Former Ohio State star quarterback JT Barrett hired as offensive assistant by Detroit Lions
Former Ohio State star quarterback J.T. Barrett has moved on to the next phase of his football journey, as the Detroit Lions announced that he’s joining the franchise as an Offensive Assistant.
On Saturday, the Lions took to Twitter to share the wonderful news that the former Buckeyes signal caller landed with their coaching staff.
“#Lions announced today that J.T. Barrett has joined the coaching staff as an Offensive Assistant,” tweeted the franchise.
While Barrett was on campus, Ohio State went to five straight New Year’s Six Bowls — winning the program’s latest national championship in 2014. He was the starter for the entire season before suffering an injury and seeing Cardale Jones finish off the run, beating the Alabama Crimson Tide in the semifinals and the Oregon Ducks in the CFP championship.
There was another College Football Playoff appearance for Barrett as well, losing to the Clemson Tigers in the 2016 edition.
During his final season in Columbus, Barrett had the best of his career — eclipsing 3,000 rushing yards and nearly rushing for 800 yards. The once On3 Consensus four-star quarterback finished the season with 47 touchdowns, with 35 coming through the air and 12 on the ground. His final two games came with a Big Ten championship, something every great Ohio State player must have attached to their name.
Originally, Barrett began his career by taking a redshirt in 2013 but ended up playing for the Buckeyes in his remaining four years of eligibility. He currently holds the record for the most passing yards thrown in Ohio State history, having 9,434, and has the touchdown record as well, throwing 104. Nobody is even close to Barrett on both of those.
After a phenomenal career at Ohio State, Barrett tried his hand at the next level by entering the 2018 NFL Draft. While he wasn’t selected, the former Buckeyes star was brought in by the New Orleans Saints afterwards, where he spent the better part of two seasons backing up the legendary Drew Brees.
After spending some time with the Seattle Seahawks and Pittsburgh Steelers, Barrett’s time in the league came to an end when he was waived prior to the 2020 NFL season. Then, the former Ohio State star was signed by the Edmonton Elks of the Canadian Football League for their 2022 season, where he’d spend a couple months before suffering a season-ending injury.
Earlier this May, Barrett was moved to the retired list by the Elks, and now he’s using his football prowess to get into the coaching game. It’s a shrewd move by the Lions bringing in J.T. Barrett, and the former Ohio State star certainly has a bright coaching career at his fingertips.
On3’s Griffin McVeigh contributed to this article.