Former Ohio State starter sends strong message to Ryan Day regarding another coaching staff firing he wants to see happen
The Ohio State Buckeyes moved on from their special teams coordinator on Monday morning, and it’s likely not their last move of that kind.
The Ohio State Buckeyes have made their first firing of the 2026 college football season. Ryan Day opted to fire special teams coordinator Robby Discher following the loss to Oregon. Ohio State gave up a fake punt to the Ducks that flipped the momentum of the game before halftime, and the Buckeyes never recovered.
It’s been an unfortunate season in Columbus. Ohio State already has three losses through its first nine games. With that third loss, the Buckeyes are all but a lock to miss the College Football Playoff this season, one year before the field expands to 24 teams.
Discher likely isn’t the last coaching staff change Ohio State is going to make. The Buckeyes could see numerous changes to a staff that hasn’t gotten it done this season, and one former Ohio State star already has a target in mind.
Dan ‘Boom’ Herron calls for Ohio State to move on from Arthur Smith
Former Ohio State starter Dan “Boom” Herron, who ran for nearly 3,000 yards in his Buckeyes career, took to Twitter on Monday morning with a message for Day about offensive coordinator Arthur Smith.
“Coach Day we want Arthur Smith gone by noon today,” Herron posted on X.
Herron’s post shows what the fan base has been feeling online since the loss to Oregon. The Ohio State offense disappeared in the second and third quarters after a 14-0 start. From there, the Buckeyes scored only two touchdowns in garbage time when the game was already decided.
Ohio State’s offense has taken a step back
Ohio State’s offense has regressed this season, and that was never supposed to happen. The Buckeyes returned four of five starters on the offensive line. Wide receiver Jeremiah Smith was back, along with quarterback Julian Sayin.
Sayin suffered a season-ending injury against Indiana a couple of weeks ago. Even before then, the offense had real problems. Ohio State hasn’t been able to run the football at a consistent rate all year. The numbers back that up, too. Ohio State is 77th in FBS in rushing yards per game at 147.7. Smith was expected to come in, reshape the run game, and help it take off. That hasn’t happened.
Overall, the Buckeyes’ offense is a lesser product than it was last year, when first-year offensive coordinator Brian Hartline called plays. That’s a real red flag for a program with this much talent on that side of the ball.
Arthur Smith always felt like a short-term hire
Smith always felt like a short-term coordinator hire for Day. He came to Columbus from the NFL after serving as the Pittsburgh Steelers’ offensive coordinator the last couple of seasons. It wouldn’t be a surprise to see the Buckeyes move on after just one season of him calling plays.
Smith doesn’t necessarily deserve all the blame, but a lot of it falls on his shoulders. The play calling over the last couple of games with freshman quarterback Luke Fahey has been questionable at best.
If Ohio State does move on from its offensive coordinator, the change may not happen until after the season. Still, momentum feels like it’s pushing in that direction. Time will tell whether Day agrees with Herron and much of the fan base.
