Matt Patricia, Ohio State Agree to New Contract amid NFL Interest, Will Be CFB's Top-Paid DC

Matt Patricia helped Ohio State become the best defense in the country during his first season as a collegiate defensive coordinator, and he is coming back for more in 2026.

Bill Landis of the Columbus Dispatch reported details of the contract:

Daniel Hager of On3 noted Patricia will be the highest-paid defensive coordinator in the country.

"He was always committed to staying here," Ohio State athletic director Ross Bjork told Joey Kaufman of the Columbus Dispatch in February. "I know his family loves it. His kids have fit in well. ... We just kept a constant dialogue before we got to an agreement with him."

Brandon Marcello of CBS Sports reported Patricia received some interest from NFL teams but decided to stay in the collegiate ranks.

Ohio State's decision to hire Patricia ahead of the 2025 campaign was met with some skepticism, as he wasn't experienced at the collegiate level and went 13-29-1 as the head coach of the Detroit Lions from 2018 until he was fired in 2020.

Yet he wasted little time proving the doubters wrong as the Buckeyes held Arch Manning and Texas to a mere seven points in the season opener. That was just a sign of things to come for a team that went undefeated in a regular season it capped off by holding archrival Michigan to just three field goals in a decisive victory on the road.

While the Buckeyes were unable to defend their College Football Playoff national title in the postseason, the defense still held eventual national champion Indiana to 13 points in the Big Ten championship game and held Miami to fewer than 300 yards off offense in the CFP.

The Scarlet and Gray finished the season No. 1 in the country in both points and yards allowed per game with star players such as Caleb Downs, Arvell Reese and Sonny Styles thriving in Patricia's system.

Ohio State Wins

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It was a reminder of the defensive coordinator's history of success before becoming a head coach.

The New England Patriots reached at least the AFC Championship Game and finished in the top 10 in the NFL in points allowed in each of his six seasons as their DC from 2012 through 2017. They also made three Super Bowl appearances and won two Lombardi Trophies during that stretch after reaching three Super Bowls and winning another during his time as an assistant from 2004 to 2011.

Patricia will forever be a Patriots legend given his role in that sustained success, but he was looking for something else at Ohio State.

"We went to eight straight AFC Championship games, and you're kind of just in that mode," he told reporters in December. "I had the year to look back and say, 'Why did I get into coaching?' I got into it to help teach and mentor young men. And I think that's what the draw was to come back to college."

He could face more of a challenge in his second season with the Buckeyes, though, as players such as Downs, Reese, Styles, Caden Curry, Kayden McDonald and Davison Igbinosun will all be gone from last year's team.

Downs, Reese and Styles could all be top-10 picks, while McDonald is also a candidate to be a first-rounder. It will be anything but easy to replace that much talent, especially against a loaded schedule that features games against Texas, Indiana, Oregon, USC, Michigan and Iowa.

But Patricia has a track record of success, and he will look to add onto it in 2026 after deciding to stay put.

Also of note, Landis reported new offensive coordinator Arthur Smith will make $1.5 million in 2026 and $2 million in 2027.