West Virginia's rumored Neal Brown replacement may put last nail in Ryan Day's coffin

The pressure Ryan Day is feeling is unlike any other in college football. There are 11 head coaches leading teams in the College Football Playoff whose jobs are safe no matter what happens, and then there is the Ohio State Buckeyes head coach... Day needs to beat the Tennessee Volunteers at home in two weeks to have any realistic shot of keeping his job. He could be out with a loss to Oregon, too.

I am of the belief that Day would be hired immediately if Ohio State were to move on from him. One job I thought he could have been a great candidate for was leading the West Virginia Mountaineers. However, the timing of it all seemed to make this impossible. Fate would have it that West Virginia is within 48 hours of naming its next head coach to replace Neal Brown. It might be an Ohio State guy.

Yes, Ohio State co-offensive coordinator and wide receivers coach Brian Hartline reportedly interviewed for the WVU post. Hartline starred in the NFL for the Miami Dolphins a decade ago. He played at Ohio State and has been on the Buckeyes staff for quite some time since he hung up the spikes. While not a good play caller, he is an elite recruiter and a position coach. An ideal CEO-type.

If Hartline were to be the choice by outgoing WVU president Gordon Gee, that would speak volumes.

West Virginia concluded its head-coaching interviews last night and expects to have an answer soon.

Brian Hartline to West Virginia is final straw for Ryan Day at Ohio State

Day was fortunate to take over for Urban Meyer when he did. Like Hartline, Meyer cut his teeth as a wide receivers coach, a recruiter, a motivator if he will. He could not draw up a play to save his life, but he instilled a winning culture everywhere he worked in college, and most definitely not in the NFL with Jacksonville. Hartline seems to be in that vein as a head coach, but a far more likable human being.

What has plagued West Virginia since seeing one of their own in Rich Rodriguez leave for the Michigan job some 16 years ago is the Mountaineers have not had a head coach who can change the temperature in the room. Bill Stewart and Dana Holgorsen were fine thermostats, while Neal Brown could only give us Kelvin when we wanted to know Fahrenheit. This is America, dammit! Figure it out!

Should Hartline be the guy West Virginia ends up hiring, the Buckeyes will suffer from a recruting standpoint. It did not matter that Chip Kelly has no use for high school recruiting whatsoever when Hartline could cover his share and then some. Losing an ace recruiter and position coach like that to a Power Four job is the type of coaching attrition even the best head coaches just cannot overcome.

Hartline is one-of-one as a position coach. Ohio State is so lucky to have him, but his next job awaits.