Many college football coaches have worked their tails off to get to where they are today. Whether it has been as a former player, NFL coach, or escaping a difficult childhood, every coach has had to put in a lot of time, blood, sweat, and tears to get to where they are today.
As the 2025 college football season draws closer, let’s look at seven of the most notable former walk-ons roaming the sidelines today.
Which College Football Coaches Were Walk-Ons?
While some of the most notable coaches in the world of college football are accomplished and had long playing careers, not everyone has a star-studded career. Here are some of the most notable to walk on to their college teams before eventually donning the headset.
7. HC Tony Elliott, Virginia
Tony Elliott had an extremely rough upbringing. At just four years old, his parents separated, and he lived on the streets of Los Angeles with his mother and younger sister.
After multiple moves and plenty of heartbreak, he became a football and basketball star in South Carolina. In 1999, he walked on the football team at Clemson, where he lettered all four seasons and earned a scholarship during his junior year, eventually becoming a team captain.
Ultimately, he worked his way up through the coaching ranks through stops at South Carolina State, Furman, and his alma mater, Clemson, before becoming the head coach at Virginia in 2022.
Now, Elliott is entering his fourth season with the Cavaliers. He is still searching for his first winning season as a Division I head coach, but he has the tools.
6. HC Charles Kelly, Jacksonville State
Charles Kelly grew up in Ozark, Alabama, and played collegiate football at Auburn as a walk-on defensive back in the late 1980s.
After having 35 years of coaching experience as an assistant, Kelly finally has his chance to be a head coach. He is the head coach for Jacksonville State and signed a five-year deal with them. Kelly will be paid one million dollars each year.
Kelly coached at Alabama under Nick Saban, his alma mater, Auburn, Florida State, Tennessee, and Georgia Tech. Now, he gets the opportunity to be the face of the program.
5. HC Dowell Loggains, Appalachian State
Dowell Loggains walked on at Arkansas in 2000 as a quarterback. As a Razorback, he was a reserve quarterback and the team’s holder. He played in 50 games and eventually earned a scholarship.
Now, Loggains is the head coach of the Appalachian State Mountaineers. Like Kelly, this will be Loggains’s first head coaching gig.
4. HC Jim L. Mora, UConn
Jim L. Mora, the son of legendary coach Jim Mora, walked on at Washington as a safety. He did not play much until he switched positions to an outside linebacker as a senior in 1983.
Now, Mora is leading the UConn Huskies. Entering his fourth season with the Huskies, Mora took the struggling program to nine wins, including a win in the Fenway Bowl. He will earn $2.5 million until December 31, 2028.
3. HC Matt Rhule, Nebraska
Matt Rhule is one of the more interesting and accomplished coaches on this list. He is from State College, Pennsylvania. He walked on at his local school, Penn State, and played linebacker for one of the greats, Joe Paterno. He was mostly on the scout team.
As a coach, Rhule previously spent time at the NFL and college levels. He was an assistant offensive line coach for the New York Giants and head coach for the Carolina Panthers at the NFL level. At the collegiate level, he coached at Temple and Baylor. Now, he is at Nebraska coaching one of the sport’s elite quarterbacks, Dylan Raiola.
Rhule had a somewhat successful season with the Cornhuskers this past year, leading them to a 7-6 record, including a bowl victory. However, now that his star quarterback, Raiola, has more experience, he has higher hopes and expectations for his team’s future.
2. HC Lincoln Riley, USC
Lincoln Riley played quarterback in his hometown of Muleshoe, Texas, and led his team to the state semifinals despite a shoulder injury. That shoulder injury never healed, as he had to change his throwing motion and start throwing sidearm.
He had offers to play at Ivy League schools, but ultimately chose to walk on at Texas Tech. After never playing, he became a student assistant under Mike Leach.
Now, he is the head coach of USC and has coached some greats in Baker Mayfield, Kyler Murray, Spencer Rattler, and Caleb Williams.
Lincoln Riley has now coached three QBs that went on to win the Heisman Trophy 🏆 pic.twitter.com/jRfcSn9TW9
— SportsCenter (@SportsCenter) December 11, 2022
As a head coach, Lincoln Riley’s teams have never fallen below seven wins. However, even with the most losses he has ever had, he still managed to help his team win a bowl game. If Riley can continue to dominate at the college level, he may be suited for an NFL head coaching job soon.
1. HC Dabo Swinney, Clemson
Arguably, the most accomplished head coach on this list is Dabo Swinney. Before winning two national championships with Clemson, he was a walk-on at Alabama before earning a scholarship. He had seven career catches and was a part of Alabama’s 1992 national championship team.
His love for walk-ons at Clemson, where he still coaches, is mainly due to his being a walk-on and rewarding players with scholarships for the walk-ons who have earned it. One is wide receiver Hunter Renfrow, who walked on at Clemson and then went to the NFL.
However, as good a head coach as Swinney is, he struggles to utilize the transfer portal, which, in some ways, has disadvantaged Clemson in recruiting. So far, Clemson has brought in just three transfers from the portal.
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