Ohio State offensive coordinator Chip Kelly is leaving the Buckeyes for the same position with the NFL’s Las Vegas Raiders, according to CBS Sports’/247Sports’ Matt Zenitz. The loss is significant for Ohio State, and not just because Kelly played a pivotal role in leading the Buckeyes to their first national title in a decade, but it also means that Ohio State now has to replace both of its coordinators and one of its top assistants less than a month after downing Notre Dame in the College Football Playoff National Championship.
Jim Knowles left for Penn State in the last week of January, becoming college football’s highest-paid defensive coordinator in the process. Offensive line coach Justin Frye, who developed a pair of potential first-round 2025 NFL Draft picks in Josh Simmons and Donovan Jackson, made his own move to the NFL by joining the Arizona Cardinals.
Kelly left his position as UCLA’s head coach to become Ohio State’s offensive coordinator following the 2023 season. The pairing yielded tremendous results for the Buckeyes. They finished the regular season averaging 423.5 yards and 35.5 points per game. Ohio State averaged 36.3 points during its run through the College Football Playoff and scored a combined 83 points in its first two games against Tennessee and top-seeded Oregon.
Under Kelly’s guidance, running backs TreVeyon Henderson and Quinshon Judkins each rushed for over 1,000 yards and combined for 24 total touchdowns. Quarterback Will Howard, a former starter at Kansas State, posted career highs with 4,010 yards and 35 touchdowns passing. First-year phenom Jeremiah Smith shattered the Big Ten record for single-season touchdown receptions by a freshman (15).
Kelly’s move back to the professional level makes sense. After a successful stint as the head coach at Oregon, where he led the Ducks to three straight Pac-12 (formerly Pac-10) titles from 2009-11 and an appearance in the BCS National Championship Game in 2010, Kelly left to coach the Philadelphia Eagles from 2013-15. He also led the San Francisco 49ers during the 2016 season and amassed a 28-35 overall record as an NFL coach.
Knowles’ departure stings a bit more given that he left for one of Ohio State’s top conference rivals, though he is a native of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. He certainly leaves a big hole to fill from an on-field perspective. The Buckeyes fielded college football’s top defensive unit in 2024, stacked with future NFL talent at every level of the field.
They led the FBS in total defense (254.6 yards per game) and scoring defense (12.88 points per game). Ohio State didn’t allow a single opponent in the College Football Playoff to score above 23 points and held two out of four teams it faced below 20 points.
Ohio State is going to have a busy offseason, given its three vacancies to fill — especially with spring practice and the second transfer window right around the corner.
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