Besides the games actually played on the field, one of the most exciting (or stressful) times of the College Football season is the annual Coaching Carousel. This is when head coaches are fired, new head coaches (often from other schools) are hired in their place, those roles then need to be backfilled, and the cycle goes on and on. And boy, 2025-26 was one of the craziest coaching carousels yet. While you can’t necessarily “win” a coaching hire like you can a College Football Playoff game, we provide some head coach hiring grades to help you determine your teams performance. This article will be updated as new coaches are hired.
Stanford – Tavita Pritchard – D
Tavita is likely the biggest unknown on this list – which is not often a good sign for coaching hires at Power Conference programs. But, he is a Stanford guy through and through, and seems to have buy in from the institution. It could be interesting to see how this one plays out.
Oregon State – JaMarcus Shephard – C
Hiring a coach who has never called plays to be your new head coach is always a bold call. That being said, sources say Shephard did a great deal for making the Alabama passing game as dominant as it was and forged special connections with players. This seems like a gamble hire that could payoff big if it works out – consider us hesitant.
Colorado State – Jim Mora Jr – A+
Jim Mora Jr accomplished the seemingly impossible task of bringing UConn to back-to-back 9 win seasons. Accordingly, his name was immediately launched into head coach hiring lists as a program builder. For Colorado State to snag him, when his name was thrown around for roles like Penn State, should make any Ram excited. Jim mora Jr gets a path to the College Football Playoff and Colorado State gets an outstanding hire.
Oklahoma State – Eric Morris – B+
Eric Morris has a fairly impressive resume for the G6 level, though he probably has the most question marks on how his skills will translate to a Power Conference. However, he has the advantage of bringing top QB Drew Mestemaker with him, which make make the hire worth it alone in the short term. Expect fun offense returning to the Big 12 under Morris at Oklahoma State.
Virginia Tech – James Franklin – A
The second James Franklin hit the market, he became one of the top coaches available for anyone seeking recruiting power, stability, and the ability to get to the highest level of contention. For a school like Virginia Tech, that has vastly underachieved but has a clean path to the College Football Playoff, this is a near perfect hire. The only reason this isn’t an A+? Will he finally win the big games once he gets to them.
Kent State – Mark Carney – D
Mark Carney has had a solid stint in the interim position – certainly better than coaches prior – but I think what Kent State needs to achieve is a “hard reset”, and this does not provide it.
Arkansas – Ryan Silverfield – B-
This is then definition of a “qualified but uninspiring higher”. I don’t blame Arkansas for trying to get an up and coming guy who has had success at a lower program, but Ryan Silverfield was the least desirable of the G6 coaches that were poached, in my opinion.
Auburn – Alex Golesh – B+
While we give him a B+ mainly because Auburn had set their sights on coaches of a higher caliber resume and performance, Golesh could easily be the most underrated hire of this coaching cycle. He brought USF from a state of struggle to dominating the American Conference, and punching far above their weight, already beating power conference opponents.
Florida – Jon Sumrall – A-
The main complaints surrounding this hire is that Sumrall fits the same prototype as Billy Napier, who left Florida as an extreme disappointment. To those fans, I’d encourage them to observe how Sumrall schemes against his opponents and how he has won at multiple levels, but I do understand some of the concerns.
LSU – Lane Kiffin – A+
Kiffin was the darling of this year’s coaching carousel. Does he bring drama? Sure, but he immediately the most successful coach on this entire list, and for that he gets an A+.
Ole Miss – Pete Golding – B
Pete Golding is a stability hire, but there’s nothing wrong with that when your program is actively competing at the highest level. Golding is an Ole Miss guy who can stick around and build off the current momentum, which is a breath of fresh air for any Rebel after the Kiffin exit.
UCLA – Bob Chesney – B
This hire is befuddling, just because the main value of Bob Chesney is that he dominates recruiting on the East Coast. If he can coax those guys to the West Coast, he can build a strong program at UCLA, but this feels like a strange landing place for the up and coming coach. He will likely find mixed success.
Michigan State – Pat Fitzgerald – A
The main concerns about Fitzgerald at Michigan State are the reasons he was fired from Northwestern – but if he runs a clean program, he provides a history of Big Ten contention and much needed stability for the Spartans.
Kentucky – Will Stein – A+
Grabbing the highly acclaimed OC of a College Football Playoff Semifinalist is a great move for any program – Kentucky returning him to his home state provides a real opportunity for SEC contention and immediately washes off any remaining stench of the flat-falling Stoops era.
North Texas – Neal Brown – B
Neal Brown was able to dominate the Group of 5 during his Troy tenure – he has certainly lost some of his luster after a failed WVU tenure, but he is a great pick to try and retain the momentum North Texas established under Eric Morris.
USF – Brian Hartline – A+
For a while it seemed Hartline would be one of the top hires this cycle, taken at a school like Penn State. For USF to snag the top WR recruiter / developer in College Football is a smash hit by any metric.
UAB – Alex Mortensen – F
UAB desperately needs to wipe away any remnants of the failed Dilfer era – promoting Mortensen instead retains it in what is likely the worst move of the Coaching Carousel.
JMU – Billy Napier – A-
“Sun Belt Billy” returns to where he was able to win – and I expect he’ll do so once again bringing his recruiting prowess to JMU’s football focused arsenal of an athletic department. Bonus points if he can coax DJ Lagway over.
Cal – Tosh Lupoi – A
Cal fans were ready to move on from Wilcox after disappointing outcomes in big games (or playing down to the level of much weaker opponents). One things for certain, that shouldn’t be an issue with the proven persistence of Lupoi’s Oregon rosters. If he can translate the performance of those Ducks teams even 70% to Cal, there will be some very happy posts on the #Calgorithm.
Penn State – Matt Campbell – B+
Penn State had the most rejection-filled nightmare of a coaching search ever. they got a lot of other guys paid, approximately hundreds of millions of dollars worth. And yet, they still exit the cycle with one of the most consistent, established coaches in College Football coming to bring Penn State to the promised land of winning Big Games. While Matt Campbell’s resume isn’t exactly flush with these (4-6 against Top 10 teams), he brings enthusiasm and recruits to State College that it didn’t seem they would have a few months ago.
Memphis – Charles Huff – A
Charles Huff brought a struggling Marshall to the Sun Belt title – then left for Southern Miss. He then brought a Southern Miss team that was 1-11 in 2024 to 7-5 in 2025 – then left for Memphis. I’d be a bit concerned on retaining Huff if he performs well, but one thing is for certain – he can bring a G5 program to championship contention, and that’s a perfectly exciting hire for the Memphis Tigers as of right now.
UConn – Jason Candle – A
As noted previously in the article, Jim Mora Jr brought UConn to an achievement that at times seemed impossible – back to back 9 win seasons. Accordingly, losing him was devastating. One of the view coaching hires that could potentially be considered an upgrade is Jason Candle, who has won 2 MAC Championships (appearing in the title game 3 times) and winning MAC Coach of the Year twice. He even had Toledo as a discussed contender for this years College Football Playoff in the preseason – meaning UConn could maybe one day find a path there even as Jim Mora Jr left to pursue one.
Tulane – Will Hall – C-
Tulane is one of the few programs on this list to look internally for their hire of Will Hall. While I have no explicit bias against internal hires (we can’t forget Dabo was one of the greatest coaches ever to come from a lackluster internal hire), Will Hall is not the inspiring, momentum carrying pick Tulane should be looking for. This is a program that should see itself at the top of the G6 (and hunting for a P4 invite), and they’re promoting an OC that got pants’ed on national television vs Ole Miss.
Toledo – Mike Jacobs – A+
UConn lost their Head Coach to Colorado State and managed to pull an A grade hire from Toledo. Toledo lost their Head Coach to UConn and managed to pull an A+ grade hire from Mercer. We often discuss how schools are to scored to reach for the “next Cignetti” or the “next Bob Chesney” who succeeded at lower levels and can attain the same at the next. Mike Jacobs is that guy this cycle. We immediately project he will be seen as the next up and coming great coach in CFB, as proven by his exceptional work at Mercer (20-6).
Southern Miss – Blake Anderson – C
And just like that, Blake Anderson is back at the help of a College Football team. This is perhaps the least welcome he’s ever been. After coaching Arkansas State for 7 years, taking the Utah State job only to be fired for cause after 3 years, he has now been promoted from within at Southern Miss after Charles Huff’s departure. Sure, he’s won at this level, but after rocketing back to relevance, does anyone at Southern miss feel this is how they stay there?
Coastal Carolina – Ryan Beard – B+
Ryan Beard oversaw the transition of Missouri State from a top tier FCS program to making a bowl game in their first FBS season. There’s a lot worse you could do than grab that momentum and try and stick it in Conway, South Carolina. Plus, Coastal will probably grab some of those transfers – a good time to be a Chanticleer indeed.
Washington State – Kirby Moore – B
Kirby has worked with Kalen DeBoer. He oversaw a Missouri offense that was 32nd in the country in yards per game. Can he translate this to a school that’s not easy to recruit to in an increasingly competitive conference? I’m cautiously optimistic.
Missouri State – Casey Woods – A
We just noted that Kirby Moore oversaw the 32nd most productive offense in College Football. Do you know who oversaw the 31st, SMU? Casey Woods, and Missouri State brought him to CUSA. I like his odds on preserving Missouri State’s growing momentum and dominating CUSA in years to come.
Ohio – John Hauser – C+
Ohio has won 7 straight Bowl Games, a record of performance that isn’t acknowledged enough. So, elevating Defensive Coordinator after your last Head Coach left embroiled in controversy isn’t the worst continuity play. But when up and comers like Mike Jacobs are coming in your conference and you need to make power plays for your program facing an existential crisis in this era, maybe the safe play isn’t the best play? Bonus stat – Ohio only had the 6th best defense in the MAC this season.
Michigan – Kyle Whittingham – A
Michigan was also thrust into an unfortunate coaching search with the firing and subsequent arrest of Sherrone Moore. Unlike Penn State, they didn’t have to be tortured with rejection for long. Michigan hired Kyle Whittingham, who recently stepped down from the Utah gig to explore other opportunities. One thing Whit knows how to do? Win, especially at Ann Arbor – he is a perfect 3-0 vs Michigan with 2 of those wins being in the Big House. As far as more serious stats, Whit’s resume speaks for itself, with a 177-88 record, but more importantly bringing Utah from a Mountain West team to Pac 12 champions, to Big 12 title contention. Furthermore, he has already begun bringing over every qualified coach from the entire state of Utah to the Wolverines clubhouse. Whit seems prepared to coach for a while longer than we expected, and Wolverines should be thrilled to see what he does.
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