After Jeff Hafley leaves Boston College, Bill O’Brien, a native of Massachusetts, is allegedly “anticipated” to take over as head coach.

Bill O’Brien, the former offensive coordinator for the Patriots, is expected to shift jobs again during the same offseason.

As reported by ESPN’s Pete Thamel and Kevin Stone of the New England Football Journal, O’Brien is “anticipated” to take over as Boston College’s football team’s next head coach.

After a dismal 2023 season, O’Brien, now 54, first departed the Patriots in January to take a position as Ohio State’s offensive coordinator. However, the nearby ACC institution found itself in a precarious situation when former Boston College coach Jeff Halfley abruptly resigned to take a position as defensive coordinator with the Packers.

If O’Brien were to formally accept the position, it would enable him to live with his family, who, according to Thamel, apparently planned to stay in the region even as he assumed the role in Columbus.

O’Brien has a number of connections to the area, including being a native of Massachusetts and having worked as an offensive coach with the Patriots on various occasions. Colleen, his spouse, holds a degree from Boston College.

This would not be O’Brien’s first position as head coach at a college. In his two seasons as head coach at Penn State, 2012 and 2013, he had a 15-9 record. Coach Bryce Young, the winner of the Heisman Trophy, at Alabama was his most recent collegiate experience until he returned to the Patriots a year ago.