OSU coach Kerry Coombs is interviewed during media day on Dec. 29. Credit: Alexa Mavrogianis | Photo Editor

Kerry Coombs will be tacking on a few extra responsibilities to his list on the defensive side of the Ohio State football team as he was promoted to assistant defensive coordinator Thursday.

Coombs has spent the past five seasons as cornerbacks coach and past four as special teams coordinator, and will remain in both positions in addition to his new job.

“Kerry Coombs is absolutely deserving of this promotion to assistant coordinator, defense,” coach Urban Meyer said in a press release. “He is an outstanding coach, instructor and mentor to the young men in this program. He is one of the best recruiters in the nation. He is incredibly loyal, and we at Ohio State are very fortunate that he loves this school and loves being a Buckeye.”

Coombs’ loyalty has kept him with the Buckeyes for the past six seasons, including all five seasons the program has been guided by Meyer. During his tenure, every one of the team’s starting cornerbacks has reached the NFL, including his most recent pairing which was selected in the first round of the NFL draft: Marshon Lattimore and Gareon Conley.

Last season, the Buckeyes’ secondary proved to be a major factor in the team’s run to the College Football Playoff semifinals. They allowed the fewest passing yards per game (172.2), tallied the fourth-most interceptions (21) and returned the most interceptions for touchdowns of any Division I school (seven).

Coombs will lead his latest unit out onto the field when the team travels to Bloomington, Indiana, in a matchup with the Indiana Hoosiers on Aug. 31, with kickoff scheduled for 8 p.m.