The Ohio State football team has finally hired its new offensive coordinator for the 2026 season. They have decided to bring in Arthur Smith, who was the OC for the Pittsburgh Steelers in each of the last two seasons. Now, he comes to Columbus with a wealth of NFL experience.
Smith certainly wasn't the offensive coordinator that fans thought they were going to get. That doesn't mean that he is going to be a bad hire necessarily. He does have a track-record of calling a more run-based offense, the Buckeyes are hoping to balance things out a bit.
Fans of the Ohio State Buckeyes should know both the good and the bad of what his offenses have looked like in recent years. Smith will now have a shot to coach one of the best wide receivers in college football and a Heisman Finalist quarterback.
What to know about Arthur Smith's offenses ahead of the Ohio State football season
While Smith was calling plays for the Titans as their offensive coordinator, he had a great run game. He had the third and second-ranked rushing offense in the NFL. While the head coach of Atlanta, the Falcons had a bottom ten offense for the first two years before having a league-average offense in his final year.
In Pittsburgh for the last two seasons, the Steelers had the 10th-worst and the 8th-worst total offense in terms of yards. None of his offenses have had strong passing years. 16th is the best passing offense that Smith has ever had, which is not what Ohio State fans are looking for.
Time will tell if this ends up being the right hire by Ryan Day. Smith's success in the NFL doesn't lend itself to a lot faith that things will be much better when he takes the sidelines in Columbus. Perhaps having some of the best talent in the country will help him increase his offensive numbers.
One clear upside to this hire is that the running game should be better for the Buckeyes. Scheming up run plays that work is something that Smith excels at. Bo Jackson could have a stellar season in 2026 because of that.