Larry Johnson returned to Austin for his 12th season as the Buckeyes’ defensive line coach. It will be a massive change for Johnson as the DL room underwent a massive reshuffle this offseason. Ohio State, overall, doesn’t look like that terrific defense that stood No. 1 in the country and snagged a Natty a few months back. But specifically in the DL room, Johnson had to deal with some costly absences. Pioneers like  J.T. Tuimoloau, Jack Sawyer, and Ty Hamilton won’t be there, spreading terror to the opposing offense. Most crucially, Jim Knowles won’t be there designing plays, taking game-saving decisions from the booth. But even if he were, would it be any good news for Johnson? We all knew what the most anticipated answer was until Ryan Day burst a long-standing myth.

There was perhaps no more shocking post-championship intel than Knowles accepting a lateral offer at Penn State. It’s understandable that in the late 50s, there was no rocket science behind choosing stability over ambition. The highly esteemed former Buckeyes DC did the same. Over the most controversial departure of the year, the veteran said he always dreamed of this “life-comes-full circle” moment of returning to his hometown (Philadelphia). The strong urge to spend more time with family and the past ties was pretty irresistible. Also, $ that 3.1 million played a factor in his Buckeyes’ locker room slip altogether. The jump from the third-highest paid to the highest paid DC in the mix was a flex.

But running his autonomy might be the biggest push. Rumors suggested his disagreements with coach Johnson over the usage of the defensive line reached a saturation point during the Oregon game. Being a comparative newcomer in the coaching room (3rd year in 2024), it was a kind of absurdity for Knowles to rule over whatever Johnson had in his mind. So, finding a bypass might look easier. “Alright, so what happened after that game?’ The first thing I would say, and you can ask Larry, Jim, or anybody who was in that room, there was never any issue between Larry and Jim, never.”  Day ruled out the claim while appearing in a candid discussion with 97.1 The Fan’s Common Man & T-Bone.

Previous sources depicted another story. Knowles’ three-man front scheme remained on the back burner in the OSU defense as Johnson stuck to his four-man philosophies throughout the season. Knowles couldn’t go with his popular ‘Jack’ hybrid method of and off the line, consequently. But as Day justified, they never crossed the lines during the game. “I thought they both were very professional. Got along well, worked together well, and if you grab either of those guys, they would say the same thing. But when we got out of that game, I mean, the bottom line was what happened in that game was we didn’t get a line fast enough. We didn’t.”

They allowed nearly 500 yards of offense in that match, including 341 yards passing, leading to a 32-31 mess up. That’s grievous for a one-of-a-kind defense in the country. But what it led to was reportedly more frustrating for the former Ohio State DC.

Jim Knowles seemingly gets triggered by Ryan Day’s enhanced vigilance in the defense 

Day cleared the air on Johnson-Knowles’ discomfort, but never about the Ryan Day-Larry Johnson dispute. But that was a potential reason behind Knowles’ taking wing immediately. Knowles’ defense wasn’t a statue, not ready to accept any suggestions. Not at all. However, even the most flexible system and its architect have limits to alter, add, and omit. It seemed Knowles reached that breaking point with Ryan Day’s directives.

Reports said Ryan Day has started to glide his nose more frequently than ever after that Oregon loss. He visited the camp, attended the meetings, and asked to change ways and means midway through the season. It reached a fever pitch by the time the Buckeyes set to appear in the championship game. But that didn’t make the DC drift away from his focus.

He ended up handing the Buckeyes the trophy on a fair note, but understood this marked his last day dealing with his boss breathing down his neck. The reflective intellectual left for a better payday at Happy Valley right after. He reportedly didn’t receive an invite to the team’s championship celebration. But who cares! He has an independent unit to manage now, after all.