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Ohio State Buckeyes defensive coordinator Matt Patricia
When the Ohio State Buckeyes hired Matt Patricia to be their new defensive coordinator last offseason following the departure of Jim Knowles, no one knew exactly what to expect.
However, after his first full season with Ohio State, Patricia has already become one of the best defensive coordinators in college football. In fact, he had so much success that the Buckeyes were in danger of losing him back to the NFL.
Patricia’s name was mentioned in quite a few different defensive coordinator searches at the NFL level. He hasn’t been hired away from Ohio State yet, but the team isn’t fully out of the woods.
With that being said, a new update has been provided about Patricia’s future with the Buckeyes.
Ohio State Receives New Update Regarding Matt Patricia
Pat Murphy of BuckNuts has revealed a new update on the situation. He seems to think that things are trending in a positive direction for Ohio State.
“No news is good news on that front,” Murphy said. “He wants to be here it’s just a matter of ‘let’s see what comes in’. And I think he deserves the right to take his time.”
Losing Patricia after just one season would have been devastating for Ryan Day and the Buckeyes. Brian Hartline, the team’s offensive coordinator in 2025, took a head coaching position at South Florida. Having to revamp both coordinators for a second straight season would have been problematic for Ohio State.
While there is still a chance that an NFL team could come calling with an offer for Patricia, he has a pretty cushy job. Being with the Buckeyes is a dream scenario for college coaches.
As noted by Murphy, Patricia wants to be at Ohio State. Assuming no aggressive offer comes in, it’s likely that he’ll be back for at least one more season with the Buckeyes.
What Should Buckeyes Fans Be Expecting Next Season?
Throughout the course of the 2025 college football season, Ohio State was one of the best teams in the country. Entering the College Football Playoff, the Buckeyes were the No. 2 ranked team in the field. Unfortunately, their bid for a second straight championship was ended quickly.
In their first game of the playoff, Ohio State fell to the Miami Hurricanes. Now, the question becomes, can the Buckeyes get back to being a national championship team in 2026?
At this point in time, Ohio State is ranked No. 2 in the nation by The Athletic in their way-too-early rankings for 2026. The Buckeyes currently trail Oregon for the No. 1 spot.
Even though Ohio State is losing more talent to the NFL from the 2025 roster, the team is still expected to be one of the best. Both Julian Sayin and Jeremiah Smith are returning to spearhead the offense, while Day has put together elite talent on both sides of the football.
Patricia coming back would be a big step in the right direction as well. For now, it sounds like fans should expect to see him back with the Buckeyes running the defense in 2026.
Evan Massey Evan Massey is a sports reporter and analyst located in Indianapolis, Indiana who covers the NFL, NBA, MLB, WNBA, and college sports. He has been featured on many publications, including Newsweek, Athlon Sports, ESPN, Yahoo! Sports, Forbes, Bleacher Report, Sporting News, and many others. In his free time, Evan enjoys spending time with his wife and son. More about Evan Massey
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