Brian Hartline surfaced as the newest high-profile Ohio State football coaching departure. Yet the incoming South Florida head coach plans to help Ryan Day and company on Thursday. He has the Miami defensive line to prepare for in the Cotton Bowl.
Some Buckeye fans, however, are concerned Hartline's focus won't be on containing the Hurricanes' star edge rushers. Or facing a deep secondary that sealed the win over Texas A&M. There's concerns mental fatigue in juggling jobs will wear out the soon departing offensive coordinator.
Hartline, though, firmly put down those concerns via Chase Brown of Eleven Warriors.
“We’re focusing on the Buckeyes. Love the Buckeyes. It’s front of my mind,” Hartline bluntly shared.
Will Brian Hartline call plays in Ohio State vs. Miami?
Hartline is either sitting in the coach's box or standing on the sidelines for Thursday. But he won't call the offense.
Day made the decision to run the offense and call the plays one week ago. This move comes not only amid Hartline's pending exit.
Ohio State stumbled on offense in its last live action. The Buckeyes mustered just 58 rushing yards and totaled 322 offensive yards in the Big Ten title game loss to Indiana. That 13-10 defeat costed the Buckeyes the No. 1 seed in the College Football Playoff and the conference title.
Wide receiver Jeremiah Smith walks in confident against Miami, even saying he has “something coming” for the Hurricanes. Miami's defense, however, presents far different challenges compared to Indiana.
Day, Hartline and the Buckeyes coaches must find ways to contain two high-profile rushers. Rueben Bain and Akheem Mesidor formed one of the nation's best edge rush tandems. Freshman Bryce Fitzgerald stepped up and grabbed the winning interception against Texas A&M's Marcel Reed.
The defending national champs, though, are a massive 9.5-point favorite to beat Miami and advance in the CFP.
