Report: Two Ohio State staffers expected to take new jobs

Shortly after Ohio State’s thrilling win in the Rose Bowl on New Year’s Day, reports surfaced that two staff members will be moving on from Columbus.

Yahoo’s Pete Thamel reported after the game that Ohio State interim defensive coordinator Matt Barnes has agreed to become the defensive coordinator at Memphis. He stepped in for Kerry Coombs when Ryan Day decided to make a change along the defensive staff in September.

Barnes has been on Ohio State’s staff since 2019, starting out as the special teams coordinator and defensive backs coach. He’s also had stops at Florida, Michigan and Maryland.

Source: Ohio State interim DC Matt Barnes has agreed to become the defensive coordinator at Memphis. Barnes did admirable work after getting elevated in September.

— Pete Thamel (@PeteThamel) January 2, 2022

Also Saturday night, Bruce Feldman of The Athletic reported that Joe Bolden, who has been a quality assistant for Ohio State, is expected to leave the Buckeyes for a job at Nevada. He will be the special teams coordinator and outside linebackers coach.

SOURCE: Ohio State staffer Joe Bolden, a quality control assistant for the Buckeyes, is expected to take a job as a special teams coordinator/OLB coach at Nevada. The former Michigan team captain had been a special teams quality control analyst at USC.

— Bruce Feldman (@BruceFeldmanCFB) January 2, 2022

Ohio State was expected to make significant changes to its defensive staff this offseason after struggling on that side of the football throughout the year. Already, the Buckeyes hired Jim Knowles away from Oklahoma State to be the next defensive coordinator.

There could be even more changes in Columbus in the coming days and weeks.