Kerry Coombs Is A Buckeye!

Kerry Coombs, former Associate Head Coach at the University of Cincinnati, will join the Ohio State staff shortly. His responsibilities at UC included Defensive Passing Coordinator (although I’m assuming that should be “Defensive We Won’t Let You Complete A Pass Coordinator”), Special Teams Coordinator, and Defensive Backs Coach.

Coombs is a strong recruiter, and is highly respected in the OHSAA, particularly in the Cincinnati/Southwestern Ohio/Northern Kentucky area. He was a member of Brian Kelly’s staff, and has been characterized as being the most significant member of Butch Jones’ transition to the Bearcats- he provided stability and significant impact in the recruiting areas of UC’s program. It was his influence that helped Caleb Stacey switch his commitment from Michigan to UC this past year; so he’s already got one win against Hoke under his belt. In addition, he’s been a strong presence as a recruiter in Indiana, an area that Coach Meyer is focusing on.

Coach Coombs’ defensive excellence was evident at UC as well; from his bio there-

Coombs’ first campaign as a member of the UC staff yielded instant results. The 2007 defense, led by his ball-hawking secondary, led the NCAA with 26 interceptions and 42 takeaways. That season, Coombs coached all-BIG EAST safety Haruki Nakamura, who was selected in the sixth round of the 2008 NFL draft.

In 2008, Coombs mentored three NFL Draft picks, Mike Mickens (Dallas Cowboys), DeAngelo Smith (Dallas Cowboys), and Brandon Underwood (Green Bay Packers). Mickens was a second-team Walter Camp all-America honoree and UC’s all-time leader in interceptions and interception return yardage, while Underwood was a first-team all-BIG EAST performer at safety in his only season at UC. Smith was the national leader in interceptions in 2007 with eight, and ranks second in UC history behind Mickens. The defense finished 31st in the nation in total defense (321.9 ypg) in 2008.

As the head coach at Colerain High School, Coombs amassed a 161-34 record, which included a state title and numerous conference championships. Given the level of play in the area, and the number of private schools that Colerain was competing with, these accomplishments are outstanding.

While this has yet to be officially announced by Ohio State, rumors are that Coach Coombs interviewed over the past week and has already cleared out his office at UC (as per WLW).

After the break, you can get a sense of his personality and style from a “Sounds of Camp” video filmed at UC last season.

Welcome to the Buckeye Family, Coach Coombs!