Ohio State Football: Three possible candidates to replace Kerry Coombs
By Ryan Stano
Marcus Freeman is a former Ohio State football player himself. He played for the Buckeyes from 2004-2008 and was a good player. He ended up being a fifth-round pick in the NFL Draft, but he didn’t last very long in the league. Then he came back to Ohio State as a grad assistant in 2010.
Since then, he has had a strong rise in the coaching ranks. He was a linebackers coach at Kent State for a couple of years before removing on to Purdue. He coached there until 2017 where he was reunited with Luke Fickell and was the defensive coordinator at Cincinnati under him.
Freeman coached very well there and was rewarded with the DC job at Notre Dame. While the defense for the Fighting Irish has struggled in the first two weeks, they aren’t nearly as bad as what Ohio State has done in that timespan.
Bringing Freeman back would be a good move both on the field and recruiting-wise. Freeman has done an excellent job recruiting as a defensive coordinator and already grabbed a recruit from the Buckeyes this past offseason. He would make a great addition to the coaching staff.
The next guy on this list is someone who hasn’t been able to put it together as a head coach but has been a great defensive coordinator.