Ryan Day, Ohio State Reportedly Hire Accomplished Coach From Illinois

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Ryan Day isn't done making changes to his coaching staff at Ohio State.

According to Matt Zenitz of CBS Sports, Ohio State is expected to hire Robby Discher as its special teams coordinator for the 2026 season. He currently has the same title at Illinois. Prior to taking his talents to the Big Ten, he was the special teams coordinator at Tulane. Additionally, he has experience as Georgia's special teams quality control coach.

"During his first three seasons in Champaign, Discher has helped the Illini to 24 victories, two bowl wins, and back-to-back seasons with 9+ wins for the first time in program history. Discher's special teams units have combined for nine All-Big Ten honors over the last three seasons," his bio for Illinois states. "In the last two seasons (2024-25), Discher has helped the Illini win 19 games, the program's most ever in a two-year span."

Discher would be a nice addition to Ohio State's staff, make no mistake about it. Illinois had the No. 16 ranked special teams unit in the country in 2024. While that ranking dropped to No. 30 during the 2025 season, it's pretty evident he knows how to get respectable play from his unit.

Who else is joining Ohio State's staff?

Earlier this month, Ohio State reportedly struck a deal with former Atlanta Falcons head coach Arthur Smith. He's set to be the offensive coordinator for the Buckeyes.

"Coach Day told me what kind of direction he’s going to be headed without going too far into detail," Urban Meyer said recently on his podcast. "I think Ohio State’s jumping all over themselves cause they see Matt Patricia as the template to go hire someone. Someone that’s going to focus on the scheme and Arthur Smith’s got to be one of the best in the business at it, what he’s done in his career."

Smith was the offensive play-caller for the Pittsburgh Steelers the past two seasons. His offense finished the 2025 season ranked 15th in scoring.

We'll see if these coaching changes lead to better results in January for Ohio State.

This story was originally published by The Spun on Jan 31, 2026, where it first appeared in the College Football section. Add The Spun as a Preferred Source by clicking here.

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