Ohio State Offensive Coordinator Search: List of potential candidates has a new name with a clear connection to Buckeyes

Ohio State still has a big decision to make on its next offensive coordinator.

AJ Schulte, Brandon Little
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The transfer portal has come and gone for the most part and there’s been plenty of change with the Ohio State Buckeyes. 

North of 30 players exited the program while Ohio State brought in 16 new players from the portal. Now that portal adoptions are over for the most part, Ohio State will turn its attention to hiring an offensive coordinator ahead of spring ball. 

Let’s start the week with an updated list of potential candidates to take over for Brian Hartline. Ryan Day has a key decision on his hands this offseason. 

Ohio State tight ends coach Keenan Bailey 

The Buckeyes very well could go with an inside elevation even if that isn’t the popular route that fans want to see. Hartline being elevated to the offensive coordinator didn’t go well in the end and there’s some worry with that happening again. Bailey is the most likely candidate to be put into the OC spot and currently is the co-offensive coordinator in addition to coaching tight ends 

Bailey joined Ohio State in 2016 and was an offensive intern for three seasons. The Ohio State assistant has worked under both Urban Meyer and Coach Day. This could be a situation where Bailey gets the offensive coordinator role but it’s Day calling the plays on game day. 

Chicago Bears quarterbacks coach J.T. Barrett 

Ohio State going to the NFL to get its next coordinator just like they did for the defense with Matt Patricia. Bringing in former Ohio State QB J.T. Barrett to that position should be on the table. Barrett entered coaching in 2022 as an offensive assistant with the Detroit Lions. Barrett was a key part of Detroit’s offensive success in 2023 and 2024. Bears QB Caleb Williams has taken a step forward after Barrett followed Chicago HC Ben Johnson to coach quarterbacks. 

Being an offensive corridor would be an elevation for Barrett — but he’s already receiving NFL interest there — so he’s likely ready. Barrett would be well received by the fanbase and would be an instant connect with the players.

Baltimore Ravens OC Todd Monken

The search for Ohio State’s next offensive coordinator taking this long feels like they are waiting for the dominoes to fall in the NFL for their next hire. One name that stands out in this vein is former Baltimore Ravens and Georgia Bulldogs OC Todd Monken. As soon as Baltimore’s season ended, I had heard Monken was interested in a return to the college ranks, with Ohio State emerging as the first school.

However, Monken is still heavily involved in the Cleveland Browns’ HC search and has been rumored to reunite with John Harbaugh with the New York Giants, though that hasn’t been agreed to. If you’re looking for some hope on this hire, the Buckeyes hired their WRs coach before their OC, instead of the inverse, in Cortez Hankton. Guess who coached alongside Hankton at Georgia?

Indiana co-OC Chandler Whitmer

If the Buckeyes are waiting for a different domino to fall, they could be looking at a fellow Big 10 school for their next OC. The Indiana Hoosiers are undefeated and playing for a national championship on Monday, but have fended off numerous bidders to raid their coaching staff. However, Ohio State is an entirely different challenger, and there’s one young rising star that could be on the rise there in Bloomington.

Co-OC/quarterbacks coach Chandler Whitmer is a name that has the attention of quite a few people across the country. He started his coaching career as a graduate assistant with the Buckeyes in 2019 before taking a similar job with the Clemson Tigers in 2020 (both teams made the playoffs). He was quickly snatched up by the NFL in 2021, getting hired away by the Los Angeles Chargers as an offensive quality control coach. There, he worked primarily with Justin Herbert, playing a key role in developing him into the quarterback we see today. 

After spending the 2024 season as a passing game specialist for the Falcons, Whitmer interviewed with the Hoosiers to replace the departing Tino Sunseri and impressed the stonefaced Curt Cignetti, who hired him as co-OC/QBs coach right away. The results with Fernando Mendoza are evident. Mendoza called Whitmer “the best quarterbacks coach he’s ever worked with”.

Besides starting his career with the Buckeyes, there’s another link to Ryan Day with Whitmer. Day was actually the coach who convinced Whitmer to get into coaching after he “had a cup of coffee with Ryan” when he was with the Philadelphia Eagles. This could be an intriguing hire to get a coach on the rise.

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