James Laurinaitis Eager To Begin Coaching At 'Second Home' Ohio State

James Laurinaitis is ready to return to Ohio State's sidelines this fall.

They say you can't replace that homegrown setting. Maybe that's what drove James Laurinaitis back to the sidelines at Ohio State. 

Laurinaitis never needed to get into coaching to secure his legacy with the Buckeyes. He was a three-time All-American during his stay in the mid-2000s. He spent eight years proudly representing the program during his time with the then-St. Louis Rams and New Orleans Saints. 

Still, there's something about taking a step back from the game that doesn't sit well with players. It ultimately was a factor for Laurinaitis when he decided to leave the world of broadcasting to pick up a whistle and clipboard. 

“I love the game of football, and I love working with young people,” Laurinaitis said Wednesday at Ohio State during the interview session. 

“That’s why I got into coaching. You want to impact the kids on the field. But more importantly, you want them to leave, after building relationships with them, as better men and hopefully give them an example of what being a good husband and father can be – the same thing Luke Fickell did for me and Jim Tressel did for me.”

Laurinaitis initially began exploring the idea of getting into a coach a few years back. He reached out to former linebackers coach and current Wisconsin head coach Luke Fickell while still at Cincinnati, asking questions on roster building, recruiting and other factors. 

Coaching in college is different than anywhere else. It's a daily job that doesn't slow down the when season comes to a close. Phone calls must be made to potential recruits. Hours are spent on the road away from the family. As for the offseason? What offseason? 

None of that changed Laurinaitis' way of thinking. He wanted to give coaching a try but just needed the opportunity. That came last year when former teammate and current Notre Dame coach Marcus Freeman offered him a position on staff as a graduate assistant to help coach linebackers. 

Within days, the Laurinaitis' had packed up their house in the Columbus area and moved to South Bend. Both James and his wife, Shelly, expected to be a part of the Irish family for years to come and were planning on setting their roots just outside of Notre Dame's campus. 

But when Buckeyes head coach Ryan Day offered him the same job at OSU, Laurinaitis knew he had to come home. As for Shelly and his three daughters, Laurinaitis said the family reacted with “pure giddiness” about returning to Ohio. 

“This profession is unpredictable at times," Laurinaitis said. "And what I've learned from being a part of a staff is there are so many moving parts, and timing plays a factor, and it's just hard to predict when is the right time to go somewhere.

"If you would have said ‘Hey, you're going to move to South Bend, Indiana and then come right back’ … I would have been like ‘No way. I'm not sure there's a path for how that would become available.’ So the timing was right, and I'm thankful it's here.”

Laurinaitis might hold the title of graduate assistant, but he'll be more than just an up-and-comer working in the front office. According to Day, Laurinaitis will have similar duties to his job at Notre Dame, primarily working with the linebackers under second-year coordinator Jim Knowles. 

Knowles, who helped Ohio State's defense rebound following a lackluster 2021 season, will still hold the title of linebackers coach but is expected to delegate most of the hands-on duties to Laurinaitis starting the spring. 

“It's always exciting when you have a guy to come in and coach with you who also has his picture on your (office’s) wall,” Knowles said of Laurinaitis' addition. “He's a legend – All-American, a pro, a Buckeye – and having a veteran corps of linebackers coming back, I think it's good to have someone come in who can work with them individually technique-wise, and maybe do some different things than I've done.”

Linebacker should be one of the strong suits for the Buckeyes in 2023. Both Tommy Eichenberg and Steele Chambers are slated to return. So will 2022 top recruit C.J. Hicks. 

Last season, Eichenberg registered 125 tackles and an interception en route to helping Ohio State make the College Football Playoff. Chambers totaled 77 tackles, two sacks, and a pair of interceptions. 

Due to his title, Laurinaitis won't be allowed to go on the road recruiting visits, but that shouldn't stop Ohio State from attracting some of the best options for the position. In a way, that's a goal for Laurinaitis during his time on staff. 

“Ohio State is such a storied program and such a unique place that it should be Wide Receiver U, "Laurinaitis said. "It should be LB U.

Laurinaitis said he'd be lying if his ultimate goal wasn't to follow a similar path to new offensive coordinator and former teammate Brian Hartline. After six seasons in the pros, Hartline returned to Columbus as a quality control coach under Urban Meyer in 2017. A year later, he was promoted to receivers coach and began developing some of the best young pass-catchers at both the collegiate and NFL levels. 

Naturally, Laurinaitis knows that timing is everything, but seeing Harltine's rise to stardom gives him hope that he could be next in line. 

"He's a great example of what can happen,” Laurinaitis said of Hartline. “He's a great example of just a guy who put the work in, willing to go and a good template for former guys who want to come in and try to work and aspire to kind of grow in this profession.”

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