There are so many irons in the fire and so many conflicting bits of information floating around that it is very hard to separate truth from fiction and in fact with these types of decisions being so wobbly in general there are probably some things that jump between the truth and fiction categories by the day.
But here is the information I trust the most right now.....
- Barring just a wild change of heart, Alex Grinch is gone. I expect him to be announced as Oklahoma's defensive coordinator sooner (I'll see myself out) rather than later.
It's maybe the strangest assistant coach tenure (though Bill Sheridan says hello) that I can remember at OSU. We literally know nothing more about Grinch as a coach and a recruiter than we did the day he was hired. Just a lot of weird factors that came into play here.
- The Greg Schiano situation remains very tricky and I don't think anything has really changed there in terms of the frame work. Day doesn't want to fire him and I've been told won't. In fact I think Day would really like to have him on staff in 2019. Schiano is also at a point after the Clay Travis hit job that he just seems to have no steam right now as a head coaching candidate. He'll take a D1 head coaching job if he can get one, the bar has been lowered there, and I think there are plenty of NFL jobs he would take as well as an assistant, but that is all very fluid right now.
Either way, it has to be known inside the Woody that even if Schiano returns, he has to be viewed as a year-to-year guy and I'm not sure that's ideal for recruiting.
- The Jonathan Gannon situation is tricky as well. That's a guy that Day would love to bring in, especially if Schiano also leaves. Gannon isn't leaving the NFL to work under someone on the defensive staff. He's either the guy, or he's coaching in the NFL next year. He's also a hot name in NFL circles. If Josh McDaniels gets an NFL head coaching job, that would be a very possible destination for Gannon. So even if they can get Gannon, it would have to be under the condition that either Schiano is gone too or that Schiano would sort of take a step back and defer to Gannon.
And oh by the way, Gannon and the Colts play on Saturday. So until those guys are eliminated, nothing is going to happen there. He is completely focused on the playoff run I'm told. This is one of those things where the stars might be aligning on OSU's end with an opening or two on the defensive staff, but I just don't know how well this is going to time up and the NFL possibilities for him make this thing even murkier.
- Not too bullish on the Marcus Freeman rumors yet, especially as it pertains to being a defensive coordinator. Think the interest on OSU's end would be more as a linebackers/co-DC role with him answering to someone else ultimately in the DC role. Think there are several guys ahead in the primary DC pecking order if Schiano leaves.
- I believe one of the guys ahead of Freeman is Matt House. There is definitely some legit smoke there and if OSU wants to move quickly, this might be more likely than the names above.
- Buying the Al Washington stuff in terms of OSU being interested. Do not believe it is done. It's also not why Ohio State got Zach Harrison, though I'm sure that is a fun thought for everyone and will turn into some crazy recruiting legend that people will believe.
- If Schiano leaves, I think OSU's ideal setup would be Washington or Freeman LB's and Gannon, House, or a candidate to be named later, to actually run the defense. If Schiano stays, Day has to essentially make another Alex Grinch hire and get someone to groom in here under him, which could still be any of those guys above, except probably Gannon who I am told is absolutely going to have to be in control of the defense to make the jump and even then it could depend on what NFL opportunities are available.
- None of what I've been hearing sounds particularly good for Bill Davis obviously.
This stuff can change so quickly, a lot of this could be out-of-date by tomorrow night but that's kind of a snap shot of where I have things after a lot of phone calls and texts from my hotel room in San Antonio this evening.
But here is the information I trust the most right now.....
- Barring just a wild change of heart, Alex Grinch is gone. I expect him to be announced as Oklahoma's defensive coordinator sooner (I'll see myself out) rather than later.
It's maybe the strangest assistant coach tenure (though Bill Sheridan says hello) that I can remember at OSU. We literally know nothing more about Grinch as a coach and a recruiter than we did the day he was hired. Just a lot of weird factors that came into play here.
- The Greg Schiano situation remains very tricky and I don't think anything has really changed there in terms of the frame work. Day doesn't want to fire him and I've been told won't. In fact I think Day would really like to have him on staff in 2019. Schiano is also at a point after the Clay Travis hit job that he just seems to have no steam right now as a head coaching candidate. He'll take a D1 head coaching job if he can get one, the bar has been lowered there, and I think there are plenty of NFL jobs he would take as well as an assistant, but that is all very fluid right now.
Either way, it has to be known inside the Woody that even if Schiano returns, he has to be viewed as a year-to-year guy and I'm not sure that's ideal for recruiting.
- The Jonathan Gannon situation is tricky as well. That's a guy that Day would love to bring in, especially if Schiano also leaves. Gannon isn't leaving the NFL to work under someone on the defensive staff. He's either the guy, or he's coaching in the NFL next year. He's also a hot name in NFL circles. If Josh McDaniels gets an NFL head coaching job, that would be a very possible destination for Gannon. So even if they can get Gannon, it would have to be under the condition that either Schiano is gone too or that Schiano would sort of take a step back and defer to Gannon.
And oh by the way, Gannon and the Colts play on Saturday. So until those guys are eliminated, nothing is going to happen there. He is completely focused on the playoff run I'm told. This is one of those things where the stars might be aligning on OSU's end with an opening or two on the defensive staff, but I just don't know how well this is going to time up and the NFL possibilities for him make this thing even murkier.
- Not too bullish on the Marcus Freeman rumors yet, especially as it pertains to being a defensive coordinator. Think the interest on OSU's end would be more as a linebackers/co-DC role with him answering to someone else ultimately in the DC role. Think there are several guys ahead in the primary DC pecking order if Schiano leaves.
- I believe one of the guys ahead of Freeman is Matt House. There is definitely some legit smoke there and if OSU wants to move quickly, this might be more likely than the names above.
- Buying the Al Washington stuff in terms of OSU being interested. Do not believe it is done. It's also not why Ohio State got Zach Harrison, though I'm sure that is a fun thought for everyone and will turn into some crazy recruiting legend that people will believe.
- If Schiano leaves, I think OSU's ideal setup would be Washington or Freeman LB's and Gannon, House, or a candidate to be named later, to actually run the defense. If Schiano stays, Day has to essentially make another Alex Grinch hire and get someone to groom in here under him, which could still be any of those guys above, except probably Gannon who I am told is absolutely going to have to be in control of the defense to make the jump and even then it could depend on what NFL opportunities are available.
- None of what I've been hearing sounds particularly good for Bill Davis obviously.
This stuff can change so quickly, a lot of this could be out-of-date by tomorrow night but that's kind of a snap shot of where I have things after a lot of phone calls and texts from my hotel room in San Antonio this evening.
