The 2025 coaching carousel is starting to catch some momentum as several top college football programs have let go of their coaches midseason. It has been one of the expensive changes in recent history as buyouts have shot into the millions.
The question now for many fans is how long their programs will remain coachless. Here is the full list of 2025 midseason firings in what has been one of the wildest college football seasons in recent history.
2025 Midseason Firings
Brent Pry (Virginia Tech)
The Hokies let go of coach Brent Pry after they started the season 0-3. He left the Hokies with a 16-24 record over four seasons. The offensive coordinator, Phillip Montgomery, is currently serving as the interim head coach.
Deshaun Foster (UCLA)
Foster’s firing was one of the earliest with such high expectations going into the year. The Bruins hit rock bottom when they lost to Utah, UNLV and New Mexico to start 2025. Foster finished with a 5-10 record over the 15 games he was in charge of the Bruins.
Sam Pittman (Arkansas)
Pittman’s time was coming for a while, and despite his love for the university, the two went their separate ways five games into the season. Pittman made it through six seasons for the Hogs, but a 2-3 start just didn’t indicate change was coming for Arkansas.
Mike Gundy (Oklahoma State)
This was probably one of the most shocking firings in college football. Gundy had been with Oklahoma State for 21 years with a 170-90 record and a 2011 Big 12 title. Despite the history, after a 1-2 start, the Cowboys will be moving in another direction.
Jay Norvell (Colorado State)
Jay Norvell was fired seven games into the 2025 season with a 2-5 start. During his time at CSU, he went 18-26 and made a bowl appearance in 2024.
Billy Napier (Florida)
Napier’s position was pretty similar to Pittman’s in the sense that no matter how much he did, if they weren’t contending, it wasn’t going to be good enough. Expectations for the Gators crashed down following a 3-4 start. Napier finished his time in Gainesville with a 22-23 record.
James Franklin (Penn State)
A 3-3 record wasn’t going to cut it for a Penn State team that was in the top 3 of the AP poll in the preseason. Franklin led the Nittany Lions to a 104-45 record during his 12-season tenure, which included a Big 10 title in 2016.
Brian Kelly (LSU)
Lastly, the firing of the season with LSU and Brian Kelly. The Tigers are 5-3, a winning record, something none of the other coaches on this list can say. Despite all of that, LSU’s lofty expectations were not met, and it decided to go a different way. Kelly’s tenure includes a 34-14 record and a $53 million buyout.
LSU has fired Brian Kelly.
Kelly has a $54 million buyout, the second-largest buyout in the history of college football.
College football teams have already spent $170 million on buyouts this year, easily surpassing the previous record of $118 million….with 3 months left. pic.twitter.com/RPVywVvo2W
— Joe Pompliano (@JoePompliano) October 27, 2025
Bottom Line
The coaching carousel has picked up momentum and is moving at full speed, and it is only Week 10 of the college football season. Most of the programs on the list have had prestige in the past, making this new head coach search vital to the future of their respective programs.
The question for the rest of the season is how many more coaches will find themselves looking for a job at the end of this rocky 2025 season.
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