Hires Made
Ohio State promotes Brian Hartline to OC and Billy Fessler to QB coach, hires Tyler Bowen as OL coach
Ohio State is promoting its new quarterbacks coach from within the program.
Billy Fessler, who worked closely with Ohio State’s quarterbacks last season after joining the Buckeyes’ staff as an offensive analyst, is expected to be Ohio State’s full-time quarterbacks coach in 2025, according to multiple reports.
Ohio State is expected to name Billy Fessler as its new quarterbacks coach, sources tell @cbssports/@247Sports.
— Matt Zenitz (@mzenitz) February 5, 2025
Fessler, a rising star figure in the coaching world, was a coaching assistant at Ohio State this season after serving as an OC at UCLA and Akron. pic.twitter.com/pA4ZhYU9Dv
Fessler takes over that duty from former offensive coordinator Chip Kelly, who was also the Buckeyes’ quarterbacks coach last season. Brian Hartline, who was promoted to offensive coordinator to replace Kelly, will continue to coach Ohio State’s wide receivers as he has since 2018.
A former Penn State quarterback (2014-17), Fessler initially joined Ohio State’s coaching staff as a graduate assistant in 2020 after working as a GA at Slippery Rock in 2018 and Mississippi State in 2019. Fessler left Ohio State to become Akron’s quarterbacks coach in 2022 and was the Zips’ offensive coordinator in 2023. He briefly became UCLA’s quarterbacks coach last offseason before following Kelly to Columbus.
After a rule change in college football last offseason allowed analysts and other support staffers to coach players in practices and games, Fessler worked alongside Kelly to coach Ohio State’s quarterbacks last season and drew praise from Will Howard for his role in helping Howard develop as a quarterback.
“Billy Fessler is one of the guys that doesn't get a lot of credit, too; he did an unbelievable job developing me this year,” Howard said in the thank you video he posted to social media last week.
Now, Fessler will be responsible for developing Ohio State’s next crop of quarterbacks – alongside Ryan Day, who still works closely with the quarterbacks as Ohio State’s head coach – as Julian Sayin, Lincoln Kienholz and Tavien St. Clair compete for the Buckeyes’ starting job in 2025.
Fessler joins an offensive coaching staff that will be led in 2025 by Hartline and also includes running backs coach Carlos Locklyn, tight ends coach Keenan Bailey and new offensive line coach Tyler Bowen, who was hired Wednesday to replace Justin Frye after previously serving as Virginia Tech’s offensive coordinator.
