The coaching carousel has finally stopped, as teams are more focused on finalizing their recruiting classes and transfer portal acquisitions. So, now is as good a time as any to review the hires across the FBS landscape and give the usual immediate gratification grades.
Here are the grades — on your standardized letter grade system — for every college football coach’s hiring this offseason.
Bill Belichick, North Carolina: B+
We’ll start with the most-talked-about hire of the cycle. The man that many consider the greatest NFL coach of all time, 72-year-old Bill Belichick, is replacing the 73-year-old Mack Brown in Chapel Hill.
Having had more than a month to digest this news and see how it has translated to UNC’s success on the recruiting trail, it seems that hiring a coach who has never coached in the college ranks might have been worth the risk.
It remains to be seen whether this will be more like Deion Sanders at Colorado or if it will borrow from college basketball and end up more like the “Doug Gottlieb-University of Wisconsin–Green Bay” fiasco. For now, there are signs of encouragement.
The biggest factor will be how long Belichick stays systematic in the far more player-empowering level of college play. Many believe this factor drove Belichick’s friend, Nick Saban, to retire.
Barry Odom, Purdue: A
A proud Midwesterner, Barry Odom returned to his roots by taking the job with the Boilermakers after turning around a UNLV program that hadn’t made a bowl game in a decade before his arrival.
Odom is a proven winner who, despite mixed results in his first head coaching job at Missouri, gets the best out of his players by putting them in a position to succeed.
Not many coaches would have been able to weather the storm of their high-profile starting quarterback leaving the program midseason and still delivering a conference championship game appearance.
Purdue took a massive step back the past two seasons after losing Jeff Brohm to Louisville. If Odom can deliver similar results to those he brought to the “Runnin’ Rebels,” he can serve as a restart for the Boilermakers.
Rich Rodriguez, West Virginia: B-
“Gather ‘round kids, and let’s talk about the good old days of 2006. Celebrities were driving their Priuses, Borat was in theatres, YouTube was still in its infancy, and Rich Rodriguez had the West Virginia Mountaineers of the Big East in the national title picture. Life was good.”
Here we are, almost two decades later, proving that time is a flat circle and does indeed heal all wounds. Despite leaving West Virginia on tenuous terms in 2007 to go to Michigan, “RichRod” is back in Morgantown after leading the Jacksonville State Gamecocks to a Conference USA championship in only their second year at the FBS level.
Nostalgia can deliver on vibes, but Rodriguez hasn’t been a Power Conference head coach in seven years. The sport has changed immensely in that time, let alone in the 18 years since he left the Mountaineers for the first time.
The Big 12 is still anyone’s conference from year to year. This could be a big boost for a Mountaineers program that has been stuck in neutral for a while.
Scott Frost, UCF: C-
Speaking of nostalgia, UCF acted quickly after head coach Gus Malzahn resigned to become offensive coordinator at Florida State and hired the coach who brought them the most success, Scott Frost, back on a five-year contract.
Frost led the Knights to a 19-7 record, including an undefeated 2017 season, before he left to coach Nebraska. He never found his footing in Lincoln, though, going 16-31 in his five seasons as coach.
That was the last we saw of Frost in a college coaching capacity, as he spent 2023 out of the sport before spending this past season with the Los Angeles Rams as an analyst.
In a world where many see coaches as “only as good as your last job,” Frost comes with plenty of baggage, whether rightly deserved or not. In the wide-open Big 12, this can either pay off spectacularly or backfire in an equally impressive way. There just isn’t much room between the two outcomes.
Blake Harrell, ECU: A
The Pirates had a roller-coaster season in 2024. After starting 3-4 in what was supposed to be a bounce back from their two-win 2023 season, they moved on from coach Mike Houston and promoted defensive coordinator Blake Harrell to interim head coach.
Harrell hit the ground running, winning his first four games and earning the full-time gig at the request of his players in the process. ECU finished the season 8-5, beating vaunted rival NC State in the Military Bowl.
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ECU has lost 20 players to the transfer portal and will see cornerback Shavon Revel likely taken in the first round of the draft.
The honeymoon might be over, and it will be interesting to see how Harrell builds this team going forward with players he brought in, but the early returns make this a home-run decision for the Pirates.
Dowell Loggains, Appalachian State: C+
Dowell Loggains bounced around the NFL as a position coach and offensive coordinator for almost a decade before making the transition to the college game. After one season at Arkansas as tight ends coach, he moved to South Carolina to be their offensive coordinator and quarterback coach in 2023.
That year, the Gamecocks finished with the third-worst offense in the SEC. Last year, the Gamecocks had a below-average SEC offense again through five games, but they ultimately finished with the third-best rushing attack in the conference on their way to a nine-win season.
App State has traditionally run a run-heavy offense since coming up to the FBS level, so if Loggains can bring that same system over, it could bear successful fruit in the Sun Belt with the right players. On the other hand, Loggains looks like an uninspiring coaching hire on paper.
Matt Entz, Fresno State: A
On the surface, it might seem surprising that Fresno State, a team readying itself to join the revamped Pac-12 Conference, would hire USC’s linebackers coach to be their new head coach, but Matt Entz is a different case.
Entz was only at USC for one year. Prior to that, he was the head coach of North Dakota State, winning FCS national championships in 2019 and 2021 while being a part of the staff on national title-winning teams in 2014, 2015, 2017, and 2018.
Much like how Chris Kleiman took the head coaching job at Kansas State and hit the ground running, Entz has what it takes to succeed at Fresno State.
It’s not just the North Dakota State pipeline, as coaches with a winning pedigree at the lower levels have had success when the competition rises: Lance Leipold and Curt Cignetti are other recent examples.
Bronco Mendenhall, Utah State: B
Bronco Mendenhall rejoined the coaching ranks in 2024 at New Mexico after a three-year hiatus following his exit from Virginia. Mendenhall led New Mexico to a 5-7 record last season, their best year since 2016.
However, Mendenhall’s best work came when he was at BYU. He led the Cougars to 99 wins in his 11 years in charge, never posting a losing record.
Mendenhall return to his home state of Utah could lead to instant results for the Aggies. However, Mendenhall is still coming off of a losing season and hasn’t made a bowl appearance since 2019.
It’s a risky hire, to say the least, but the Aggies at least got themselves a program builder to do things the right way in the wake of Blake Anderson’s controversial exit.
Jason Eck, New Mexico: A-
The Lobos, as mentioned above, have not won more than five games since 2016. Mendenhall got the ball rolling, and now it’s former Idaho head coach Jason Eck’s responsibility to keep the momentum.
Eck’s already brought in plenty of his players from Idaho (who were highly competitive against Oregon to start the 2024 season) with him to Albuquerque. Eck was also the offensive coordinator at South Dakota State during the Jackrabbit’s rise in the ranks, giving their bitter rival (NDSU) a run for their money.
Eck’s a proven winner, having turned Idaho into a consistent FCS playoff team, including a 10-4 record this past year. That should hopefully carry over into delivering the Lobos their first bowl game appearance in nearly a decade.
Dan Mullen, UNLV: A
Initially, this grade would have been lower, as the more “obvious” choice for the head coach role was Brennan Marion, the team’s offensive coordinator. Marion has since signed on to be head coach at Sacramento State.
Mullen returns to coaching at the college level after three years as an ESPN analyst. He brings with him a coaching record of 103-61 with Mississippi State and Florida, only missing the postseason in his first year with the Bulldogs and in his last year with the Gators.
UNLV’s offense is perfectly set up for Mullen’s system, and first-time offensive coordinator Corey Dennis spent eight years at Ohio State working with quarterbacks such as Joe Burrow, Dwayne Haskins, and Justin Fields.
Runnin’ Rebels’ QB Hajj-Malik Williams has a chance to put up video game numbers in this system next year on a Rebels team that could immediately contend for the G5 playoff spot in the College Football Playoff.
Tim Albin, Charlotte: A+
The A+ grade may seem out of left field at first for a program like Charlotte, who, after 10 seasons in the FBS and only 12 years of existence, has never won a bowl game and only made it to one. Honestly, for Tim Albin, it might even seem like a “step back.” Landing Tim Albin is a massive win for a program so young.
Albin did a tremendous job building the Ohio Bobcats, going 33-19, having been the head coach for four years, and being with the program for 18.
The Bobcats were expected to sink more to the middle of the pack in the MAC after losing most of their roster to the transfer portal. Despite ranking 133rd in the nation in returning production, the Bobcats won the Mac Conference and the Cure Bowl.
Albin took the Charlotte job, as it presented the challenge of building a new program, and if there’s someone who can build consistently good football teams in the new age of college football, in the group of five conferences, it’s Tim Albin.
Brian Smith, Ohio: B+
Brian Smith got promoted from offensive coordinator after Tim Albin left. It’s clear that the Bobcats want to keep the program going rather than turning in a different direction.
For a program that has made the conference title game in two of the last three seasons, winning it this past year, consistency is key, especially in the MAC, which is traditionally a razor thin conference in terms of funding as well as competition level.
With much of their roster from last year needing to be turned over yet again, Smith has a challenge ahead of him in maintaining the level of play Ohio has risen to, but if Smith can work the transfer portal the same way his predecessor did, they should be a fixture in the MAC championship picture.
Tony Gibson, Marshall: C+
Gibson comes to the Thundering Herd after spending five years with NC State, building a consistently good defense in the ACC and being one of the best defensive coordinators in the nation.
A West Virginia native, the Herd brought in a coach who previously served as defensive coordinator for their fellow “Friends of Coal Bowl” rival, West Virginia, for four seasons before that, so he is more than familiar with the area.
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The reason this grade is lower than you might expect is that Marshall found themselves searching for a head coach after winning the Sun Belt championship, not because their coach left, but because they refused to re-sign Charles Huff, the man that got them there in the first place and turned the program around.
When the news broke that Huff didn’t re-sign with the Thundering Herd, Marshall almost immediately announced that they’d hired Gibson. This situation got messy, and it didn’t have to. I have no concerns about Gibson keeping Marshall a Sun Belt contender, but Marshall choosing the “mystery box” option is very risky.
Charles Huff, Southern Miss: A
Anytime you can get the coach that just won the conference you’re in, you’re going to get a good grade. When that coach chooses you after a one-win season, that grade automatically becomes an A.
Marshall’s loss is Southern Mississippi’s gan. The program is investing in the resources to turn the ship around, and hiring a proven winner like Huff is a home run.
KC Keeler, Temple: A
Temple normally is not found getting top coaching candidates among the non-power conferences. The difference with this hire is that KC Keeler has deep ties to the region, being from Pennsylvania and having coached at Delaware, having success in his time with the Fightin’ Blue Hens.
Temple’s found themselves in the pits basically since the football dissolution of the Big East Conference, but KC Keeler instills confidence that they can at very least be a presence in the everchanging American Athletic Conference.
Phil Longo, Sam Houston: D+
This hire is a headscratcher. The Bearkats have been incredible since coming up from the FCS following their national championship under the leadership of KC Keeler. Hiring Phil Longo, who has never been a head coach, is an interesting choice.
This is not to say that they needed to get someone with head coaching experience, but frankly, not many schools were beating down Longo’s door.
He had an uninspiring end to his tenure as offensive coordinator at North Carolina, and the last two seasons at Wisconsin didn’t do much to cover himself in glory. The Badgers offense had been a struggle for most of the two years he was there. He might be a good recruiter, but this could massively backfire.
Scott Abell, Rice: A
Rice has been in the dumps since leaving the WAC in 2004, having only made six bowl games in that time, with their last bowl win coming in 2014.
Those six bowl games are their only appearances since 1961. They’ve largely been an afterthought in the college football world since the collapse of the Southwest Conference and have needed a hire that inspires a new direction.
Scott Abell is a bona fide program builder. Before Abell arrived at Davidson, they hadn’t won more than two games in any of the previous six seasons. He left Davidson as the program’s all-time winningest coach. Abell’s spread triple option system could also be a big and necessary change for a school that has lacked anything to make it stand out.
Joe Harasymiak, UMass: B
Speaking of a decade of uninspiring football, the UMass Minutemen. Since coming up to the FBS level in 2011 after being formidable in the FCS, UMass has never won more than four games in a season.
Don Brown was the coach who led them to FCS success, so he was expected to do the same with the current team. It was clear, however, that after two seasons, only registering four wins in that span, that it wasn’t the case.
Joe Harasmyiak comes over after an amazing tenure with Rutgers as their defensive coordinator, having been a top defence in the Big Ten multiple times. Before becoming a defensive coordinator at the FBS level, Harasymiak was the head coach at Maine, going 20-15 and making the FCS playoffs in his last year in 2018.
It can’t get much worse for UMASS, so this grade reflects that any change is a welcome change.
Tre Lamb, Tulsa: B+
With NIL likely not much of a factor in recruiting at Tulsa as a mid-tier team in the AAC at the best of times, the best thing they could look for would be someone who knows how to build a program.
Tre Lamb, despite only being 35 years old, has already turned around two programs at the FCS level in Gardner-Webb (back to back FCS playoff appearances) and East Tennessee State.
Jake Dickert, Wake Forest: B-
Jake Dickert seems like a perfect fit for Wake Forest because, like the Demon Deacons, the last few years have been a whirlwind, and he’s navigated the storm well.
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When you can navigate losing multiple QBs to the transfer portal, the conference you’re playing in collapsing as a whole, and your main rivals leaving to play in a bigger sandbox and still go 8-4 while putting together a patchwork roster. Wake Forest is going to need to have Dickert do what he does best and find diamonds in the rough to stay afloat.
Jimmy Rogers, Washington State: B
In two years at South Dakota State, Rogers led the Jackrabbits to a national title and semifinal appearance. The one potential hold-up for the 37-year-old? Those two seasons were his only years as a head coach, and most of the players he led in those seasons were players he inherited.
Willie Simmons, Florida International: A-
Willie Simmons gets extra credit given that the FIU brass passed him over in 2021, but he was still such a good fit for the program that the athletic department for the Panthers came crawling back to him three years later. Simmons went 45-13 at Florida A&M, winning the SWAC in 2023 before leaving to be the running backs coach at Duke this past year.
Given that Florida International hasn’t had a winning record since Butch Jones led them to a 9-4 record in 2018, any nudge in the right direction should be welcome. Simmons is a proven program builder, something that this Golden Panthers team needs, as they’ve only participated in five bowl games in the 20 years that they’ve been at the FBS level.
Matt Drinkall, Central Michigan: A
Matt Drinkall may not be a name known by many, but after 2023, when Drinkall relinquished his title of Co-Offensive Coordinator at Army to solely focus on being Offensive Line Coach, the Black Knights had their best season since the days when Army was a national contender in the thirties and forties.
Drinkall’s offensive line unit at Army last year won the Joe Moore Award for the best offensive line in the country this past year. He’s going to bring a hard-nosed, run-heavy offense going forward in Mount Pleasant, given that the Chippewas have not had much of an identity since Butch Jones was there back in the late 2000s.
Mike Uremovich, Ball State: B+
Ball State had former QB Mike Neu in charge for nine years despite having a record 23 games under .500. Bringing players to Muncie, Indiana has never been an easy task, but their coach history tends to lend itself to coaches who had more successful tenures elsewhere- like Brady Hoke and Pete Lembo.
Mike Uremovich looks to buck that trend coming up from FCS Butler. In three seasons with the Bulldogs, Uremovich had a record of 23-11. Before that, he had stops at Temple, Northern Illinois, and NC State as a position coach, focusing on tight ends, running backs, and the offensive line.
That signals that the Cardinals will likely see more of a run-first approach going forward, which should be great news for Ball State’s All-MAC third-team offensive lineman Taran Tyo.
Zach Kittley, Florida Atlantic: B+
FAU hired the guy they thought they were getting with Tom Herman by bringing in Kittley, fresh off a season in which he led a Texas Tech offense to be a top-10 unit in the nation.
A strong recruiter who put together a breakthrough unit this past year in an American conference whose middle ground is wide open, the Owls bringing in a coach like Kittley, who is still only 33 years old, could see them building momentum they haven’t had since Lane Kiffin’s tenure.
Jerry Mack, Kennesaw State: B
The fact the Kennesaw State job was open in the first place is still a little surprising given that they’re a program that’s only existed since 2015 and it was their first season at the FBS level. Their two wins came against preseason CUSA favorite Liberty and a miserable FIU team. Making the switch that quickly at this level seemed shortsighted.
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On the other hand, Jerry Mack is an accomplished program builder, having won three conference titles with NC Central before taking an offensive coordinator job with Rice and then coaching running backs with the Tennessee Volunteers and the Jacksonville Jaguars. A respected coaching figure, Kennesaw State is a players’ coach who will be able to pick the players up when they’re in a rut.
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