Ohio State is promoting from within to replace Kevin Wilson as tight ends coach.
Keenan Bailey, who has been with the Buckeyes since 2016 as a support staffer, is set to be Ohio State’s new tight ends coach, an Ohio State spokesperson confirmed Saturday.
Bailey, who currently holds the title of senior advisor to the head coach, has worked with Ohio State’s offense in a multitude of roles for the past seven years. He has spent more time working with the tight ends this year, grooming him for the possibility of replacing Wilson if Wilson left Ohio State to become a head coach. Cade Stover said he worked with Bailey three or four nights a week during the summer to work on developing his pass-catching skills, and he saw that work pay off this year as he became Ohio State’s most productive receiving tight end since 2013.
“Keenan is probably the best-held secret in this whole entire place,” Stover said in August. “I love talking to that dude, he helps me so much and he's just a very, very smart mind with football.”
Bailey has also drawn praise from recruits for his efforts in that area. 2023 wide receiver commits Carnell Tate and Brandon Inniss have both said Bailey’s recruiting efforts influenced their decisions to commit to Ohio State, and Bailey has already been out on the road recruiting as tight ends coach since Wilson accepted the Tulsa job earlier this week.
Well deserved. https://t.co/dp8FrqkmM9
— Carnell Tate (@carnelltate_) December 10, 2022
Thankful to have @OhioStateFB TE coach @CoachKee visit Calvary today. #GoCavs @GoCavsFB @stroudmr pic.twitter.com/X9sJep2pPT
— Calvary Day School Athletics (@Cavalier_Sports) December 9, 2022
Thank you to @OhioStateFB TEs coach @CoachKee for coming to visit the Packers yesterday!!! #GoBuckeyes pic.twitter.com/IlVNDh2UjN
— Colquitt County Football (@CCPackersFball) December 9, 2022
While Ohio State has confirmed its plan to promote Bailey, it has not confirmed who will replace Wilson as offensive coordinator. It is expected that Ohio State will also promote from within to fill that role, though, with offensive line coach/associate head coach for offense Justin Frye (who was previously UCLA’s offensive coordinator) and passing game coordinator/wide receivers coach Brian Hartline both being potential candidates to take on that title.
Bailey initially joined Ohio State’s staff in 2016 as an offensive intern, initially working with the running backs before moving to coach wide receivers and later quarterbacks. He was promoted to quality control coach in 2019 and held that title until this February, when he was promoted to senior advisor to the head coach.
A Notre Dame alumnus who was a recruiting analyst for the Fighting Irish before he joined Ohio State, Bailey had been courted by other colleges in recent years for assistant coaching jobs but stayed with Ohio State with the expectation that he would eventually be promoted to the full-time coaching staff. After seven years of paying his dues, Bailey’s patience has been rewarded as he now joins an offensive staff that’s led by Ryan Day and also includes Frye, Hartline, run game coordinator/running backs coach Tony Alford and quarterbacks coach Corey Dennis.
