When Ohio State hired Arthur Smith as its new offensive coordinator, the addition raised more than a few eyebrows across Buckeye Nation. While it has been 16 years since he last worked in college, his resume is impressive, having been both an NFL offensive coordinator and head coach.
During his time in the league, Smith has already worked with a handful of the NFL’s biggest offensive stars, perhaps most notably with the Tennessee Titans when he oversaw an offense that featured Derrick Henry, A.J.
Brown, and Jonnu Smith. In his first year as OC, Tennessee had its highest-scoring team in 16 years, led by career years for his three biggest offensive weapons. His second season calling plays saw the Titans finish fourth in the NFL in scoring and second in total yards.
While his time working for Mike Vrabel in Nashville was what got him on the map, his most high-profile job was as the head coach of the Atlanta Falcons. Despite having a rookie Bijan Robinson in Smith’s final season in Atlanta, the Falcons never made the playoffs during his three seasons as head coach.
Other than Kyle Pitts, Drake London, and Robinson (the team’s first picks in each of Smith’s seasons), the team never really had enough offensive firepower to allow Smith to get the offense going like he did in Tennessee. That makes his Ohio State opportunity even more interesting. Because now, Smith isn’t walking into a situation where he has to find the talent; it is already loaded with weapons.
Ohio State returns Julian Sayin as its quarterback after a Heisman-finalist first season as a starter, while Jeremiah Smith gives the Buckeyes the most dangerous receiver in college football. The backfield also seems to be taking on a more important role under Smith. Bo Jackson is returning after his 1,000-yard freshman season, and fellow sophomore Isaiah West is pushing for a bigger role right alongside him. This is exactly what makes things intriguing with Arthur Smith taking over the schematic and playcalling reins.
Throughout his time in the NFL, Smith has always leaned toward a physical, run-heavy offense that used the running game to open up opportunities in the passing game. With the emerging running game, Ohio State seems almost tailor-made for that exact approach. If Jackson and West can force defenses to keep even one extra man in the box to account for the big-play potential from the backfield, that leaves one less defensive back to keep an eye on Jeremiah Smith, Brandon Inniss, Chris Henry Jr., Devin McQuin, Brock Boyd, and the rest of the receivers. And if defenses start giving Sayin one-on-one opportunities with any of his talented receivers, that’s when Ohio State can really make them pay.
Now the biggest question to me is whether or not Arthur Smith can put all of it together. Last season, we saw Matt Patricia seamlessly make the move from former NFL coordinator and head coach to Ohio State coordinator. Patricia’s defense last year was loaded with talent, and he was able to implement a system to make the most of that group’s rare combination of skills. We’ve seen Smith do something very similar when he has had that type of talent to build around. However, making the move from the professional to collegiate game is not always as easy as Patricia made it look. But if it is going to work for Smith, Ohio State gives him an opportunity to prove what he can do, perhaps with the most talented roster he’s coached yet.
Arthur Smith doesn’t need to worry about reinventing Ohio State’s offense; he just needs to figure out how to make all of its immensely talented pieces work together. If he does, this could be a very special season for everyone in scarlet and gray.
