Ohio State’s general manager leading new era of college football

COLUMBUS, Ohio ( WCMH ) —  When Mark Pantoni walks the halls at the Woody Hayes Athletic Center, he’s among the people who best understand Ohio State’s program.

“These guys have grown up to be, you know, adults now and have families. And it just makes me think how old I’m getting.” Pantoni joked.

Pantoni works as Ohio State’s general manager for player personnel, a relatively new job in the ever-changing world of college football. If you visit the football building, day or night, there’s a good chance Pantoni is at work.

“I usually get in around 6:30 a.m. and probably watching film ’till I can’t keep my eyes open anymore … until 9 or 10 at night,” he said.

Pantoni arrived at OSU in 2012 having never visited Columbus before. He joined Urban Meyer’s staff to head up the OSU recruiting department after working on Meyer’s staff as a grad assistant at Pantoni’s alma mater of Florida.

“As soon as I started, I fell in love with it,” Pantoni said. “Just the admiration of building a roster.”

Pantoni’s track record speaks for itself. Since 2012, Ohio State has averaged building the third-best recruiting class in the nation, according to 247Sports. The stars he’s helped bring to Columbus seem endless.

“He’s been unbelievably loyal to me and loyal to the program. He is someone who works really, really hard at his job and his job has completely changed in the last six years,” head coach Ryan Day said.

With the changes in the college landscape, including new name, image and likeness (NIL) policies, Pantoni has evolved, too. He’s been retitled as Ohio State’s general manager, in large part to deal with his building of the roster. He oversees recruiting, the NCAA transfer portal and the program’s relationship with NIL Collectives, which financially support the players in the program. Those high-level donors are far more visible now, including at practices and on the sidelines before games.

“Shaking their hands and spending time with them because obviously their contributions are very important,” Pantoni said.

Ohio State has two main collectives supporting the football program: The Foundation and The 1870 Society. They’re so important to OSU’s success that Pantoni’s roster management abilities rely on them. The Collectives can offer lucrative NIL offers to new recruits and returning players. OSU coaches and staff, by NCAA rule, cannot be a part of NIL negotiations. Pantoni said while NIL is important in building a roster, OSU is still-seeking team-first talent.

“Who are the type of kids you’re going to recruit now that are going to stick around, that are motivated by the right traits that we’re looking for in the locker room and not necessarily NIL,” he said. “We have almost a salary cap, so managing a salary cap. It’s as close to probably being an NFL (general manager) as it’s ever been.”

“He’s really had a huge hand in putting this roster together,” Day said. “Conversations with agents and some of the folks in the community … and he’s had a huge role in all that. So his role has increased and become more and more important. I think he’s the best in the country at what he does.”

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