Oller's Second Thoughts: Losing Bill O'Brien would be huge blow to Ohio State offense
Ryan Day and the Ohio State offense may be headed back to the drawing board.
Bill O’Brien arguably is Ohio State coach Ryan Day’s most important pickup of 2024, which is saying something. And now the offensive coordinator/quarterbacks coach could be leaving as quickly as he arrived.
The Boston Herald reports that O’Brien, who was at the Woody Hayes Athletic Center on Monday, is close to becoming head coach of Boston College, less than three weeks after having joined Day’s staff.
The Eagles’ job opened when Jeff Hafley, who was OSU’s defensive coordinator in 2019, resigned last week to become the Green Bay Packers’ defensive coordinator.
O’Brien, a Boston native, was part of Day’s January haul of talent that saw five players transfer in and two coaches brought in as replacements. O’Brien is set to take over for Corey Dennis as QB coach while also gaining the title of offensive coordinator. Matt Guerrieri was tabbed to replace Perry Eliano as safeties coach.
As for adding players, quarterback Will Howard arrived from Kansas State, filling a huge need at the most important position, but O’Brien would be the brains behind the operation.
The plan is for O’Brien to call the plays as Day transitions to more of a CEO role. The Buckeyes have needed more tenacity and creativity on offense, and O’Brien brings both. Losing him would be a big deal.
Where would Day turn instead? The coaching talent pool is not short on quality offensive coordinators – 59-year-old Utah OC Andy Ludwig might be a good fit, though he lacks the kind of NFL experience that can promote diversity of ideas - but O’Brien was Day’s first choice. It could prove challenging to find someone with O’Brien’s resume of having worked for multiple legendary coaches.
O’Brien has 34 years of coaching experience, including working for Bill Belichick in New England and Nick Saban at Alabama. He was head coach of the Houston Texans and also took over for Joe Paterno at Penn State, navigating the Nittany Lions program through a rough stretch precipitated by the Jerry Sandusky child sex abuse scandal.
Given family circumstances, it would be hard to fault O’Brien for an early exit. His son, Jack, is being treated in the Boston area for a rare brain condition. The 54-year-old coach also would get to run his own program. Still, his departure would drop Day’s January grade from A+ to A-.
Has time come for high school shot clock?
For years, I’ve wondered why Ohio high school basketball does not use a shot clock. Certainly, economics and lack of manpower do not favor such a move, which if implemented would dramatically change offensive and defensive strategy. Shot clocks generally cost between $2,000 and $5,000, which could prove prohibitive for smaller schools. The clock also requires an operator, which might be more problematic than the price.
Still, from a competitive standpoint it makes sense to time every possession, as 27 other states do. From a fan standpoint, it is not fun watching one team hold the ball to “shorten” the game by limiting an opponent’s scoring chances. From a player perspective, what exactly does “stalling” teach?
A Dispatch survey of central Ohio coaches and players showed widespread support for adding a shot clock, with positives ranging from speeding up the game to preparing players for the college game.
Included among the negative comments were cost concerns and a loss of strategy – i.e. slowing the game, which less talented teams sometimes rely upon to frustrate more talented opponents.
My view? The spirit of fair competition has been abused too often by coaches hellbent on having their players hold the ball forever to secure a win. Players want to play. Let them.
Listening in
“Wanna develop? Come to ostate where the position rooms be uncomfortable! Dog eat dog! #BIA” – Ohio State cornerback Denzel Burke posting on X.
Wanna develop? Come to ostate where the position rooms be uncomfortable ! Dog eat dog! #BIA
— Denzel Burke (@King10Burke) February 5, 2024
Off-topic
Every Saturday morning, lines form outside the doors of Ohio state liquor stores as bourbon drinkers show up seeking rare brands of liquid gold, which typically arrive the day before. People show up as early as 7 a.m. to secure their places in line, even though the stores don’t open until 9 a.m. That’s called dedication. Or something.
I have lined up with the multitudes twice over the past five years without success; the rare stuff was long gone by the time I reached the door.
I mention all this because there are weeks when the stores receive no shipments of the hard-to-find bourbon, yet not every store chooses to pass the that message to those waiting in line. It’s bad enough to miss out on Blanton’s or E.H. Taylor, even worse to wait an hour or longer in line for no reason. A simple, “Nothing this week” sign on the door would do.
This article originally appeared on The Columbus Dispatch: ohio state football needs experienced Bill O'Brien to run its offense
