The news of Tony Alford’s departure came suddenly on Wednesday morning.
After nine seasons at Ohio State, the longtime Buckeyes running back coach is heading north to their archrival, a move that caught several OSU players off guard. The timing probably isn’t ideal, considering the Buckeyes are in the midst of spring practice. Nevertheless, life goes on, and Ryan Day will do his best to pivot and hire a replacement quickly.
Alford’s unexpected departure creates questions both short and long-term, but for the purposes of this piece, we’ll mainly stay focused on the immediate impact.