Matt Patricia is finalizing a deal with Ohio State to become the new defensive coordinator for the reigning national champions, according to Pete Thamel of ESPN.
Patricia replaces Jim Knowles, who left Ohio State in January to become Penn State’s defensive coordinator.
Patricia has a history of leading elite defenses in the NFL, having been the New England Patriots defensive coordinator from 2009 to 2017. The Patriots ranked in the top 10 in the NFL in points allowed per game in eight of those nine seasons, leading the NFL ins coring defense in 2016 on its way to winning the Super Bowl. The Patriots also won the Super Bowl in 2014 after ranking eighth in the league in points allowed per game.
Patricia hasn’t coached at the collegiate level since he was an offensive graduate assistant at Syracuse from 2001-03. He started his coaching career as a graduate assistant at Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute, his alma mater, in 1996, and was the defensive line coach at Amherst College in 1999 and 2000 after working outside of football for two years as an engineer.
