2009 Coaching Carousel

New Head Coach:

Akron: J.D. Brookhart was fired after finishing the season 3-9. He was 30-42 in six seasons. Brookhart did lead Akron to a MAC conference championship and the program's only major bowl game in 2005, but four straight losing seasons convinced the AD that it was time for a change.
Possibilities: Paul Chryst (Wisconsin OC)
I would hire: TBD
Akron Hired: Rob Ianello (Notre Dame WR coach and recruiting coordinator)


Buffalo: Kansas hired Turner Gill away from Buffalo. Buffalo reached unprecedented heights under Gill, who led the Bulls to their first MAC Championship and the first bowl game since moving up to FBS. Buffalo may be best off by promoting from within Gill's staff in an attempt to keep some continuity and level of success. While you may say that only one winning season in his four seasons wasn't that impressive, recognize that Buffalo has only had two winning seasons since 1987. Strangely, Buffalo was not fielding winning teams when moving up from Division 2 or moving up from Division 1AA.
Possibilities: Danny Barrett (OC Buffalo, interim HC), Bryan Harsin (Boise OC), Joe Moorhead (UConn OC), Tom Williams (Yale HC)
I Would Hire: Danny Barrett
Buffalo Hired: Jeff Quinn


Central Michigan: Cincinnati hired away Central Michigan's coach for the second time in four years. Central Michigan will look for a coach that can continue the success of the previous two coaches. CMU has won three conference titles in the past four years. Brian Kelly and Butch Jones took the program to four straight bowls games, despite that the Chippewas hadn't been to the postseason in 12 seasons and had only been to two other bowl games previously.
Possibilities: TBD
I would hire: TBD
Central Michigan hired: Dan Enos (Michigan State RB coach)


Cincinnati: Notre Dame hired Brian Kelly, and now Cincinnati is looking for a new head coach. Kelly had a 33-6 record with three straight double-digit win seasons at Cincinnati. He also led Cincinnati to a perfect 12-0 record in the regular season and back-to-back Big East Championships. It will be difficult to find a coach that will lead the Bearcats to that level of success.
Possibilities: Skip Holtz, Al Golden, Jeff Quinn (Cincinnati OC, interim HC), Butch Jones
I Would Hire: TBD
Cincinnati Hired: Butch Jones


East Carolina: Skip Holtz left East Carolina for the USF vacancy after leading the Pirates to back-to-back C-USA championships and Liberty Bowl appearances. He had a 38-27 record in five seasons and went to four bowl games. He led the Pirates to three straight wins over ranked teams (Boise State, Virginia Tech, West Virginia.) He also picked up wins over Virginia, NC State, and North Carolina.
Possibilities: Jeff Jagodzinski, Al Golden, Mike Leach, Ruffin McNeill, Greg Hudson, Rick Stockstill, Terry Bowden, Tommy Bowden, Dave Clawson, Danny Rocco
I would hire: Jeff Jagodzinski
East Carolina hired: Ruffin McNeill


Florida State: Bobby Bowden chose to retire after the bowl game this season to cap off a long and glorious career. Happy trails, Bobby. I hope you enjoy retirement. Florida State will promote OC Jimbo Fisher to be the head coach next season. Jimbo's first big decision will be replacing DC Mickey Andrews, who is also retiring after the end of this season.
Florida State Hired: Jimbo Fisher


Kansas: Mark Mangino stepped down as head coach of Kansas. He finished this season with a seven game losing streak and was facing an investigation over treatment of players. He was 50-48 in his tenure, but he took over a program that had six straight losing seasons. He took Kansas program to new heights in 2007 with a 12-1 record and a Orange Bowl victory. He also took Kansas to four bowls (three wins) in eight seasons. Kansas had only been to eight bowl games previously. Unless there is more behind the scenes to the investigation, I don't think getting running off Mangino was the right move.
Possibilities: Randy Edsall (KU AD hired him at Connecticut), Kevin Sumlin, Larry Fedora, Nolan Cromwell (Texas A&M OC and KU alum), Skip Holtz, Jim Harbaugh, Turner Gill, Brent Venables (Oklahoma DC)
I Would Hire: Harbaugh is unlikely to accept the job, so my pick would be Sumlin of Houston.
Kansas Hired: Turner Gill


Kentucky: Rich Brooks has retired after coaching Kentucky for the past seven seasons. Kentucky had gone bowling the past four seasons following a seven season postseason drought. This wasn't really a surprise since Brooks is almost 70 years old. He did a good job building Kentucky back up to respectability. Offensive coordinator Joker Phillips was named the head-coach-in-waiting two seasons ago, and will take over immediately. Happy trails, coach.
Kentucky Hired: Joker Phillips


Louisiana Monroe: In the first surprising move of the offseason, Louisiana Monroe chose not to extend the expiring contract of head coach Charlie Weatherbie. He was 31-51 in his seven year tenure. He did not take the program to the postseason, but two 6-6 seasons and two 5-6 seasons. I think this was a mistake, as he was consistently competitive in the Sun Belt. For a program that has never been to a bowl game, firing a coach that had you on the cusp of the postseason doesn't make much sense to me.
Possibilities: TBD
I would hire: TBD
Louisiana Monroe Hired: Todd Berry


Louisiana Tech: Derek Dooley left to become the new head coach at Tennessee. Dooley only had a 17-20 record, but had shown potential. His best win was over Mississippi State, and he led them to a win over Northern Illinois in the Independence Bowl in 2008. Dooley is also the Athletic Director at Louisiana Tech, so both positions will need to be filled. OC Frank Scelfo has been named the interim head coach.
Possibilities: TBD
I would hire: TBD
Louisiana Tech hired: Sonny Dykes


Louisville: As expected, Louisville fired Steve Kragthorpe after a loss to Rutgers to end the season. Kragthorpe was 4-8 this season and 15-21 in his three-year tenure with no bowl game appearances. These results are a far cry from the heights that Bobby Petrino had taken the progam previously. The change needed to be made.
Possibilities: Phil Fulmer, Kevin Sumlin, Tommy Tuberville, Charlie Strong, Gus Malzahn, Butch Jones
I would hire: Tommy Tuberville
Louisville Hired: Charlie Strong


Marshall: Mark Snyder will not return as head coach of Marshall despite a 6-6 record and a likely bowl berth. Snyder was 22-37 in five seasons. Marshall had been very successful, winning at least 8 games for 13 straight seasons under Jim Donnan and Bob Pruett. Snyder was hired at the same time that Marshall moved from the MAC to C-USA. This season was Marshall's highest win total since joining the conference. Regardless, Mark Snyder could not meet the high expectations set by his predecessors. Dwindling attendance figures were probably a factor as well.
Possibilities: Bud Foster, Gunter Brewer, Rick Minter, Butch Jones, Rick Trickett (Florida St OL coach/asst HC), Brad Lamert (Wake Forest DC), Danny Rocco (Liberty HC)
I Would Hire: Bud Foster signed a new deal with VT, so I would go with Butch Jones or Danny Rocco.
Marshall Hired: Doc Holliday (WVU associate HC)


Memphis: Tommy West was ousted after nine seasons with Memphis with a record of 49-58. West had his good and bad moments during his tenure. He led Memphis to five bowl games although the program had only been to two others previously, and one was something called the Burley Bowl in 1956. Even with the postseason appearances, Memphis never won a conference championship. Tommy West had plateaued at Memphis, and the administration thought it was time to move on.
Possibilities: Tommy Tuberville, Tommy Bowden, Terry Bowden, Gus Malzahn (Auburn OC), Larry Porter (LSU asst HC, Memphis alum), Bud Foster (VT DC) has expressed interest, Gunter Brewer (Ok St OC), Charlie Strong (Florida DC), Rick Stockstill, Phil Fulmer?
I would hire: Tuberville is the best option, but has said he doesn't want to coach at a non-BCS school. Malzahn is probably the most proven coordinator. Brewer and Porter supposedly are the leading candidates.
Memphis Hired: Larry Porter


Notre Dame: As expected, Charlie Weis is out at Notre Dame. This situation has been beaten to death already, so I'll just say that I agree that it was time for a change. This opening is obviously the biggest and most interesting.
Possibilities: Brian Kelly, Urban Meyer, Jon Gruden, Pat Fitzgerald, Jim Harbaugh, Skip Holtz, Kirk Ferentz, Gary Patterson, Randy Edsall, Brian Billick
I would hire: Brian Kelly
Notre Dame Hired: Brian Kelly


San Jose State: Dick Tomey is retiring at the end of the season. It hasn't been a good season for the Spartans, as their only win was over an FCS team. Tomey coached San Jose for the past five seasons and took them to a bowl game for the first time in 16 years in 2006, a win over New Mexico. Happy trails, coach.
Possibilities: TBD
I would hire: TBD
San Jose State Hired: Mike MacIntyre (Duke DC)


Tennessee: Lane Kiffin left to take the USC after just one season at Tennessee. He finished the season 7-6 with a 23-point loss to Virginia Tech in the Chick-Fil-A Bowl. Tennessee wasn't expecting to have to go through another coaching search so quickly. A lot of different names are being thrown around, and it will be interesting to see who they get this late is the offseason.
Possibilities: David Cutcliffe, Jon Gruden, Skip Holtz, Gary Patterson
I would hire: David Cutcliffe, although he wasn't interested in the job last year
Tennessee hired: Derek Dooley


Texas Tech: Mike Leach has been fired by Texas Tech due to way he treated a player after an injury. Leach is a good coach and will be picked up somewhere, although the only other current opening is Central Michigan. Leach may choose to take a year off and wait for more prestigious jobs to come available. For Texas Tech, defensive coordinator Ruffin McNeal has been named interim head coach.
Possibilities: Ruffin McNeal, Tommy Tuberville, Art Briles
I would hire: Tommy Tuberville
Texas Tech Hired: Tommy Tuberville


UNLV: Mike Sanford was fired near the end of his fifth season with the Rebels. His record was 15-43. UNLV has not gone to a bowl game in his tenure. In fact, UNLV hasn't been to a bowl game since the year 2000. Sanford never beat instate rival Nevada, and only won one games against the Big Three teams in the Mountain West. Most of the conference is improving, so UNLV needed to make a change to keep up. UNLV will hire an AD before hiring a head coach.
Possibilities: Dennis Franchione, Dirk Koetter, Bobby Hauck (Montana HC)
I would hire: TBD
UNLV Hired: Bobby Hauck


USC: Head coach Pete Carroll has returned to the NFL agreeing to a deal as the head coach of the Seattle Seahawks. He had spent the past nine seasons building and maintaining one of the top programs in college football. Despite all of the success, Carroll leaves in the middle massive NCAA investigation and is coming off a his worst season outside of his first at the program.
Possibilities: Mike Riley, Steve Sarkisian, Chris Petersen, Kyle Whittingham
I would hire: TBD
USC hired: Lane Kiffin


USF: USF has been fired with cause facing charges that he grabbed and struck one of his players. Leavitt was the only coach in the history of the football program. He compiled a 95-57 record over 13 seasons. He also took the Bulls to five bowl games, winning three.
Possibilities: Dan McCarney, Calvin MaGee, Tommy Bowden, Jeff Jagodzinski
I would hire: TBD
USF hired: Skip Holtz


Virginia: Al Groh is out after nine seasons at his alma mater. Groh had some success including a Gator Bowl appearance, but never could turn the team into a contender in the ACC and only beat in-state rival Virgina Tech once. A 3-9 season with a bad loss to Wiiliam & Mary meant it was time for a change to be made.
Possibilities: Mike London is a popular name, Al Golden, Skip Holtz, Butch Jones, Tommy Tuberville, Phil Fulmer
I Would Hire: TBD
Virginia Hired: Mike London


Western Kentucky: David Elson was fired after seven years, mired in a winless season as the Hilltoppers are trying to transition to the FBS level. It seems wrong to fire Elson, this team was just getting used to playing FBS quality opponents on a weekly basis. I'm not really sure who would want this job either. It's a massive building project to get this team competitive in the Sun Belt, while dealing with buy games versus major programs in the non-conference schedule.
Possibilities: I'm going to use this
link from the Bowling Green Daily News for a list of possible candidates.
I would hire: ???
Western Kentucky Hired: Willie Taggart (Stanford RB coach and WKU alum)