Players aren’t the only ones coming and going during this college football offseason. Coaches are hitting the road left and right, and one of, if not the biggest, hiring waves of this offseason just happened: Ohio State Buckeyes defensive coordinator Jim Knowles left Columbus to join the Penn State Nittany Lions for the same position in Happy Valley.
With an unexpected opening on the Ohio State The coaching staff has Oregon co-defensive coordinator Chris Hampton suggested as a leading candidate for the job.
Sources told On3.com ($) that last year, Hampton received interest from five ACC and SEC schools to become a top defensive coordinator. He turned down these potential jobs and returned to Eugene for the 2025 season. The Ducks had an excellent year defensively, ranking 15th in the nation in yards allowed per game, with 315.9.
Hiring an Oregon coach away from the Ducks wouldn’t be anything new for the Buckeyes as head coach Ryan Day was able to do it. hire Carlos Locklyn a year ago as running backs coach, replacing Tony Alford, who in turn left Columbus to go to Michigan.
Hampton could be a candidate for Ohio State, but he’s far from the only possible coach to replace Knowles. Iowa defensive coordinator Phil Parker, Arkansas DC Travis Williams and Ohio State safeties coach Matt Guerrieri are also reportedly up for the job.
