Rating FBS hires
Dan Wolken grades college football’s coaching changes.
This year’s coaching carousel wasn’t particularly robust, but there was a chorus of praise from the college football media after nearly every hire. That’s not unusual. Aside from the rare headscratcher (Ron Turner going to Florida International in 2013) or obvious bad fit (Charlie Weis to Kansas in 2012), most hires look good the day they’re made.
Of course, reality and history tell us several of these coaches will be on the hot-seat lists in three years. And it might not be the ones we think. Here’s an attempt to grade how each school did in the coaching carousel:
SOUTH FLORIDA
Old coach: Willie Taggart New coach: Charlie Strong Grade: A Comment: This was a nobrainer for the Bulls, who had the fortunate timing to lose Taggart right when Strong was available. Strong is back in his comfort zone, in a state where he has longstanding recruiting ties and at a program without the same sort of spotlight or pressure he faced at Texas. There’s no doubt Strong handled some aspects of the Texas job poorly, but his 37-15 record at Louisville wasn’t a fluke, either. He inherits a roster built to win now, and this hire should pay dividends quickly.
BAYLOR
Old coach: Art Briles/Jim Grobe New coach: Matt Rhule Grade: AComment: If you asked athletics directors in the American Athletic Conference to identify the league’s best coach, Rhule might have gotten as many votes as Tom Herman because of the job he did at Temple. His lack of history in Texas can be spun into a plus: It’s a clean slate for high
school coaches to take a new look at Baylor, and Rhule is already making a good impression with savvy staff hires who are tied into the recruiting landscape. Under the circumstances, it’s hard to imagine how the Bears could have done better.
TEXAS
Old coach: Strong New coach: Tom Herman Grade: AComment: Texas got its guy. But is Herman truly a slam-dunk to win titles in Austin? We’ll see. His 22-4 record at Houston included some massive wins and a few confounding losses with the roster he inherited ready to win right away. It will be interesting to watch him build and see if he can sustain for the long haul, which he didn’t have to do at Houston.
FLORIDA ATLANTIC
Old coach: Charlie Partridge New coach: Lane Kiffin Grade: B+ Comment: This is a relatively low-risk gamble for FAU, as the school gets a big-name coach who has considerable skills and upside.
If Kiffin does well and leaves in a few years, FAU will be in a much better place than it is now. If he self-destructs, it’s not like things can get worse. The question is how Kiffin will function at a havenot type of program after working at Tennessee, Southern California and Alabama.
SAN JOSE STATE
Old coach: Ron Caragher New coach: Brent Brennan Grade: B+ Comment: This is a much better fit at the school than Caragher, as Brennan spent time at the school as an assistant from 2005 to 2010 and knows the challenges. San Jose State needs to be relevant in Northern California recruiting, and Brennan’s deep ties in the state should help.
TEMPLE
Old coach: Rhule New coach: Geoff Collins Grade: B+ Comment: This one got done a bit under the radar. Collins did a great job as defensive coordinator at Mississippi State and at Florida under Jim McElwain. He’s a high-
energy guy with deep recruiting ties in the state of Florida. He’s ready for a head coaching job.
WESTERN KENTUCKY
Old coach: Jeff Brohm New coach: Mike Sanford Jr. Grade: B+ Comment: Western Kentucky gets a bright 34-year-old who has been part of terrific staffs at Stanford and Boise State but whose stock dipped a bit this year with Notre Dame’s struggles. This hire is a bit reminiscent of Memphis selecting Mike Norvell from Arizona State’s staff after the Sun Devils’ down year in 2015. Sanford’s biggest obstacle might be high expectations after Brohm won back-to-back Conference USA titles.
CINCINNATI
Old coach: Tommy Tuberville New coach: Luke Fickell Grade: B Comment: Cincinnati was locked in on Fickell pretty much from the beginning, which was a bit surprising to some fans given the recent trend in the American Athletic Conference of hiring offensive coaches. Fickell’s long history at Ohio State is a plus; he knows the state and the local landscape. On the other hand, he’s spent nearly his entire career working under Hall of Famers in Jim Tressel and Urban Meyer, so having to rebuild something on his own will be completely new.
GEORGIA STATE
Old coach: Trent Miles New coach: Shawn Elliott Grade: B Comment: Athletics director Charlie Cobb has deep connections to Elliott, as they both came from Appalachian State. This might have been a good time for Cobb to open up the search a bit, but the comfort level with Elliott was strong. The former South Carolina assistant will bring a more positive culture and help connect the program to the Atlanta community.
INDIANA
Old coach: Kevin Wilson New coach: Tom Allen Grade: B Comment: This is an unusual situation, as Wilson was removed for reasons that had little to do with wins and losses. All things considered, Allen is a solid hire. He did a terrific job as Indiana’s defensive coordinator this season and at South Florida before that. He should be able to keep the Hoosiers exactly what they are: a competitive, middle-of-the-pack team in the Big Ten that can spring an upset now and then.
OREGON
Old coach: Mark Helfrich New coach: Willie Taggart
Grade: B
Comment: This is a new look for Oregon, and it might work out with Taggart. Finances played a bigger role in this search than many anticipated, as Taggart will make slightly less money ($3.3 million a year) than Brohm will. Oregon is betting that it hired a future superstar with a higher ceiling than more expensive and established candidates such as Dan Mullen. Taggart has recruited well at Western Kentucky and South Florida, which is key for a job like Oregon’s.
PURDUE
Old coach: Darrell Hazell New coach: Brohm Grade: B
Comment: Brohm is a standout offensive mind, but his success at Purdue will depend on how well he can recruit and whether he can build a defense that gets more stops than he did at Western Kentucky. Under the circumstances, Purdue did very well here, outmuscling Cincinnati and others to get the deal done with Brohm.
FLORIDA INTERNATIONAL
Old coach: Ron Turner New coach: Butch Davis Grade: BComment: The best-case scenario is that Davis turns out like Frank Solich at Ohio and brings gravitas and stability. The worst-case scenario is that the 65-year-old doesn’t have the drive it will take to pull FIU out of irrelevance. Yes, FIU has good geography, but that’s about it. It’s facilities, funding, fan base and administration fall woefully short.
HOUSTON
Old coach: Herman New coach: Major Applewhite Grade: C+
Comment: Houston settled on an internal hire in Applewhite, who was not a candidate for any other head coaching jobs and whose career as an offensive coordinator has been a mixed bag. Applewhite might be able to continue Houston’s winning ways, but it doesn’t help when the school president and top booster brag publicly about firing coaches who go 8-4.
NEVADA
Old coach: Brian Polian New coach: Jay Norvell Grade: C+
Comment: The Wolf Pack were a bit quick on the trigger with the firing of Polian, who got Nevada to bowl games in 2014 and 2015. This is a program without significant resources, and it will be interesting to see how Norvell fares after spending the last 13 years as an offensive assistant at big-boy programs such as Oklahoma, Nebraska, Texas and UCLA.
LSU
Old coach: Les Miles New coach: Ed Orgeron Grade: C
Comment: There’s no doubt Orgeron is better equipped to be a head coach now than he was a decade ago when he went 3-21 in the Southeastern Conference at Mississippi. Still, it’s remarkable that LSU fired Les Miles only to elevate Orgeron, who got the job despite losing at home to Alabama and Florida as the interim coach.
FRESNO STATE
Old coach: Tim DeRuyter New coach: Jeff Tedford
Grade: CComment: Tedford’s final six years at California were a mess on the field and in the classroom, as he left a significant Academic Progress Rate problem that Sonny Dykes and the administration had to clean up. Tedford got this job because he’s a former Fresno State player and assistant, but his underachieving record at Cal doesn’t inspire confidence he will get it done having to work with lesser talent.