The last time the Charlotte 49ers needed a head coach, they went a bit unconventional, tabbing Biff Poggi to be the head man. Even though Poggi had never been a position coach at the college level, the 49ers took a chance on him after he’d been a key off-field member of Jim Harbaugh’s Michigan staff.
That didn’t work out, and less than two years after he was hired, Charlotte decided to move on. Who could replace Poggi at Charlotte?
Replacement Candidates for Biff Poggi at Charlotte
Now that the 49ers have unsuccessfully gone the non-traditional route, I expect them to go a more traditional route. Ideally, Charlotte would like its next coach to be someone with ties to the Carolinas who is a proven coach and recruiter, though there could be some exceptions to that rule.
Here are five potential replacement candidates for Poggi at Charlotte.
Clay Hendrix (Furman Head Coach)
There are plenty of great FCS head coaches with strong ties to the Carolinas, and Clay Hendrix is one of the best. Hendrix is in his ninth year at Furman, and while this year isn’t going the way we’d expect it to go for the Paladins, he has put up a winning record in every season except for the Covid year.
He’s a great developer of talent and he’s very familiar with the Carolinas.
Hendrix has been at Furman for a while, and is 61 years old, so he may be content to stay with the Paladins. But if not, he makes a ton of sense for the 49ers.
Zac Alley (Oklahoma Defensive Coordinator)
One of the youngest coordinators in the country, Zac Alley has zoomed through the college coaching ranks after spending several years on Dabo Swinney’s staff at Clemson while in college and immediately after. Alley is from Charlotte, having graduated from Charlotte Country Day.
He’s young, but he’s going to get a head coaching job soon, so what better place than at the school 20 minutes from where he grew up? It’s a different kind of risk than what Charlotte took last time, and he can provide a lot of what the 49ers need.
Clayton White (South Carolina Defensive Coordinator)
South Carolina fans have gone from wanting Clayton White to be fired to wanting anything for him to stay. He’s had extremely strong defenses five of the last seven years and checks a lot of the boxes Charlotte fans are looking for.
White has a strong defensive background and is one of the better recruiters out there, even when he was at the Group of Five level at Western Kentucky. Charlotte fans seem to think the 49ers will look for young, talented coordinators, and White fits the bill.
Tre Lamb (East Tennessee State Head Coach)
There is some thought that the 49ers wouldn’t return to an FCS coach after Will Healy struggled in the position several years ago, but there are a few strong candidates in that vein that might be hard to ignore. Tre Lamb comes from a long-time football family in the Carolinas and has had great success at Gardner Webb and East Tennessee State.
Lamb is a culture-builder who already has great connections with the high school coaches in the Carolinas. If the administration is willing to look at another FCS coach, Lamb could be the guy.
Chris Weinke (Georgia Tech Co-Offensive Coordinator/Assistant Head Coach)
Chris Weinke played for the Carolina Panthers and bounced around the NFL before becoming an extremely successful college quarterbacks coach and recruiter. When he coached at Tennessee, he made inroads with high school coaches in Charlotte, opening a Charlotte to Knoxville pipeline that still exists today.
Weinke doesn’t get much attention in coaching searches, but he’s quietly been one of the best offensive coaches in the Southeast for a while. If he’s ready to make the jump to the head coaching level, Charlotte is a good fit.
Other Candidates for the Charlotte Job
- Tony Gibson, Defensive Coordinator, NC State Wolfpack
- Kade Bell, Offensive Coordinator, Pittsburgh Panthers
- Brennan Marion, Offensive Coordinator, UNLV Rebels
- Mike Minter, Defensive Analyst, Western Michigan Broncos
- Pep Hamilton, Former Offensive Coordinator, Houston Texans
- Chad Grier, Head Coach, Providence Day High School
- James Adams, Safeties/Associate Head Coach, Wake Forest