Ohio State quickly found the person likely to replace Luke Fickell when the program announced the hiring of Bill Davis as a defensive assistant coach on Wednesday. Davis will take over for the Buckeyes at the conclusion of the 2016 season.
According to a press release from the school, Davis' role at Ohio State is still to be determined. However, with Fickell leaving at the end of the year to become the head coach at Cincinnati, it makes sense Davis would be the guy to step in and coach the Buckeyes' linebackers — Fickell's old position group.
| Year | School/Team | Position |
|---|---|---|
| 1991 | Michigan State | Graduate assistant |
| 1992–94 | Pittsburgh Steelers | Defensive assistant |
| 1995–98 | Carolina Panthers | Outside linebackers coach |
| 1999 | Cleveland Browns | Assistant linebackers coach |
| 2000 | Green Bay Packers | Assistant defensive line coach |
| 2001–03 | Atlanta Falcons | Linebackers coach |
| 2004 | New York Giants | Linebackers coach |
| 2005–06 | San Francisco 49ers | Defensive coordinator |
| 2007–08 | Arizona Cardinals | Linebackers coach |
| 2009–10 | Arizona Cardinals | Defensive coordinator |
| 2011–12 | Cleveland Browns | Linebackers coach |
| 2013–15 | Philadelphia Eagles | Defensive coordinator |
Fickell was also the team's co-defensive coordinator, but Ohio State head coach Urban Meyer recently stated both Greg Schiano and Kerry Coombs will have expanded roles next season with the Buckeyes' defense. That likely means Davis will come in and coach the team's linebackers. When you look at his coaching history, it makes sense.
Davis played collegiately at Cincinnati — he was a teammate there of Meyer's and was actually the best man in Meyer's wedding — and began his coaching career as a graduate assistant at Michigan State in 1991.
That was the last time Davis coached at the collegiate level.
Davis coached in the NFL for 24 years and was a defensive coordinator for three different teams. He was a defensive coordinator for the San Francisco 49ers from 2005–06, Arizona Cardinals from 2009–10 and Philadelphia Eagles from 2013–15. In his seven seasons as an NFL defensive coordinator, Davis' defenses ranked 32nd, 26th, 20th, 29th, 29th, 28th and 30th in yards allowed per game.
Additionally, Davis spent eight years coaching linebackers in the NFL for the Atlanta Falcons, New York Giants, Cleveland Browns and Arizona Cardinals. He has worked under longtime NFL head coaches Bill Cower, Tom Coughlin, Dan Reeves and Dom Capers.
Davis spent this past season as a defensive analyst for Ohio State.
The biggest question surrounding Davis, of course, is whether or not he can recruit. He clearly has plenty of coaching experience at the highest level, but he has never had a full-time job at the collegiate level.
Fickell was one of the best recruiters on Meyer's staff and will continue to recruit at a high level in his new position at Cincinnati. Davis will need to fill that void on Ohio State's staff.
Davis is the second close friend Meyer hired as a defensive assistant in the last two seasons. Meyer brought in Schiano prior to the 2016 season to replace Chris Ash, who moved on to become the head coach at Rutgers.
