The NFL’s usual playbook for hiring head coaches starts and ends with its own coordinators. But every so often, a college name gets loud enough that pro teams have to at least pick up the phone.
That’s where Marcus Freeman, Ryan Day and Steve Sarkisian come in. If the 2026 season goes the way their résumés suggest it might, all three could be in the conversation once the 2027 hiring cycle opens.
Freeman is the one who already feels closest to the league. He announced in December that he would stay at Notre Dame for the 2026 season, after reported interest from teams such as the New York Giants and Tennessee Titans. The 40-year-old has gone 43-12 with the Irish and taken them to a national championship appearance, all while handling the pressure, recruiting grind and expectations that come with one of the sport’s biggest brands.
His defensive background gives him a natural fit for the NFL’s current appetite for younger defensive-minded head coaches who can set the tone and bring in the right offensive staff. Freeman has never coached in the league, which is the obvious question hanging over him.
Still, he said he has talked with NFL executives and learned what those organizations look for in a head coach. Another strong season at Notre Dame would only sharpen that interest.
Day’s case looks different, but just as compelling. He has already checked off two major items that once made his Ohio State job feel more fragile: the Buckeyes won the national championship after the 2024 season, and he finally snapped the four-game losing streak to Michigan in 2025. With those pressures off the board, a move to the NFL would read less like an escape and more like a straight career jump.
Day brings an offensive background and actual pro experience, having coached quarterbacks for the Philadelphia Eagles and San Francisco 49ers. He has also spent years shaping NFL quarterbacks while working with a roster loaded with professional-level talent.
His 82-12 record at Ohio State is ridiculous, even with the built-in advantages that come with that job. For a team with a young quarterback and an owner looking for someone who can run the whole show, Day makes a lot of sense.
If Ohio State makes another deep playoff run, expect his name to be everywhere in 2027.
Sarkisian may be the cleanest offensive fit of the group. NFL teams are always drawn to coaches who can develop quarterbacks, and Sarkisian has built his reputation around exactly that. He has turned Texas into a regular national championship contender, and he calls the offense himself - a detail that matters a lot to pro front offices that don’t want to see their offensive architect poached every winter.
He also has NFL experience on his résumé, coaching quarterbacks for the then-Oakland Raiders in 2004 and serving as Atlanta Falcons offensive coordinator in 2017 and 2018. There are fair reasons to wonder whether he would actually leave. Texas is one of the best jobs in college football, the school can compete financially with nearly any NFL franchise and recruiting elite talent offers an edge the pros simply don’t provide.
Even so, owners love offense, quarterback development and big names. Sarkisian gives them all three.
Freeman has already drawn the most concrete interest. Day and Sarkisian have profiles that fit what the NFL keeps chasing.
None of them has to go anywhere. That usually doesn’t stop pro teams from asking.
In Other News...
Ohio State Commit Jamier Brown Suddenly Has A Delay Fans Will Notice
Jamier Browns senior season at Huber Heights Wayne will begin with an unexpected pause, as the five-star wide receiver and Ohio State commit has been handed a two-game suspension for two unrelated OHSAA rules violations. The setback is not tied to his transfer back to Wayne, but it will still keep one of the states most closely watched prospects off the field for the opening stretch of the year.
Brown is expected to return in Week 3 and make his season debut against St. Edward, giving fans their first chance to see the Buckeyes pledge in game action after missing the first two games. For Ohio State, it is a brief delay rather than a lasting concern, but it is the kind of early-season wrinkle that immediately changes the spotlight around a player with his profile. [Read more 🡒]
Former Buckeye George Fitzpatrick Faces A Serious Fight For His Future
George Fitzpatricks path back to the field has hit a significant roadblock, with the former Ohio State offensive lineman now at Kansas State set to miss the entire 2026 season after not being medically cleared to play. The news comes after a medical issue roughly a month ago kept him from returning to practice, and it has changed the conversation from football development to something much more urgent.
Kansas State coach Collin Klein said Fitzpatrick has not yet reached the health benchmarks needed for a return, and while football is not being ruled out completely, the focus has shifted to his long-term well-being. For Buckeye fans who followed his career in Columbus, it is a sobering reminder that some roster stories are measured less by depth charts than by whether a player can get healthy enough to simply move forward. [Read more 🡒]
Ohio State Legend Questions What Ryan Day Took From The Game
Ryan Days decision to move Ohio States Senior Day from the familiar late-November setting against Michigan to Week 1 against Ball State has stirred a conversation that goes beyond one ceremony on the schedule. For Buckeye fans and former players, the timing of Senior Day has long been tied to the emotional finish of a season, so shifting it to the opener naturally raised eyebrows and invited plenty of reaction.
Cardale Jones was among the former Buckeyes who pushed back, saying he disagreed with the change and stressing the value of keeping Senior Day at the end of the year. The debate now sits at the intersection of tradition and modern college football, where even long-standing rituals can feel unsettled, and Ohio States move has left some wondering whether this is a one-time adjustment or a sign of more changes to come. [Read more 🡒]