Figuring out which Ohio State coaches were being contacted for other coaching positions

On his weekly radio call-in show, Urban Meyer said that a couple of the coaches on his staff were being mentioned for other head coaching opportunities.

Right now, we know that one of the coaches was Greg Schiano, who was thought to be the next Tennessee Volunteers coach—until he wasn’t.

But who are the others?

Let’s take a guess, and figure out who had the best chance of being talked about for a coaching gig outside of Columbus.

One thing to keep in mind is that Meyer has been public about the fact that when he hires assistant coaches, he asks them to commit to being in Columbus for two seasons to provide the team continuity.

While it is unlikely that Meyer would stand in the way of one of his coaches making a move to a better situation, it is equally unlikely that someone Meyer has hired would go back on his word to one of the best, and most influential, coaches in the college game.

Kevin Wilson

Possibility: Very

Prior to his one season at Ohio State, Wilson was the head coach of the Indiana Hoosiers. In six seasons at the helm, he compiled a 26-47 record. However, his final two years saw the most success, as he guided the Hoosiers to back-to-back bowl games.

Wilson, in comparison, did about as well as he could’ve done while in Bloomington. In the 16 years prior to his arrival, the Hoosiers only had one season where they broke a six-win threshold.

Before Indiana, Wilson was the mastermind behind, arguably, one of the most explosive offenses in college football history: the 2008 Oklahoma Sooners. That Sooner squad put up a then-record 716 points on the season, and had quarterback Sam Bradford earn a Heisman Trophy.

It wouldn’t be surprising at all if Nebraska, Texas A&M or Arkansas were the ones who took a look at Wilson. Fans like a good offense; Nebraska and Arkansas, back in the day, had some of the best offenses in the country. In recent memory, TAMU—in the Manziel era—was a team that put up a decent amount of points on the board.

Larry Johnson

Possibility: Low-Mild

Wherever Johnson has gone, the defenses have been exceptional. Recently, OSU has had some some of the best defensive linemen in the country. The likes of Joey Bosa, Nick Bosa, Tyquan Lewis and Sam Hubbard have devoured offenses en route to making the Buckeyes one of the best teams in the country.

But, would Johnson think about going somewhere else? It’s possible in theory, but it doesn’t seem likely. From 1996-2013, he was at Penn State; prior to that, he had stretches of time as being a high school football head coach.

In a world where a lot of coaches move around, Johnson hasn’t.

Ryan Day

Possibility: Very

Before joining the Buckeye staff for this season, Day came from the San Francisco 49ers. There, he was a quarterback coach under Chip Kelly. In 2015, he had the same role (with the same head coach) with the Philadelphia Eagles.

With Kelly being recently hired as the new man in charge of the UCLA Bruins, it wouldn’t be surprising at all if Day was called and asked about making the move out west in a coordinator role.

Making quarterbacks great is what Day can do. He helped mold Matt Ryan at Boston College, and made Sam Bradford an efficient QB in 2015.

It wouldn’t be surprising at all if the NFL came calling, too.

Bill Davis

Possibility: Above average

Davis has spent his two seasons in Columbus, and has a résumé full of NFL experience. Since 2010, he’s had stops with the Arizona Cardinals, Cleveland Browns and Philadelphia Eagles in either a linebacker or defensive coordinator role.

By being with one of the most successful coaches in the college game, it wouldn’t be shocking if Davis got a bigger role at another school—or even a big role for an NFL team.

Tony Alford

Possibility: Mild

In the past two seasons, Alford has made Ohio State’s backfield one of the most productive weapons in college football. Mike Weber rushed for over 1,000 yards as a freshman last season; this season, J.K. Dobbins did the same.

So, with all this success, it wouldn’t be too far out of the realm of possibility that another program would like to have the services of OSU’s running backs coach.

Before coming to Columbus, Alford was a RB coach at Notre Dame. Chuck Martin was the offensive coordinator at the time he was in South Bend, Ind., and Martin has now moved on to be the head coach at Miami (OH). The Redhawks struggled this season—going 5-7—and may need a rejuvenated offense for next season.

If you wanted an offense that could move the ball on the ground, it wouldn’t hurt to start with hiring someone who did just that at the flagship school of Ohio.