Ohio State may have Matt Patricia locked into a great deal now, but a big potential problem will be around again next offseason
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The Ohio State Buckeyes lost both coordinators last offseason and they weren’t going to have it happen this offseason. Ohio State lost offensive coordinator Brian Hartline to his first head coaching gig at South Florida.
Ohio State started spring practice on Tuesday morning and defensive coordinator Matt Patricia was on the practice field with a new three-year contract making him the highest-paid defensive coordinator for the 2026 season at $3.75 million. The number would increase to $3.85 million for the next two seasons.
Matt Patricia is a Buckeye for now, but next offseason could be another story
Patricia deserved a big payday and he got it after one season with the Buckeyes. A to Z Sports’ Joe DeLeone recently raised a very fair point about Patricia being on pace to be a hot coaching candidate after the 2026 season.
“A lot of the top coaches across the country got hired away for some of the biggest job openings this past year,” DeLeone stated. “It now sets up a 2027 coaching carousel where there’s really not much certainty on who’s going to be the most highly sought after. There’s one coach who I think could be a massive riser and this is Matt Patricia, Ohio State’s defensive coordinator.”
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Patricia received interest from the NFL to be a defensive coordinator and Ryan Day confirmed as much on Tuesday. Ohio State’s defense was stellar in Patricia’s first season after taking over for Jim Knowles, and led the country with just 219.1 yards allowed per game. Ohio State also led the country by allowing only 9.3 points per game.
2026 will be just Patricia’s second season at the college level since he was a graduate assistant with Syracuse in 2003. At 51 years old, Patricia is on track to get another head coaching chance, perhaps at the college level before the pros again.
With LSU hiring Lane Kiffin, Penn State hiring Matt Campbell, Michigan landing Kyle Whittingham, Florida getting Jon Sumrall, and Virginia Tech bringing in James Franklin — a lot of the big names are settled in new spots for the next couple of years at least.
Ohio State did what they needed to do to keep Patricia around next season by making him the highest-paid DC in college football, but expect talk to arise again after next season, especially if the defense is similarly productive as 2025.
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This story was originally published by A to Z Sports on Mar 11, 2026, where it first appeared in the College Football section. Add A to Z Sports as a Preferred Source by clicking here.
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