The Ohio State Buckeyes have had a rocky season in college basketball. Chris Holtmann was fired before the season ended, which showed what the athletic department thought about the season. The team named Jake Diebler the interim coach, and the players responded. They had a massive upset with the projected number one seed, Purdue, in his first game, and they finished the season strong. The higher-ups were impressed and removed the interim tag on Sunday, making Diebler the next coach of the Ohio State Buckeyes.
Ohio State Officially Hires Jake Diebler As Head Coach
NEWS: Ohio State has officially named interim HC Jake Diebler the school's next head coach?https://t.co/FuuO3WGkfK pic.twitter.com/OIHD3zeImi
— On3 (@On3sports) March 17, 2024
This was the official announcement on the Ohio State website.
“Senior Advisor for Intercollegiate Athletics Ross Bjork today announced the hiring of Jake Diebler as head coach of the Ohio State men’s basketball program. Diebler, who becomes the 15th head coach in program history, will receive a five-year contract.”
It isn’t hard to see why they hired Diebler permanently. Six of the team’s 20 wins came under the interim coach, and they may have earned an NIT berth. It isn’t clear whether they would accept the invite, but the fact that they are even in the conversation speaks to the job Diebler did.
Ohio State: Who Is Jake Diebler?
Diebler is a new coach in college basketball. Ohio State is only his third stop in his coaching career. After playing for four years at Valparaiso, he was an assistant there from 2009-2013. He then jumped to the SEC, where he was on Vanderbilt’s staff from 2016 to 2019. Diebler came to the Buckeyes in 2019, and after the 2022 season, he was named the assistant head coach.
He held that position until he was called upon to coach the team midseason. Programs are no longer as worried about the experience and look at the results in court. This is a good thing, as Ohio State can now go into the offseason having their coach solidified. It will be interesting to see if Diebler can sustain success and become the next great head coach of the Buckeyes.
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Matt Brown has been following sports since he was a kid. While football is his primary focus, Matt can talk about any sport anytime. He is a banker in Wisconsin and hosts two podcasts, Beers and Ears & Discontinued on Display.
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