On the night after the Big Ten announced last Wednesday that it would begin its 2020 football season in October, as Shaun Wade was contemplating whether to opt back in and play this fall or focus on preparing for the 2021 NFL draft, he received a call from Kerry Coombs.
But Coombs, Ohio State’s defensive coordinator and cornerbacks coach, wasn’t calling Wade to beg him to stay for another year. He was calling Wade to wish him – or more accurately, sing to him – “Happy Birthday.”
“That was I think what pushed it over the top,” Coombs joked Tuesday when asked about Wade’s decision to return to Ohio State for the season.
Of course, as Wade’s position coach at Ohio State, Coombs also had serious conversations with Wade last week as the Buckeyes’ star cornerback initially decided to end his college football career last Monday – having grown tired of waiting on the Big Ten to make a decision – before ultimately choosing to opt back in on Thursday, telling ESPN’s SportsCenter that he chose to come back because Ohio State’s opportunity to compete for a national championship had been restored.
Even still, Coombs said he wasn’t simply trying to recruit Wade to return. Instead, he tried to give Coombs the best advice he could – the same advice he would give one of his own sons – while making sure Wade knew their relationship would remain strong no matter what he decided.
“We’ve had a great relationship the entire time that we’ve known each other, even when I was in Tennessee and I would text these kids and communicate back with them and encourage them and those kind of things,” said Coombs, who recruited Wade during his initial tenure at Ohio State and coached him in 2017 before leaving to become the Tennessee Titans’ secondary coach for two years. “I just feel like I’ve had a great relationship with them all along. And to be honest with you, the reality is, when a kid says to you, ‘I need you to talk to me like I’m your son,’ then there’s a lot of responsibility that goes with whatever you’re gonna say to him. And I don’t take that lightly.
“And so our conversations, I tried in every way, shape and form to talk to him as if he was one of my two sons in the same situation and give him the advice that I would have given them, and at the same time, making sure that he was very comfortable understanding that I loved him regardless of what he decided. That was unconditional, and it had nothing to do with whether or not he played for us or somebody else or whatever he did in this season.”
Ultimately, Coombs didn’t feel like he needed to make much of a recruiting pitch to Wade – who was already projected as a potential first-round pick in the 2021 NFL draft, but will now have a chance to boost his stock even higher as he becomes the No. 1 outside cornerback in Ohio State’s secondary – because he knew how much Wade wanted the chance to compete for a title.
“This is a kid that loves his team,” Coombs said. “He loves his university. You guys remember, he committed all the way back when we won a national championship in 2014. He loves to win. I just think he’s an extraordinary kid.”
”I tried in every way, shape and form to talk to him as if he was one of my two sons in the same situation and give him the advice that I would have given them, and at the same time, making sure that he was very comfortable understanding that I loved him regardless of what he decided.”– Kerry Coombs on advising Shaun Wade
As of Tuesday, Wade hadn’t yet been cleared to return to practice with the Buckeyes, but Coombs said he had “no concern” that Wade would ultimately be cleared to play this fall. Wade had been back in Florida with his family for a few weeks before he made the decision to return, and daily antigen testing has not yet started in the Big Ten, so Coombs said Ohio State was still waiting on his COVID-19 testing results.
“It is part of the process. So it’s just a matter of COVID testing – which if any of you have had that, it’s a wonderful experience, I would recommend it to all it of you,” Coombs said sarcastically, “but we’re just waiting on his results right now.”
Coombs said he is “thrilled” Wade decided to come back, and he should be, considering Wade is the only returning starter in Ohio State’s secondary and a preseason All-American who should be one of the best cornerbacks in the entire country. Outside of Wade, the rest of the Buckeyes’ secondary is far less proven; Sevyn Banks is the only other Ohio State defensive back who’s even started a single game.
But while Coombs said it’s too early in camp to say he’s “confident” about where his secondary is right now, he expressed optimism that the rest of the secondary around Wade will step up to enable the Buckeyes to have an elite defensive backfield once again.
“I really like these kids,” Coombs said. “I think we have a lot of talent back there in the back end. It’s just young talent. It’s inexperienced talent. But that’s what happens when you have great players. We lost a bunch of really good players off of the defense, but we recruited a bunch of really good players to take their place, and guys that have been working extremely hard to have that opportunity. So we’re ready to play. We’ll be fine.”
