Sean Gleeson a ‘Strong Candidate’ for Rutgers’ Vacant OC Position

After murmurs of Sean Gleeson and Rutgers over the past week, things seem to be getting a little more serious.

On Friday, Bruce Feldman tweeted that Gleeson has emerged as a strong candidate for the vacant offensive coordinator position at Rutgers. A move from Oklahoma State to Rutgers would be puzzling for most, but as Feldman mentions, Gleeson is from New Jersey.

Oklahoma State OC Sean Gleeson has emerged as a strong candidate for the #Rutgers offensive coordinator vacancy, per source. Gleeson is a NJ native and did a tremendous job at Princeton.

— Bruce Feldman (@BruceFeldmanCFB) January 3, 2020

Gleeson came to Stillwater after being at Princeton (in New Jersey) from 2013 to 2018. There he spent two seasons as the Tigers’ offensive coordinator. He spent 2013 to 2016 as Princeton’s running backs coach.

Before coaching at Princeton, Gleeson was Fairleigh Dickinson’s offensive coordinator for the 2011 and 2012 seasons. Fairleigh Dickinson is also in New Jersey.

Rutgers hired Greg Schiano, another New Jersey native, as its head coach this offseason. It’s Schiano’s second stint as the Scarlet Knights’ coach. He coached Rutgers from 2001 to 2011. The Scarlet Knights went to six bowl games during his first stint. They’ve been to only three since.

With a few bowl games to go, Gleeson’s 2019 OSU offense ranks 22nd nationally in total offense with 453.9 yards per game. That’s the lowest yards per game OSU has had since 2014. That might seem bad, but there’s a built-in trade off in style when you have the nation’s leading rusher and a freshman quarterback.

Nothing is set in stone yet, though, and the situation remains fluid. Sources have indicated to PFB that receivers coach Kasey Dunn — who was linked to the OC job at UNLV — will be retained and likely be given a larger role whether Gleeson stays or not. If he is indeed promoted, it’d likely increase the chances Gleeson looks for autonomy calling plays elsewhere.