Ohio State Set to Hire Familiar Face as QB Analyst

The Ohio State Buckeyes have added to Ryan Day’s coaching staff.

Matt Galatzan | Jun 16, 2024

April 13, 2024; Columbus, Ohio, USA; Ohio State head football coach Ryan Day speaks to players during the first half of the LifeSports spring football game at Ohio Stadium on Saturday. / Barbara J. Perenic/Columbus Dispatch /

The Ohio State Buckeyes are bringing back a familiar face to Ryan Day’s offensive coaching staff ahead of next season.

Per reports from ESPN’s Pete Thamel, the Buckeyes are expected to hire former Akron offensive coordinator and quarterbacks coach Billy Fessler as a QB analyst. Fessler was set to join Chip Kelly at UCLA this offseason. However, those plans changed when Kelly made the move to Columbus to become OSU’s offensive coordinator, and now Fessler is following along.

Fessler is already familiar with the expectations that come with coaching at Ohio State. He served as a graduate assistant under Day in 2020 and 2021 before making the in-state trip to Akron, where he’s coached for the past two seasons.

A former Penn State quarterback, Fessler was a Nittany Lion for four seasons but saw very limited action and was mostly a backup and a holder on field goals. He went 1 for 2 passing for eight yards in his college career, seeing action in Penn State’s 56-0 win over Georgia State in Sept. 2017.

Fessler will now be able to work closely with transfer QB Will Howard and returning signal-caller Devin Brown, as the two will continue battling for the starting job ahead of next season. The Buckeyes have a talented quarterback room that also includes Alabama transfer Julian Sayin and incoming freshman Air Noland. Five-star quarterback Tavien St. Clair headlines the 2025 recruiting class and is expected to be a major part of Ohio State’s future as well.

Ohio State will kickoff the 2024 season against Akron on Saturday, Aug. 31.

Published Jun 16, 2024

MATT GALATZAN

Matt Galatzan is the Publisher of LonghornsCountry.com, AllAggies.com, and the Managing Editor of BuckeyesNow.com and TheGroveReport.com He is also the Editor-In-Chief of RamDigest.com and TexansDaily.com. Galatzan graduated from the University of Mississippi, where he studied integrated marketing communications, with minors in journalism and business administration. Galatzan started in the sports journalism industry under Mike Fisher at DallasBasketball.com in 2014, which at the time was part of the 247Sports network. He also spent two years covering the SMU Mustangs for PonyStampede.com on the 247Sports network. When DallasBasketball.com and CowboysCountry.com moved over to Sports Illustrated's Fan Nation network in 2020, Galatzan followed suit, eventually being taking over as the Managing Editor and Publisher of LonghornsCountry.com and AllAggies.com a year later. Through the years, Galatzan has conducted a handful of high-profile one-on-one interviews to add to his resume — in both writing and podcasting. Some of his biggest interviews have been with Mavs owner Mark Cuban, former Longhorns players Dan Neil and Phil Dawson, and many other recruits, and current/former players for each of the teams he has covered. Galatzan is also a full-time employee in the digital media department for Audacy and KRLD FM's 105.3 The Fan in Dallas, which is the official radio home of the Dallas Cowboys. You can find Galatzan on all major social media channels, including Twitter on @MattGalatzan For any inquiries, please email matt.galatzan@gmail.com