Arthur Smith has seen a few things as a football coach, and now that he’s the offensive coordinator of the Ohio State Buckeyes, he’s bringing it all into play.
Smith has been a big-time NFL offensive coordinator, and he was also the head coach of the Atlanta Falcons from 2021 to 2023. His last gig in the NFL before Ohio State head coach Ryan Day poached him to replace Brian Hartline was the offensive coordinator for the Pittsburgh Steelers.
There, Smith coached and worked with Aaron Rodgers, a four-time NFL MVP and one of the greatest quarterbacks of all time.
He now has the chance to impart the lessons he learned from coaching Rodgers to Ohio State quarterback Julian Sayin, who was already a Heisman Trophy candidate last season.
Ryan Day: Julian Sayin has already picked up on the high level of coaching
“I think he’s liked the challenge of some of the things that Arthur is bringing to the table,” Day said while speaking at Big Ten Media Days. “When you go from coaching Aaron Rodgers to a college quarterback, you can certainly imagine what that has been like for Arthur. Man, Julian keeps up. It’s been fun to watch.”
Sayin threw for 3,610 yards and 32 touchdowns last season with just eight interceptions. He finished behind Fernando Mendoza, Diego Pavia and Jeremiyah Love in the Heisman Trophy voting, but he had an incredible season considering it was his first campaign as the starter for Ohio State.
He now has another offseason under his belt, as well as an NFL-level play-caller calling the shots in Smith. He has all the intangibles to be a Heisman Trophy winner, and Day believes the former five-star recruit is motivated to be as good as possible, so the sky appears to be the limit.
“I think for Julian, you look for some traits that are extraordinary about him. I think the first thing you recognize is his accuracy. What you don’t see, but I see, is his intelligence level. He can handle high levels of information. He’s highly, highly motivated,” Day said.
