Chip Kelly can help Ohio State football’s offense thrive in 1 major way in 2024.

TreVeyon Henderson, Quinshon Judkins, and Dallan Hayden should be the most excited about Ohio State football’s decision to hire Chip Kelly as offensive coordinator.

Losing Bill O’Brien to Boston College after three weeks proved to be only a temporary setback. Kelly’s background may make him a better fit for the Buckeyes’ roster this fall.

He may be even better prepared than Day to maximize what those three running backs can do together.

Kelly set the NCAA football world on fire 15 years ago with Oregon’s up-tempo zone read rushing offense. Five of the top six single-season rushing performances in program history occurred during Kelly’s six-year tenure as offensive coordinator or head coach.

His first two Oregon teams as head coach, in 2009 and 2010, finished fourth nationally in yards per run. His last two, before moving to the NFL in 2013, led the country. Across roughly 2,500 carries, these four teams averaged 6.0 yards.

Since 2013, no Buckeyes team has averaged 6 yards per rush (although Trey Sermon came close in 2020).

Day hired Kelly (and O’Brien) to oversee Ohio State’s offense, which he had created over the previous seven years with Heisman finalist quarterbacks, excellent receivers, and an always deadly but occasionally frustrating running game. In Kelly’s case, however, their respective offenses arose from the same source: the New Hampshire offense of the late 1990s. Kelly oversaw it, while Day led it, and many of the ideals endured.

Ohio State already needed some creative new ideas for how to simultaneously utilize both Henderson and Judkins to maximize their production. Kelly’s been there, done that.

In his second year as Oregon’s offensive coordinator, Jeremiah Johnson and Legarrette Blount both topped 1,000 yards and averaged more than 7 per carry. Even in years in which a lead back emerged, Kelly spread the wealth behind them. LaMichael James rushed for 1,805 yards in 2011, but Kenjon Barner still piled up 939.

Kelly’s final Eagles team, in 2015, planned to pair DeMarco Murray and Ryan Mathews as a dangerous backfield combination. Injuries thwarted that plan, though, and ultimately helped cost Kelly — and Day — their jobs.

Kelly’s own offense adapted over time to phase out some of the zone read concepts and mix in more misdirection. Day has used the latter with great success in the past. Again, between Howard, the top two running backs and a handful of talented receivers, defenses will already be vulnerable to the leverage OSU can create.

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