, I'm happy I got to spend my first year with @CoachJimKnowles," Oliver said. "He taught me so much I never knew. Extremely excited for my coach he got what he earned!!"

As OSU's season neared its end, fans and defensive players had fervently campaigned for a contract extension that would keep Knowles in Stillwater.

Redshirt senior edge rusher Brock Martin was especially vocal on Twitter, saying, "Give Knowles his blank check, close your eyes and hope he doesn't take as much as he deserves."

On a Zoom conference Sunday to preview the Fiesta Bowl, coach Mike Gundy said athletic director Chad Weiberg and president Dr. Kayse Shrum had spent weeks in conversation with Knowles about his contract. Before the Big 12 Championship Game, Gundy said he was "fairly certain" Knowles would stay in Stillwater for the next season, though he acknowledged nothing is guaranteed as the coaching carousel remains active.

After the news of Knowles' departure surfaced, Pokes Report's Robert Allen reported that a source said Ohio State had extended a multi-year contract of $1.9 million with a signing bonus, resulting in a total of $2 million per year, to Knowles. Allen also said Knowles has been making $800,000 annually, and sources informed Pokes Report that Oklahoma State was presenting him a five-year contract at $1.3 million per year, adding up to $6.5 million.

If Knowles' yearly salary increases to $2 million, this would put him in the upper echelon of college assistants. For perspective, when now-OU head coach Brent Venables was Clemson's defensive coordinator, his contract extension earlier this year of $2.5 million per year made his salary the highest of any assistant football coach in the nation.

Ohio State's athletic department has a considerably larger budget than Oklahoma State's does. In fiscal year 2020, the Ohio State University Department of Athletics had a revenue of $233,871,740, according to a press release. That same year, Oklahoma State's athletic department had a total operating revenue of $93,608,058, per public records.

In addition to likely receiving more pay, Knowles has the opportunity to move closer to home. Knowles, 56, is from Philadelphia. Although Ohio State's campus is about 470 miles from his home city, it's not nearly as far as Stillwater, which is more than 1,300 miles from Philadelphia.

As a Cornell graduate, Knowles has become known for his "scientist"-like approach to football and his abilities to make quick halftime adjustments. Before landing a job in Stillwater, he spent eight years at Duke, and he was Cornell's head coach from 2004-09.

In his speech at the Broyles ceremony, Knowles said when he arrived at Oklahoma State, Gundy had already established a "winning culture," but there was room for defensive progress.

"We had to make the defense successful and accountable," Knowles said. "The players believed. They put up with me early on, when I had some not nice things to say every now and then, but they put up with me."

Since 2018, he has led the Cowboys through steady progress, changing perceptions of defense in a Big 12 Conference that has been previously known for high-scoring offenses.

During his first year, OSU gave up 452.5 yards per game. One season later, the Cowboys allowed 412.3 yards per game, and in 2020, the number decreased to 379.

This season, that number dropped by 100.6 yards per game, ranking third among all FBS defenses. Through 13 games, including the Big 12 Conference Championship, the Cowboys limited every opponent to 33 points or fewer, giving up an average of only 16.77 points per game.

Along with leading the nation in sacks and tackles for loss, OSU's defensive unit ranks second in third-down conversion percentage, sixth in fourth-down conversion percentage and ninth in first downs defense.

Throughout the defensive metamorphosis, Knowles established himself as a gruff but caring mentor for the Cowboys. In his Broyles speech, he mentioned how today's generation of football players want to be challenged and pushed to work hard, but "they have to know that you love them."

Although the Cowboys will have to adjust to playing for a new defensive coordinator, their appreciation for Knowles was clear in their Twitter messages. Los Angeles Chargers linebacker Amen Ogbongbemiga, a former Cowboy star, also chimed in, saying he is happy for Knowles and telling Ohio State fans they are "in great hands."

"When he first came to Oklahoma State he told me he always had a dream of coaching at the highest level," Ogbongbemiga said. "Good things happen to good people."