Pat Fitzgerald fired; 5 candidates for new Northwestern HC

5. Brian Hartline

One of the hottest names in college coaching circles, Hartline has had tons of success as an assistant coach with the Ohio State Buckeyes. During his five seasons in Columbus, Hartline has worked his way from a quality control assistant all the way to offensive coordinator heading into this year.

Hartline’s biggest successes have come as the team’s wide receivers coach where he has mentored the likes of Chris Olave, Garrett Wilson, Jaxon Smith-Njigba, Marvin Harrison Jr. and Emeka Egbuka. Given the strength of the receiving room, Hartline’s name has skyrocketed near the top of head coach candidate lists, but his deep ties to the Ohio State program as a former player may make it difficult for the Wildcats to pry him away especially with Ryan Day’s seat getting hotter year after year.