Tom Herman Named Ohio State's Offensive Coordinator, Quarterbacks Coach

Urban Meyer has found his offensive coordinator. Tom Herman, who coordinated Iowa State's offense the past three seasons, has been hired as Ohio State's new offensive coordinator and quarterbacks coach. Rumors began circulating two days ago that Herman had been hired only as quarterbacks coach, but he will instead direct the entire offense in addition to his position duties.

The official release from Ohio State confirmed the news minutes ago, and Meyer commented on Herman's credentials within the report.

"Tom Herman has one of the bright young minds in college football," Meyer said. "His philosophies are very similar to those of my own. I spoke to numerous colleagues about Tom and all had great things to say about him. I enjoyed our time together during the interview process and I am excited to have him on the staff."

Meyer has never worked with Herman before, which can be seen as both a potentially exciting and potentially negative factor. Herman brings new blood outside of the Meyer coaching tree and different beliefs about how to run an offense, which should refresh a passing scheme that some, including Chris Brown from Smart Football, believe went stale by the end of Meyer's tenure at Florida.

Herman arrived at Iowa State from Rice, where he coordinated one of the top offenses in the country in 2008. At Iowa State, Herman's offenses were not nearly as prolific, but still produced at relatively high levels given the talent disparity between the Cyclones and their Big 12 opponents. Marcus Hartman, writing for Scout.com, pointed out one of the important hidden statistics behind Herman's Iowa State offenses.

"Herman has made a habit of utilizing dual-threat quarterbacks as his primary signal callers have run for at least 500 yards in each of the past five seasons. (Including the 2011 season when a pair of quarterbacks combined to throw for 2,500 yards and rush for 618)."

This had to be an important consideration for Meyer, who needed to find a coach to mold young Braxton Miller. Herman's success with Austen Arnaud, the Cyclones quarterback during Herman's first two seasons, should give Buckeye fans hope that Miller is in good hands. Arnaud was a raw redshirt sophomore the season before Herman arrived, but he left Iowa State as their second leading passer in school history.

As a quarterbacks coach, Herman is a home-run hire. Miller will improve under his tutelage, no doubt. There are some reservations to be had about Herman's transition to big-time BCS-level play as offensive coordinator, however, now that he will be expected to install an explosive offense that performs every week. His Iowa State scoring offenses were average or below average each season (103rd, 97th, 86th), but much of this had to be a function of inferior talent. At Ohio State, Herman will have all the talent he needs to fully reach the potential of his spread system.

Also, don't rule out another addition to the offensive coordinator role. We think Matt Campbell, offensive coordinator and line coach at Toledo, would make a great fit on Meyer's staff. Campbell runs a spread offense at Toledo not unlike the one Herman ran at Iowa State, and Campbell would fill the offensive line coaching position so important in modern college football.