Boston College Reportedly Hiring Ex-Patriots Coach Bill O’Brien

Bill O’Brien left the Patriots in January, taking an offensive coordinator job with the Ohio State Buckeyes following a rough second tour of duty in New England.

That didn’t last long, though.

Boston College is “working toward a deal” to hire O’Brien as the school’s next head coach, according to Pete Thamel of ESPN. The deal is expected soon, and was in the works for more than a week, according to Kevin Stone of New England Football Journal.

It makes all the sense in the world for O’Brien, whose wife, Colleen, is a BC alum. He has extensive ties to the area, not only working for the Patriots but growing up nearby Andover, Mass. Michael, one of his sons, plays college baseball at nearby Tufts and his family planned to stay in the greater Boston area while he worked at Ohio State, anyway, according to Thamel.

It’s a return to college for O’Brien, who replaced Penn State legend Joe Paterno in 2012 when the program was in disarray following the child sex abuse scandal. Despite harsh NCAA sanctions that kept them out of Big 10 title game and postseason bowl contention, the Nittany Lions went 15-9 over his two seasons in Happy Valley.

O’Brien immediately becomes the Eagles’ highest-profile head coaching hire ever. In addition to the Penn State job and two stints with the Patriots, he was also the head coach of the Houston Texans and spent two seasons working for Nick Saban as the offensive coordinator at Alabama.

He must have really missed Boston.