Ohio State OC rumors include a name Buckeyes fans likely were not expecting

This would really be something... With the Ohio State Buckeyes having to replace offensive coordinator Brian Hartline, now that he is off to the South Florida Bulls once the season ends, Ryan Day may go in a direction few people were expecting. The idea was that he was going to bring back last year's offensive coordinator in his mentor Chip Kelly, who was let go by the Las Vegas Raiders.

Well, that no longer looks to be the case. The big name to watch here appears to be ... Brian Daboll.

If Day were to hire Daboll, he would effectively be running an NFL feeder team in some capacities.

The fact it has taken this long to re-hire Kelly probably indicates it was not going to be him anyway.

If Daboll came to Columbus, he would join defensive coordinator Matt Patricia with strong NFL ties.

Let's now unpack what this potential hire could mean for the Buckeyes heading into next season.

Ohio State has been tied to Brian Daboll as its next offensive coordinator

Although Daboll has some experience in college, most notably his time as Nick Saban's offensive coordinator at Alabama, he is best known for his two most recent jobs: The former offensive coordinator of the Buffalo Bills and the recently fired former head coach of the New York Giants. While his Giants tenure was mostly a disaster, he did make the playoffs once with Daniel Jones.,,

What this potential hire is all about is further amplifying Ohio State's already tremendous recruiting efforts. Just because Daboll and Patricia were not good NFL head coaches does not mean they do not know what it takes to get to the next level. Patricia and Daboll were great schemers as rockstar coordinators before biting off more than they could ever chew as head coaches. The NFL is a grind.

While losing Hartline to a head-coaching opportunity seemed like an inevitability, it is still strange that he chose the South Florida gig over a Power Four post. Regardless, coaches who have seen their stock downgraded a bit will want to come to Ohio State. Kelly did it to himself after leaving UCLA in the dust, but nobody wanted to touch Patricia prior to this past offseason. Maybe Daboll is the same?

In the end, we have to separate what Daboll did in New York from what he did in Buffalo, and try to apply that to what he could potentially do in Columbus, if he were to be the successor to Hartline at Ohio State. People who know ball seem to be in favor of the move. The Giants may have fallen ass backwards into two Super Bowls with Eli Manning. That is one of the hardest places to win in the NFL.

For now, let's keep our eyes peeled for what could happen in Ohio State's quest in replacing Hartline.