Let’s get this out of the way right now. The Ohio State football coaching position is the most prestigious and coveted job in football today.
There is no other job in college football that brings with it the pressure and tradition. In addition, there is not a coach in America that would turn down the job if it were offered. Not every coach will go after it because they can’t handle the pressure of Columbus and they have it easy where they are today. Ask Kirk Herbstreit. At Ohio State, fans expect Big Ten titles and National Championships.
That is because coaches like Paul Brown, Woody Hayes, Earle Bruce, John Cooper and Jim Tressel have built that into the equation. No other school can lay out the litany of coaches Ohio State can. At Ohio State you are expected to win and win big. No excuses.
Of course coaches like Nick Saban and Les Miles will not take the job because they won’t be offered the job. Saban is a job jumper and might be settled into Alabama. Miles is a Michigan man and saw the tradition and alumni pressure there, then stayed at LSU.
Bo Pellini is one coach that would leave Nebraska in a second for the Ohio State position. Pellini knows Ohio and Florida are the hotbeds of High School football and easy to recruit in. Nebraska is not. Pellini is a former Buckeye player and knows OSU is a place to retire from. But Pellini is not going to be offered the job.
Cooper and Tressel opened up the recruiting trails in Florida. When OSU comes calling in those states, the players listen with intrigue. Do they get every player? Of course not. But those players don’t excuse Ohio State out of hand.
The worst kept secret is Urban Meyer. Meyer has met with and spoken contract with the Buckeyes. This is one job Meyer would return to coaching for after leaving Florida. For Meyer, Ohio State is a dream job. For Athletic Director Gene Smith, hiring Meyer is a job saver. Anyone other than Meyer will mean extreme alumni pressure for Smith’s resignation.
Buckeye fans expect a high profile coach, and that coach needs to be someone that can outshine Tressel. Because no matter what Tressel did, he is still a God in Ohio. The next coach needs to drown out that shadow.
The next coach must be a national name with two things on his mind; beating Michigan and winning a National championship. Coming from Ohio, Urban Meyer understands that.
Meyer also knows this opportunity may not come around again. He already turned down the chance to coach at another “dream” job when Notre Dame called. Meyer understands he cannot tempt fate once again. The Buckeyes aura surrounding the Ohio State program is drawing him in.
Meyer admits interest in the OSU job. Rumors say he has already made certain demands if he were to take the job. One of those demands includes the re-hiring of Luke Fickell as defensive coordinator. There are also reports Meyer has hired his offensive coordinator.
Make no mistake, the Ohio State job is a position of stature. A position only a coach of high esteem and a stellar reputation can fill. The next coach needs to fill the shoes of those before him and continue the tradition of winning. And it appears the Buckeyes have that coach in their bull’s-eye.
