The Ohio State Buckeyes made a huge splash this offseason, hiring former Penn State and Houston Texans head coach Bill O'Brien as their new offensive coordinator, in hopes of stabilizing and improving their attack.
But now, according to the Athletic's Bruce Feldman, there is a chance that the marriage between O'Brien and the Buckeyes could already be in jeopardy.
Per Feldman, O'Brien is a 'wild card option' for the recently vacated head coaching position with the Boston College Eagles.
As Feldman also notes, however, it would be a tough move to pull off for either side given the timing of the situation. That said, it is also not impossible.
"O’Brien is a wild card option," said Feldman. "He’s a Boston native and former Brown player. He flirted with the BC job the last time it opened... The timing could be tough as he just accepted the Ohio State OC job, but this one could be intriguing for him on some levels."
O'Brien, 54, joined the Buckeyes after leaving the college ranks last offseason to return to the New England Patriots for his second stint as their play-caller. O'Brien is set to be in charge of the quarterback room, with Corey Dennis being moved to an as-of-yet-undetermined role.
Meanwhile, Feldman also mentioned another Ohio State assistant that could be an option for the Eagles, in Buckeyes offensive line and associate head coach, Justin Frye.
Frye, of course, has extensive ties to Boston College, spending five seasons there as the team's offensive line coach from 2013-2017, before moving on to become the offensive coordinator at UCLA.
And according to Feldman, the Eagles still think very highly of Frye.
"One other Buckeye assistant with some strong BC ties who might be an option is Frye," Feldman said. "He spent five years on the Eagles staff as the offensive line coach and was very well thought of around the program... Frye has the commanding presence and the polish to be a head coach. He was a candidate for the Indiana head coaching vacancy a few months ago."
All that said, both Frye and O'Brien are just two of a wide range of candidates that the Eagles could be considering.
But if either does become a serious candidate for the position, the Buckeyes will have to scramble to find a replacement soon before the beginning of spring football.
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