Seth Greenberg explains how NIL, transfer portal factored into Ohio State's decision on Chris Holtmann

During his first five years at Ohio State, Chris Holtmann took the Buckeyes to four NCAA Tournaments. He had a 107-55 record during that time, although the program didn’t make it past the second round in any of those appearances.

Following a 30-30 record dating back to last season, Ohio State parted ways with Holtmann on Wednesday. The Buckeyes missed out on the tournament a year ago and were struggling during Big Ten play this year, which likely led to the decision to move on from Holtmann.

However, according to ESPN’s Seth Greenberg, the wins and losses might have been just one part of the conversation. In the NIL and transfer portal era, he argued a couple rough seasons could lead to quicker coaching changes – such as with Holtmann.

“It’s a really tough day for coaches in general,” Greenberg said at halftime of Miami vs. Clemson Wednesday night. “Chris Holtmann would’ve been to five consecutive NCAA Tournaments if not for the COVID year. Last two years, subpar for Ohio State, and Chris Holtmann would agree to that.

“But with NIL and with the transfer portal, if you’re struggling, that coach is basically going to be in trouble. You lose two years in a row, and you’re not going to be able to retain your job at a Power Five conference where they’re investing so much money. And also, can you retain the players? Because players want to play in the NCAA Tournament. You lose two years in a row, that sophomore class that Ohio State has, they probably would’ve had a hard time retaining it for next year.”

Player retention will be crucial for Ohio State after Chris Holtmann’s departure

Player retention has been crucial in both football and basketball the last few years. In fact, NIL dollars are largely moving from high school recruits to keeping roster in tact, On3’s Pete Nakos reported. For basketball, the 45-day transfer window opens the day after Selection Sunday – which would be March 18 this year. However, because Holtmann was let go Wednesday, Ohio State players have a 30-day window to hit the portal if they choose to do so.

With that, Sean Farnham argued the Buckeyes now have the ability to gauge interest in the opening while trying to make sure the roster stays together.

“I think the timing of this is interesting, and I think part of the timing comes with the change of the landscape of college athletics,” Farnham said. “With the emergence of the transfer portal, with the need to re-recruit your own roster, now you can backchannel – talk to agents, talk to everybody else. Try to see who’s interested in the job, and probably announce very shortly after whoever your primary candidate’s going to be, as soon as their season come to a close, which allows them to bring their staff in, try to re-recruit the entire roster and then, be ready to go as soon as the portal opens.”

It might not be that easy, though, Greenberg said. If Ohio State opts for a big-name coach, that candidate could be coaching well into March. As a result, the Buckeyes – who are currently preparing to transition from Gene Smith to Ross Bjork – won’t be able to talk to that candidate until the portal window is open.

That means it will be even more important for Ohio State to avoid portal entries.

“Here’s the problem with that, though, Sean, because you’re gonna hire a high-profile coach,” Greenberg said. “That coach is probably going to be making a run in the NCAA Tournament. You’re not going to be able to communicate with that guy until the NCAA Tournament is basically over. So you’re going to have to have someone on your staff continuing to recruit those players and basically re-recruit their circle of influence to basically set the table for when you’re going to make a coaching change.

“To me, there is no benefit. I believe that they probably told Chris he was going to be let go at the end of the season, he said, ‘That’s the deal? You know what? We’d better move on right now. I don’t want to be a lame-duck coach.’ That’s my gut feeling.”