By Hayden Bird
After spending a football season away from the sidelines and in the media business alongside his former boss, Bill Belichick, ex-Patriots defensive coordinator Matt Patricia is set for a new role.
According to ESPN college football senior writer Pete Thamel (and later confirmed by multiple sources, including NFL insider Ian Rapoport), Patricia will become the next defensive coordinator for the reigning national champion Ohio State Buckeyes.
Patricia, 50, was most recently a senior defensive assistant for the Eagles in 2023. Prior to that, he was the Patriots’ offensive line coach in a troubled 2022 season. He also had an unsuccessful stint as head coach of the Lions from 2018-2020.
Aside from his lone year coaching on offense, Patricia has spent most of his career as a defensive coach. The peak of his time in the NFL arguably came as New England’s defensive coordinator from 2012-2017, when he oversaw two Super Bowl-winning defenses.
He partnered with Belichick and now-North Carolina general manager Michael Lombardi to host the podcast “Coach with Bill Belichick” during the 2024 football season.
Patricia will replace Jim Knowles, who recently helped Ohio State win the national championship. After the triumphant season ended, Knowles was promptly hired by Penn State in a deal that makes him the highest paid defensive coordinator in college football.
Hayden Bird is a sports staff writer for Boston.com, where he has worked since 2016. He covers all things sports in New England.
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