Ohio State offensive line coach Justin Frye is heading to the NFL.

He is expected to be named the Arizona Cardinals’ next offensive line coach, a team source told The Athletic’s Bruce Feldman.

SOURCE: Ohio State OL coach Justin Frye is leaving to become the Arizona Cardinals offensive line coach. Frye spent three seasons with the Buckeyes. He did an excellent job managing OSU’s O-line this season after it lost its starting LT and center and went on to win the title.

Frye, who has been at Ohio State for three seasons after leaving UCLA in 2022, had an up-and-down tenure with the Buckeyes. He faced the most adversity this year, though, when he had to replace his starting left tackle, backup left tackle and starting center. Those injuries didn’t hurt Ohio State too much as it still won the national championship, and Frye deserves credit for keeping everything together up front.

Where Frye struggled was in recruiting, which he won’t have to do in Arizona.

His departure leaves the defending national champions with two coaching vacancies after defensive coordinator Jim Knowles left for Penn State last week.

What’s next for Ohio State?

Head coach Ryan Day should have plenty of options to fill Frye’s role.

As well as Frye did this year in keeping the offensive line together through injuries, there still was a lot missing on the recruiting trail and with depth issues, especially at tackle. He signed two top-100 offensive linemen since he was hired in January 2022, and both were in-state recruits — Luke Montgomery and 2025 signee Carter Lowe.

The next coach will need to make his impact felt on the recruiting trail.

Ohio State can go several ways with the hire. One option with ties to the program is former offensive coordinator and tight ends coach Kevin Wilson, who was fired after a two-year stint as the head coach at Tulsa. The Buckeyes will likely look at other options around the country, even if Day does consider bringing back Wilson, who has offensive line coaching experience dating back to his time with Oklahoma in the early 2000s. Tim Drevno, an offensive quality control coach, is another in-house option.

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