'The Right Move': Ryan Day Explains Hiring Of Ohio State LB Coach James Laurinaitis

The Ohio State Buckeyes realized that James Laurinaitis was always the right man to lead the linebacker room in 2024.

Even though the path to securing a staff took longer than expected, Ryan Day has the right people in place for Ohio State entering 2024. 

The Buckeyes finalized their 2024 coaching staff with the promotion of James Laurinaitis to linebackers coach. 

This comes six days after UCLA coach Chip Kelly announced he would leave Westwood to take over as offensive coordinator and quarterbacks coach in place of Bill O'Brien, who left three weeks after being hired from New England to become Boston's College next coach. 

The two moves were expected in the coming days. Kelly was interested in leaving the Bruins after an 8-5 finish for an NFL job, but when the chance opened to work with his former protege, the situation was too good to pass up. 

As for Laurinaitis, Day was impressed with his work ethic and attention to detail on the recruiting trail as a graduate assistant last season. After putting in the grunt work, the fifth-year Buckeyes coach knew an internal promotion was necessary. 

"I’ve been impressed with the way he’s transitioned from being a player to a coach," Day said of Laurinaitis. "I think when you look at James, when you look at Brian [Hartline], those guys were guys who maximized themselves on the field. So as they transition from being in the NFL to college, they use a lot of the things they’ve learned, especially in the latter years of their NFL careers, to help guys on the field. And so I’ve seen so many great things from him."

Hartline and Laurinaitis were teammates under Jim Tressel from 2005-08 and staples of four consecutive 10-win seasons. Both found success in the NFL but eventually realized they had careers as coaches after hanging up the cleats for good. 

Laurinaitis understands the standard of linebacker at Ohio State. He took over the mantle for A.J. Hawk and became a wrecking crew in the Big Ten, notching two Defensive Player of the Year honors while becoming a three-time All-Big Ten first-team representative. 

"He knows Ohio State, he loves Ohio State," said Day. "He has credibility with the players, he has credibility with recruits because he’s done it. And not only did he do it, he did it at an unbelievable level, he did it in the NFL."

Laurinaitis takes over as the 10th full-time assistant in place of special teams coordinator Parker Fleming, who was fired in January after three seasons. Day considered replacing Fleming with a legit special teams coordinator but elected to promote an internal name to join Jim Knowle's unit. 

As for special teams, the role is expected to be broken among the coaches. 

Consider it a blessing for Knowles and a returning top-10 unit in 2024. Laurinaitis, a three-time All-American at the position, should have total control in practice, allowing the third-year coordinator to focus on other areas in bettering the roster.

Since being hired from Oklahoma State, Knowles has been coaching the linebackers as their primary position coach, though Laurinaitis was hands-on last season under his watch. 

Eight Ohio State Players Invited To NFL Combine

Laurinaitis' recruiting skills were a selling point for Day in promoting internally, stating how impressed he was watching the former talk show host's ability to connect with high school prospects going through the process. 

"[He] did an unbelievable job," said Day. "There’s a lot of momentum, so we felt like it was the right move."