Urban Meyer names best recruiting coach in college football

FOX Sports analyst Urban Meyer certainly knows a thing or two about coaching and recruiting. Meyer built up Utah and then won national titles at Florida and Ohio State before moving from coaching into broadcasting. In a recent social media post, he gave credit to the coach he called the best recruiting coach in the nation-- Ohio State offensive coordinator and wide receiver coach Brian Hartline.

He [Brian Hartline] gets credit as being one of the best recruiters, which I think he's the best, but he's also an elite football coach that teaches the fundamentals of receiver play.
Urban Meyer

Hartline is from Ohio and played four years for Ohio State under Jim Tressel, twice losing in the BCS national title game as a player. A fourth-round NFL Draft pick, Hartline had a pair of 1,000 yard seasons with Miami Dolphins before injuries shortened his career.

After Hartline's NFL career with the Miami Dolphins and Cleveland Browns, it was Meyer who brought him back to Ohio State to coach. Hartline was a quality control assistant on Meyer's 2017 and then became the wide receivers coach in 2018. When Meyer left, Ryan Day kept Hartline on staff in the same role.

From there, Hartline eventually took over offensive coorindator duties ahead of the 2023 season although Day still called his own plays at that point in time.. Hartline split the offensive coordinator role with Chip Kelly last year, but is calling plays in 2025. He recruited and developed a bumper crop of outstanding receivers, including Marvin Harrison Jr., Jaxson Smith-Njigba, Garrett Wilson, and Chris Olave.

Hartline has been recognized for his excellent. He was chosen as the National Recruiter of the Year by 247sports after the 2020 season. At just 38 years old, Hartline is often singled out as a player who could be a desirable head coach for a developing program. With Ohio State No. 1 and a current favorite to repeat as a national champion, it's likely that Urban Meyer isn't the only admirer who considered Hartline to be elite.