Nebraska Football: Former assistant joins Ohio State staff
Former Nebraska football defensive line coach Mike Dawson has found himself a new home. He’s joined the Ohio State coaching staff, though he won’t be an on-field coach just yet.
Dawson was one of the original members of the Nebraska football staff that joined Scott Frost when he came to Lincoln from UCF. Frost famously made it clear that he wanted as many of his assistant with the Golden Knights to come with him to the Huskers as possible. Almost all of them did and Dawson was among that group.
The first time around, Dawson didn’t stick around the Nebraska football program too long. After the 2018 season, he left the Huskers to take a job with the New York Giants.
However, the defensive line coach didn’t stay away for long either. He returned to the Cornhuskers in 2020 and then was with Scott Frost’s staff until they started getting shown the door in the middle of the 2022 campaign.
Ohio State has added former Nebraska DL/OLB coach Mike Dawson as an analyst, sources tell me and @mzenitz.
— Sean Callahan (@Sean_Callahan) March 16, 2023
In addition to Nebraska, Dawson has also worked for teams like the New York Giants.
His relationship with Ryan Day dates back all the way to 2002 at New Hampshire.
Dawson has had a long career that goes back well before he hooked up with Scott Frost and company. In addition to the Nebraska football program, Dawson has coached at Boston College, Akron, New Hampshire, Pittsburgh and Maine and UMASS-Lowell.
It’s New Hampshire where Dawson forged the relationship that has allowed him to get an analyst role with Ohio State. That’s where he started coaching alongside Buckeyes’ head coach Ryan Day. It appears the two have kept up a relationship even if its been some time since they were on the same staff together.
Now the former Nebraska football assistant will try and jump-start his career again after the somewhat turbulent times that befell him and his coworkers in Lincoln.
As a member of the Ohio State’s staff for next season, he won’t run up against his old team unless the Buckeyes and Nebraska football teams both make the Big Ten championship game. The two programs don’t face each other during the regular season.