Ohio State has a combined 36 men’s and women’s varsity sports, tying Stanford for the most in Division I. It remains to be seen if OSU keeps all 36 or reduces funding to some as revenue sharing creates budgeting challenges, but for now the Buckeyes’ pistol and rifle teams technically share the same varsity status as football.
But while every sport supposedly is equal, every coaching job is not. Given differences in scholarship allotment and facility resources, how to measure coaching success?
Here’s how: by counting national titles, considering length of time spent winning at a high level and how quickly a coach turned the program around. Granted, counting titles is not foolproof, largely because sports like artistic swimming (formerly synchronized swimming) compete on a smaller scale of participation. For instance, only five schools compete for the collegiate national championship in artistic swimming, while Division I men’s tennis has 242.
But since artistic swimming is an OSU varsity sport, and since national titles count, no matter the number of participants, Buckeyes coach Holly Vargo-Brown makes our top-10 list.
10. Ben Schreiber, Spirit program, 10 seasons
File: Former Ohio State cheerleader; Buckeyes have guided the cheer team squad to a top-four finish from 2018-23, including a runner-up in the 2019 in the 1A Large Division of the Collegiate National Championships.
The skinny: Spirit program is a varsity sport. So it counts.
9. Bill Dorenkott, men’s & women’s swimming, 16 seasons with women, seven with men
File: Teams have shown steady improvement, topped by runner-up finishes (men) at the past three Big Ten men’s championships and conference titles for the women in four of the past five seasons.
The skinny: The men have three top-10 finishes over four of the past four NCAA championships, while the women earned their highest finish ever (sixth) at the 2023 NCAA championships.
8. Donald Anthony Jr., men’s and women’s fencing, six seasons
File: Four top-six NCAA finishes.
The skinny: OSU fencers have won 11 titles at the Midwest Fencing Conference Championships, seven Central Collegiate Fencing Conference individual titles and two NCAA men’s epee titles.
7. Ryan Day, football, five seasons
File: 56-8 record, with two Big Ten titles and one national runner-up finish in the 2020 College Football Playoff.
The skinny: Yes, he is 1-3 against Michigan, which is enough of a full stop for some fans to keep him off this list, but Day reached the 2020 title game and came within a missed last-second field goal against Georgia from probably winning it all. He also owns the NCAA record for best career start (38-0) against unranked teams since the Associated Press poll began in 1936.
6. Ryan Tanou, rifle, 12 seasons
File: Led Ohio State to three consecutive NCAA Championships appearances from 2016-18 after OSU had made just one appearance previously (1991).
The skinny: 2016 NRA National Coach of the Year.
5. Emil Milev, pistol, seven seasons
File: 2018 national title at Intercollegiate Pistol Championships; runner-up in 2019.
The skinny: Milev competed in six Olympics and won the silver medal at the 1996 Games in Atlanta. Posted a 68-2 record during first three seasons with the Buckeyes.
4. Ty Tucker, men’s tennis, 25 seasons
File: Overall record of 719-103 (.875); third-winningest coach in any sport in Big Ten history; 18 consecutive Big Ten regular-season titles; 17-time Big Ten coach of the year.
The skinny: The only thing missing from Tucker’s sterling resume is an NCAA team title, but the Buckeyes were runners-up in 2009, 2018 and 2023.
3. Holly Vargo-Brown, synchronized swimming, 12 seasons
File: seven USA Artistic Swimming national championships.
The skinny: Vargo-Brown has had a hand in 29 of OSU’s 36 national titles, either as an athlete or coach.
2. Tom Ryan, wrestling, 18 seasons
File: 2015 NCAA national champions, runners-up in 2008, 2009, 2017, 2018, 2019. Dual-meet record of 213-68 (.758).
The skinny: Ryan took a decent program and turned it into a national powerhouse, topping it with the 2015 title that featured heavyweight champion Kyle Snyder.
1. Nadine Muzerall, women’s ice hockey, eight seasons
File: Two NCAA national titles (2022, 2024); five Frozen Fours; overall record of 195-73-19 (.713); Western College Hockey Association coach of the year past three seasons.
The skinny: Muzerall took over in 2016 and won the program’s first national championship in her sixth season, then added another in March.
roller@dispatch.com
