Jeff Hafley: An Ohio State Perspective

There has been quite a lot of buzz around Boston College's hiring of Ohio State Defensive Coordinator Jeff Hafley. To get another perspective we talked to Bruce Hooley of Buckeye Maven. Check Bruce and his site out on Twitter as well.

AJ: At yesterday's press conference Boston College AD said that Jeff Hafley came highly recommended by Ryan Day and Gene Smith. What is it about Hafley that connected with the two?

Hooley: I can only speak to the Ryan Day aspect, and in that regard Hafley's association with Day with the San Francisco 49ers clearly bonded them. There is a unique relationship between coaches who specialize in offense (Day) and defense (Hafley), because each knows a talent on the other side of the ball when they see it. Day was looking for a defensive coach who shared his view of how best to defend offenses and take advantage of the talent at OSU. It has recruited very well on the defensive line, so Day wanted four down linemen to effect the QB. Day also wanted someone who could maximize OSU's talent at cornerback, and Hafley has definitely done that. Day said he always knew if he ever became a head coach, he wanted Hafley if he could get him. So, their one year together at Ohio State was in the works from their association in the NFL.

AJ: Obviously Boston College and Ohio State will be targeting different recruits, but Hafley has earned the reputation as an elite recruiter. What makes him so effective?

Hooley: When Jeff Hafley talks about football, you don't have to be tremendously insightful to understand that this is a guy who exudes confidence and leadership. That's why he will be a successful head coach. His charisma and passion come through, so he'll be great one-on-one with recruits. His NFL pedigree will allow him to leverage people like Richard Sherman to vouch for his abilities. That's huge with young people who want to get to the next level. But beyond that, if Jeff Hafley weren't a football coach, you can tell from his manner that he'd be successful in any endeavor. Take the football out of it. Listening to him talk about work ethic, leadership, attention to detail, these are things that would make him an effective CEO of his own company if he weren't a football coach.

AJ: I have to admit, I haven't studied Ohio State's defense, what style does Hafley prefer? 4-3? 3-4? Aggressive or more subdued? How will he attack Clemson's offense in the playoffs?

Hooley: Ohio State's defense was atrocious in 2018, ranking around 70th overall in the country. It was repeatedly gashed for big plays. Why? Because it played man coverage and did not put its players in position to mitigate mistakes. Hafley went with more zone concepts, with multiple players in the area to get more tacklers to the football. He improved OSU's technique in the secondary. Pass interference penalties were dramatically down from a year ago. Big plays became rare. OSU went with a single-high safety and three corners most of the time and always applied pressure with a four-man rush. It didn't blitz much, because it didn't need to. Thank you, Chase Young. As for how it will attack Clemson, that's an unknown, because this is the first game -- puffed up national rankings of Wisconsin, Penn State and Michigan aside -- that Ohio State will be playing dudes of the same caliber. Clemson has lots of dudes.

AJ: BC does not have the resources that the Buckeyes do. Do you see impacting Hafley's ability to run a program?

Hooley: Hafley is good, but he's not a miracle-worker. Ohio State is a great program because it has unlimited financial resources. The answer is never, no, when the head coach wants something bigger and better. OSU also has an in-state recruiting monopoly in a talent-rich state. BC doesn't have a lot of that. But I'm sure Hafley insiisted on a salary pool he believes necessary to get a great staff. I'm sure he knows the challenges at BC because of Ryan Day's previous time there. Hafley enters a league with only one dominant team, although what a dominant team it is. I see 9- and 10-win seasons very possible for him at BC. He can't build another Clemson, but he can build a Top 15 program.

AJ: Given what you see, what do you think Hafley's ceiling will be as a head coach? Anything Boston College should be concerned about?

Hooley: As I said, I think he can build a Top 15 program. It's harder to do that in football at a school with stringent admission requirements than it is in basketball because of the number of special players you need to do it. As for concerns, the only concern I'd have about him is that he's so successful BC has trouble fending off legacy programs in college that can give Hafley resources or friendly admission requirements that BC can't. Of course, the NFL is always a danger, too, because he's coached at that level and most guys hunger to see what they can build in a pure football environment.