Ohio State Football: 3 top candidates to be new defensive coordinator
By Ryan Stano
Jim Knowles is an interesting case as a defensive coordinator. He might be the least known candidate on my list to the casual college football fan. Knowles is coming off the best year of his coaching career in 2021 after coordinating Oklahoma State’s defense.
Oklahoma State’s defense is what had them on the precipice of making the College Football Playoff. In a conference that is usually known for having shootouts every game, Oklahoma State was the opposite of that in 2021, having one of the best defenses in the country.
The Cowboys were tied for the seventh-best scoring defense in the country, allowing only 16.8 points per game. In a conference like the Big 12, that’s a very good accomplishment. Even better than that, they only allowed 273.6 yards per game, which was good enough for third in the country.
Perhaps better than anything for Ohio State’s purposes, Oklahoma State was the fifth-best run defense in the country, allowing just 89.2 yards per game. The run is what sunk the Buckeyes in both losses to Oregon and TTUN. They just couldn’t stop it at all.
Knowles has been around the world of college football and knows what is needed to get things done in a Power 5 conference. He would certainly be an upgrade from both Coombs and Barnes in terms of on-the-field coaching. Recruiting would be the only question mark.
The next candidate to be defensive coordinator just finished being a head coach.