COLUMBUS, Ohio –– Special teams coordinator isn’t exactly the most glamorous title on a college football coaching staff, but Matt Barnes wears several hats as an important cog in the Ohio State football machine.
Doubling as the Buckeyes’ safety coach in Kerry Coombs’ secondary room, Barnes has made quick work of contributing to a culture that junior safety Josh Proctor called “turnt” ahead of his second season in the program.
“They’re both exciting guys, but they both love the game just like we do,” Proctor said. “So they just kind of push us and get us better every day.”
Proctor already had a year at Ohio State under his belt when Barnes came over to Ryan Day’s staff from Maryland. However, Barnes didn’t let his status as a first-year coach stop him from developing a close relationship with his players.
Proctor said one time in the past 20 or so months, he was feeling sick and not picking up his phone. He said Barnes found out Proctor’s address and showed up at the front door on his own accord.
“He just sat there and talked to me and stuff and made sure I was OK,” Proctor said. “I think after that, our relationship really grew.”
For redshirt sophomore Marcus Hooker, his first interactions with Barnes were a bit more jovial. Hooker said his initial impression of his new coach was that Barnes had “a little pep to him,” an attitude that bled into their first practice together.
Hooker said he had a good showing on the field, and Barnes called him over to let him know. What he didn’t know was that the brief back-and-forth would inspire the advent of a new nickname for the Pennsylvania native.
“He called me over and said, ‘You did well today.’ And then he called me ‘Little Head’ because I guess he said my head’s little,” Hooker said. “Ever since that day, he’s been calling me Little Head.”
Barnes is well aware that he had to win his players over quickly as a new coach entering the fold. He said time spent has been big for him in building trust on both sides, but he’s been working on those relationships since Day One.
“When you’re brand new, it’s really hard to coach a player the way they should be coached without any sort of pre-existing relationship,” Barnes said. “That player needs to trust you and you gotta find the ins and outs of what makes that player tick."
It’s clear from Hooker’s account that Barnes noticed tendencies about his players from the jump, and coaches them accordingly.
“He just makes me smile whenever he talks to me and he always tries to brighten my day, even if he knows I’m having a bad day, he tries to bring me toward a good direction of my emotions, because that was something that I struggled with my freshman year and going into my sophomore year,” Hooker said.
On the special teams side of things, senior kicker Blake Haubeil said Barnes stressed constant communication upon arrival, whether it pertains to issues on the field or off.
Haubeil said that at this point, he feels like he can talk to Barnes about anything
“When he got here, he really was striving to create a relationship with every specialist, whether it be just saying, ‘Give me a call if you need anything,’ or, ‘My office is always open,’” Haubeil said.
Barnes said the culture at Ohio State is what distinguishes the program from others he has been at, but it sounds like he’s only added to it in his short tenure on staff.
