Skull Session: New Ohio State Offensive Coordinator Arthur Smith is “A Really Good Dude,” the Buckeyes Will Beef Up Their Special Teams Operation With New Coach Robby Discher

Welcome to the Skull Session.

How about them Wrestlingbucks?!

. #GoBucks pic.twitter.com/iv8wLlAY6L
— Ohio State Wrestling (@wrestlingbucks) February 1, 2026

Have a good Monday.

“A REALLY GOOD DUDE.” Over the weekend, Ohio State made the hire of Arthur Smith as its new offensive coordinator official.

Welcome to Buckeye Nation, Arthur Smith pic.twitter.com/5MaoAB7E7X
— Ohio State Football (@OhioStateFB) January 31, 2026

So, what kind of coach will Smith be for the Buckeyes?

Instead of guessing, let’s allow Eleven Warriors user Huffdaddy to tell you himself.

“Since I had a front-row seat to Arthur Smith’s coaching style, I wanted to share some of my thoughts,” Huffdaddy wrote in a forum post last week. “This was during the 2019 season, so it’s a little dated, but I wanted to share anyway.”

The negatives? Smith had a very laid-back interpersonal style — “almost catatonic,” according to Huffdaddy. He didn’t inspire much fear, and players weren’t overly concerned about being benched for mistakes. His pregame speech was largely the same each week, making it easy to tune out. His rotations felt “arbitrary,” and there were some end-of-game management issues as well.

The positives? Smith is a truly “first-rate person.” The players loved him — hugging him before and after games — and he handled the transition from postgame to snack time seamlessly…

“I should probably mention here that Arthur was coaching my son’s co-ed 4-year-old soccer team, which his daughter was on,” Huffdaddy added.

He had me in the first half, I’m not gonna lie.

Jokes aside, Huffdaddy described Smith as “a really good dude” who somehow managed to coach his daughter’s youth soccer team while also serving as the offensive coordinator for the Tennessee Titans.

“Everything above is true,” Huffdaddy wrote. “I’m excited to have him leading the Buckeye offense.”

I am, too, Huffdaddy.

Thanks for the laugh to start the week.

OH, YEAH. IT’S ALL COMING TOGETHER. The Buckeyes have reportedly hired Illinois’ Robby Discher as their special teams coordinator.

Ohio State is reportedly expected to hire Illinois special teams coordinator and tight ends coach Robby Discher as its next special teams coordinator.https://t.co/QzjSdoJmPu pic.twitter.com/PNHdzz9x5E
— Eleven Warriors (@11W) January 31, 2026

Ohio State’s kicking, punting and return units haven’t consistently excelled in a long, long time. In the past two seasons without a dedicated special teams coach, the Buckeyes ranked No. 67 in 2025 and No. 47 in 2024 in Bill Connelly’s SP+. Even under former coordinator Parker Fleming from 2021–23, special teams was more fine than formidable — though it did peak at No. 20 in Fleming’s final season.

But fair or unfair, Ohio State’s special teams isn’t judged by season-long efficiency metrics. It’s judged by moments.

And in those moments, the Buckeyes have come up short too often.

In 2024, Jayden Fielding missed two kicks in The Game. In 2025, he made 16 of 18 field goals — including one in the Big Ten Championship Game — only to miss a 27-yarder in the fourth quarter of a 13–10 contest. He then missed a 49-yard attempt just before halftime of the Cotton Bowl.

The point isn’t that Ohio State has been bad on special teams. It’s that it hasn’t been reliable when the margin for error disappears — and at a program where championships are the standard, that distinction matters.

Most recently, under Bret (or Bert!) Bielema, Discher’s special teams units ranked among the nation’s best, peaking at No. 16 in SP+ in 2024. In 2025, Illinois kicker David Alano connected on 20 of 23 field goal attempts, while punt returner Hank Beatty led the Big Ten at 14.1 yards per return. The Illini also blocked an FBS-best seven kicks and punts.

That’s production — and, more importantly for Ohio State, consistency. The Buckeyes don’t need special teams to win them games. They need it to stop losing them. If Discher can provide that, he may prove to be one of the most impactful hires of Ryan Day’s tenure.

THE NEXT CURT CIGNETTI. Bob Chesney isn’t shying away from the challenge of being UCLA’s next head football coach.

During Saturday’s UCLA men’s basketball game against Indiana, Chesney took the floor at Pauley Pavilion to address the crowd.

Bob Chesney has the Pauley Pavilion crowd fired up with his introductory remarks. pic.twitter.com/btVqDo6vKz
— Ben Bolch (@calpostbbolch) January 31, 2026

“Thank you all,” Chesney said. “It’s an honor to be here. I’m going to introduce you to some of our staff — the best staff in the world. Quick applause for these guys.”

After the cheers, Chesney continued.

“I’ve been here for about a month now, and I’ve looked around and there’s nothing average that I’ve seen about UCLA. There is nothing average. I did not come here to be average. You did not come here to see average,” Chesney said. “I want you to support this thing, understand what we’re building and understand that we’re about to win a Big Ten championship.”

A Big Ten championship? At UCLA?

Well, we live in a world where Indiana went undefeated, won the Big Ten and claimed a national championship. If the Hoosiers can do it, why not the Bruins?

Outside Pauley Pavilion, some fans connected the dots between Chesney and Curt Cignetti — both of whom left James Madison after successful runs to take over Big Ten programs and used a basketball game setting to inspire confidence in what they’re building. A few even joked that Chesney missed a golden opportunity to shout, “USC sucks — and so does Indiana and Ohio State.”

The comparisons to Cignetti are obvious, but I’ll forever give Jim Tressel credit for being the first coach I can remember inspiring a basketball crowd. His 310 Days speech will always be iconic.

WHO IS NEAL SHIPLEY? Former Ohio State standout Neal Shipley is featured in the latest The Life video from PGA TOUR Studios, which chronicles his rise from graduate transfer in Columbus to PGA TOUR cardholder.

After arriving at Ohio State, Shipley leveraged the program’s resources to develop into an All-American while earning a master’s degree in data analytics, a background he now applies to his approach on the course. The feature highlights Shipley’s run as the low amateur at the 2024 Masters, where he was paired with Tiger Woods during Sunday’s final round.

Shipley has carried that momentum into the professional ranks. He earned his PGA TOUR card with a win on the Korn Ferry Tour in Sarasota, quickly establishing himself at the next level. The video also touches on Shipley’s off-course involvement, including community outreach and time spent visiting patients at children’s hospitals.

The feature offers an inside look at how Shipley’s time at Ohio State helped shape his transition to professional golf. I highly recommend watching it!

NEW DUBCAST. The first Eleven Dubcast of the week discusses the latest hire Ohio State football has made to its coaching staff this offseason in the form of new special teams coordinator Robby Discher and how the move affects the Buckeyes' outlook in that phase of the game.