OT: Cincinnati to hire ex-OSU DC Coombs
ESPN is reporting that Luke Fickell and Cincinnati are expected to hire Kerry Coombs. I know Coombs has rightfully taken some abuse as not the best on-field coach, but I view this as a net positive for UM and net negative for OSU. Coombs bonafides as a recruiter are unquestioned, and now that guy will be recruiting against OSU in its own backyard and has a run of recent success including this year's playoff appearance to help in the sales pitch
January 18th, 2022 at 12:17 PM ^
Agreed--I want him recruiting in OSU's backyard (though Cincinnati itself is not as Buckeye-friendly as you might imagine).
January 18th, 2022 at 12:52 PM ^
Coolstorybro alert:
I moved to Cinci in 2003, knowing almost nothing about the place. I went to a bar to watch the UM game and hesitantly asked if it could be put on, expecting to get heckled. The bartender turned it on and said "you a Michigan fan?" I winced and said yes. He said "Good, I fucking hate OSU."
I knew then I had made the best choice you can make of places to live in Ohio.
January 18th, 2022 at 1:18 PM ^
Last I knew, the Enquirer didn't even have its own OSU beat writer. As I'm sure you've noticed, the city is a mix of UC, Kentucky, ND, and OSU fans.
January 18th, 2022 at 1:59 PM ^
Another Cool Story bro: I moved to Cincy from Columbus* last year. I was asked about 4/5 times during the season if my "M" hat was Michigan or Moeller (a high school)....
In addition to being anti-buckeye....Cincinnati has to be the world's biggest "high school town". "Where did you go to school?" means high school not college here.
*Columbus is great. Would move back in a heartbeat.
January 18th, 2022 at 2:49 PM ^
St Louis is another big "where did you go to high school" town... some other similarities to Cincy too (size, mild Southern influence, some interesting buildings from its riverboat heyday, weird chili being sold in diners).
January 18th, 2022 at 6:28 PM ^
Maybe going to high school is like going to college for people down there.
January 18th, 2022 at 10:14 PM ^
*Columbus is great. Would move back in a heartbeat.
Cincy has character. The downtown, the people, the geography, and the recreation. All of those things are bland in Columbus, like the city itself.
January 18th, 2022 at 12:55 PM ^
He's going to be a massive PIA for OSU while he's at Cincy, which is probably until retirement. He's a native of a Cincy suburb (Colerain), and clearly didn't appreciate the demotion he was asked to take this year. If Fickell stays at Cincy along with Coombs, they'll be knocking on the door of being a perennial Top 10 team. The move to the Big 12 is also only going to bolster the program. Add in that (as you said) Cincinnati has historically been hard to recruit due to the Notre Dame/Catholic pipeline, this certainly isn't good news for OSU.
January 18th, 2022 at 1:31 PM ^
Watch out for guys with grudges.
January 18th, 2022 at 1:39 PM ^
No kidding, I see it all the time in my industry. Some people take a demotion for underperformance and continue to put in minimal effort in their new (demoted) position. Other times they leave, go to a competitor, and become a massive PIA for us because they felt slighted. Coombs is the latter... He's going to BRING IT against OSU any time he has the chance.
January 18th, 2022 at 1:53 PM ^
He put a serious amount of time and energy helping build and be a part of OSU. A lot of that reputation and service was erased pretty publicly. I’m sure he has much to prove.
January 18th, 2022 at 9:35 PM ^
Coombs has a longstanding rep for being a great recruiter and a subpar coach. Fickell hired him to recruit and he'll do that. I'm not sure how a position coach is suddenly going to be great vs OSU.
January 19th, 2022 at 12:58 AM ^
Fickell is a defensive coach in his own right, too, which should help.
January 18th, 2022 at 1:53 PM ^
OR, any comments on the idea that Fickell is OSU's "coach in waiting?"
January 18th, 2022 at 2:24 PM ^
With the impending move to the Big 12, I think Fickell has set himself up nicely for the foreseeable future. Wouldn't shock me at all to see him stay at Cincy for awhile, and if OSU comes calling, that's probably the call he's most receptive to taking. Day has been ruthless with the defensive staff changes he's made, similar to what he did when he took over for Urban. The first round didn't go so well, if this second round doesn't either, his seat will be getting plenty warm end of 22 or 23', especially with another loss to UM.
Wouldn't surprise me at all if Fickell is content to stay at Cincy and see what the next 2-3 years look like at OSU. I would imagine he'd be at the top of the list to replace Day, should it come to that.
January 18th, 2022 at 12:17 PM ^
Also worth noting that this is almost a direct trade.
Coombs will coach CBs (and special teams) and replace Cincinnati's most recent CBs coach, Perry Eliano, who will move to OSU to coach safeties
January 18th, 2022 at 12:37 PM ^
So Cincinnati's successful year was a one off I guess. Outgoing guy developed the Jim Thorpe award winner AND separately one of the projected top 5 CBs in the class. Incoming guy routinely sends 5* CBs to the league who are described as knowing nothing about playing the position. Remove the 5* part and you're looking at the Bearcat secondary getting torched.
January 18th, 2022 at 12:57 PM ^
Denzel Ward was a 3* my guy. Coombs is a phenomenal CB coach.
January 18th, 2022 at 1:21 PM ^
Not trying to throw bombs here at all but isn’t the book on OSU corners that they are super unprepared for the NFL? Maybe this is based on Ukodoh but I thought it was kind of a trend that they are talented but not really coached.
January 18th, 2022 at 2:27 PM ^
Ukodoh? I’m assuming you mean Okudah?
January 18th, 2022 at 2:43 PM ^
I'll learn to spell his name when he's good.
January 18th, 2022 at 8:07 PM ^
Maybe you can say inconsistent at best, but Kerry Coombs has had a handful of instant contributors at cornerback in the NFL: Denzel Ward, Eli Apple, Bradley Roby and Marshon Lattimore come to mind.
January 18th, 2022 at 12:18 PM ^
Will be curious to see if the recruiting power dynamics in Cincy will shift at all. OSU will probably still get their pick of guys, but if Cincy and ND with their Cincy heavy staff can start getting some top tier guys that would be interesting.
January 18th, 2022 at 12:22 PM ^
OSU will still get first pick in Ohio 9 out of 10 times. But even if Cincy takes away 10-15 percent of OSU recruits -- a few 4-stars here and there -- that helps us. Michigan loses a handful to MSU many years, and having an instate recruiting rival makes things harder.
January 18th, 2022 at 12:24 PM ^
Agreed. I'd put ND in the same breath as UC, given the strong Catholic schools in Cincy, and the fact that the current ND staff is basically UC/OSU west.
January 18th, 2022 at 12:59 PM ^
You are 100% right Rick. ND ruled Cincy for years with that catholic connection.
January 18th, 2022 at 1:07 PM ^
It's sort of cool that Fickell is staying at Cinci. I respect that. My guess, based upon a 1,000 people saying it on here, is that he's waiting for the OSU job to open up. It'd be great if Cinci became an [MSU] to OSU and ND. Go Bearcats.
January 18th, 2022 at 2:43 PM ^
I think the problem you’ll run into with OSU is that they recruit so well nationally that they won’t really be impacted all that much by losing an in-state guy or two every year.
January 18th, 2022 at 5:01 PM ^
OSU is a juggernaut, but there is a lot of change going on with Fickell at Cinci which is Big XII bound, Lincoln Riley and USC and all of the other crazy changes this year. When you're on top there is nowhere to go but down. Change is OSU's enemy. Had they lost to Utah their descent would have been quicker. If they have a 2-3 loss season combined with losing to Michigan there could be panic.
It will also be interesting to see how Clemson does with losing their coordinators after a 9-3 year. Can't wait till Saban retires.
January 18th, 2022 at 7:53 PM ^
Neither of those changes are really going to impact OSU. Cincy and the Big 12 really isn’t a threat. OSU is still THE school there and the Big 12 has lost some of its cache. And OSU wasn’t really getting the Southern California kids that USC is a factor for to begin with.
OSU would be threatened more by a resurgent Texas and a strong UF/FSU/Miami than anything Cincy/USC will do.
OSU is a recruiting juggernaut to the point that they’ll just replace the odd Ohio or Southern California kid they hypothetically miss out on with random top 100 recruit from Virginia or some other state.
It’s going to take a couple years of “down” play from OSU (couple 2-3 loss years, maybe a random 9-4 thrown in there) and the right programs excelling for anything to really change on their end. They’re consistently one of the top 3-4 schools for top 100 recruits, no matter where those recruits are from. Lincoln Riley at USC and Cincy in a watered down Big 12 aren’t going to change that. If anything, Riley was more of a thorn in OSU’s side when he was at OU with Texas recruiting.
January 18th, 2022 at 8:42 PM ^
I choose to believe that there are now cracks in OSU's foundation. You can't take that away from me! With Venerable (sp?) at OK with Clemson's recruiting playbook they may be more of a threat than when Riley was there. Cracks I tell ya. CRACKS!
January 19th, 2022 at 8:18 AM ^
I tried believing that when Tressel was canned and they were hit with sanctions. I tried believing that when they went 6-7 under Fickell. I tried believing that when Meyer was out and they hired Day with no prior head coaching experience.
Ive learned from my mistakes and it’s better to face reality. It’s going to take the perfect storm to knock OSU down a couple pegs, and Cincy hiring a corners coach and Lincoln Riley to USC aint gonna be it
January 18th, 2022 at 1:45 PM ^
With Cincy heading to the Big XII and UT and OU leaving, they have a great chance to become the front-runner for that conference every year. I don't think they'll make it through undefeated all the time but once they're solidified as a conference contender, it will open up new recruiting territories as well. I don't think they'll pull that much talent away from OSU but they may not have to if they can keep up this momentum.
January 18th, 2022 at 12:19 PM ^
OSU is like New York City. If you can make it there, you'll make it anywhere!
However, Cincinnati is like Scranton, Pennsylvania. If you fail in NYC, they'll give you a place to start fresh. It won't be pretty, and your house will smell of boiled cabbage and sadness, but you won't starve to death...
January 18th, 2022 at 2:16 PM ^
Michael Scott says hi!
January 18th, 2022 at 3:04 PM ^
No no no! OSU is like Mos Eisley. You will never find a more wretched hive of scum and villainy.
January 18th, 2022 at 3:20 PM ^
I just learned last week that Jazz in the Star Wars universe is called "Jizz." It's true, you can look it up. What you do with this new information is up to you...
January 18th, 2022 at 3:52 PM ^
I like a nice selection of "Slow Jazz" for date night.
January 18th, 2022 at 12:36 PM ^
The flipside to this is, with how well he recruits the midwest, he might steal kids who OSU is slow on that usually would commit to us…or at least MSU. I already see kids on Twitter who are saying Cincy is now a top school for them (Joshua-Harris for ex), I assume because of this.
January 18th, 2022 at 12:43 PM ^
OTOH, if we're consistently losing on those "tier 2" OSU guys to UC that's a bigger problem. Plus, an elephant in the room is there's a lot of guys in Ohio who hate Michigan and just don't wanna play here. Right now the anti-Michigan options include MSU - if Cincy can pick off some of those guys (along with ND, Kentucky etc) that is also a win.
January 18th, 2022 at 1:01 PM ^
You’re on a role Rick’s hahaha. Kentucky used to clean up on guys that OSU slow-played. I think Cincy is about to take all of them away which is going to kill that program.
January 18th, 2022 at 12:41 PM ^
Coombs is a Cincinnati legend, but no shot he will keep local kids from going to OSU.
He will however make it harder for teams like IU, Kentucky, MSU to come grab the high 3 stars that don’t get offers from the national programs.
January 18th, 2022 at 12:48 PM ^
You're right, of course, but I was dumbfounded to see that he last coached at Colerain in 2006! I thought he had been there much more recently than that.
And he was last at UC in 2011, so IDK how much the kids from St. X, Moeller, Elder, La Salle, and Colerain will think of him as a legend.
January 18th, 2022 at 2:56 PM ^
The kids playing now were attending games since they were babies. It’s all about the generational history of families attending those schools.
He may not know the kids, but he has relationships with the coaches and parents.
January 18th, 2022 at 12:43 PM ^
despite our resounding win, and despite our B10 title.. i still feel like somehow itll work out best for osu.
January 18th, 2022 at 1:03 PM ^
That win poked the bear. And the bear (Day) is very pissed and is out for blood. Hopefully it works out for us next November, but you guys earned it!
January 18th, 2022 at 1:30 PM ^
Well ok, but Day's "Hang 100 on them" poked the wolverine.