Seventeen schools made coaching moves this season, with 15 of those positions having been filled already. Here is a look at each of the hires and how I’ve graded them:
Jeff Brohm, Purdue: Brohm quickly transformed Western Kentucky into one of the top offensive programs in college football. He’ll take over a Purdue program that has featured 10 different starting quarterbacks since 2010 and whose last quarterback to get drafted was Curtis Painter in 2009. Grade: A
Charlie Strong, USF: Hiring Strong is a home run for a South Florida program looking to continue its recent run of success under Willie Taggart. Strong needs to avoid the same pitfalls that tripped him up with the Longhorns and focus on building an outstanding coaching staff to compliment his abilities. Grade: A
Major Applewhite, Houston: Losing Tom Herman was a huge blow for the Houston program, but promoting Major Applewhite from offensive coordinator to head coach was a brilliant way provide a smooth transition. His challenge will be building a staff that can continue to recruit the Lone Star State as well as it did under Herman. Grade: B
Shawn Elliott, Georgia State: Elliott becomes the third coach in the program’s short history following in the footsteps of Bill Curry and Trent Miles. The Panthers have just one winning season in the six years of existence, so the sky’s the limit for Elliott, who spent several seasons at South Carolina and before that at Appalachian State. Grade: B
Luke Fickell, Cincinnati: Fickell joins Tom Herman and Chris Ash as former assistant coaches from Ohio State’s 2015 national championship team who have moved on into head coaching jobs. During the three seasons as the co-defensive coordinator under Urban Meyer, the Buckeyes have had more than a dozen players selected in the NFL draft, with six of those picked in 2016. Grade: B
Tom Herman, Texas: Herman quickly became one of the most sought after names in college football coaching circles, with his name connected to a handful of high-profile jobs before they even formally opened. Texas’ decision to hire him injected renewed enthusiasm in a Texas program eager to draw fans back into the fold. The challenge will be to return the program back into the national landscape after an absence of close to a decade. Grade: B
Lane Kiffin, FAU: This one may leave many of you scratching your heads, but in a way it makes perfect sense. Kiffin’s second stop on his coaching redemption tour wasn’t going to be a major Power 5 program — not with his reputation. But FAU is a young program with a relatively new stadium smack dab in the heart of South Florida recruiting country. Grade: B
Ed Orgeron, LSU: Reading the comments following the Orgeron hire were like reading the reviews of a new restaurant on Yelp. Few could decide whether it was a good or bad hire. He’s all you need to know: Orgeron is well-liked by his players and is a relentless recruiter. The job he did as interim coach after Les Miles was fired was nothing short of amazing and he’s Baton Rouge to the core. Grade: B
Matt Rhule, Baylor: Baylor didn’t receive the dreaded NCAA death penalty, but it almost feels as if it did. This job is one of the most difficult ones out there. The program needs a major overhaul from top to bottom. So hiring Rhule seems like a no-brainer for the school. Grade: B-
Willie Taggart, Oregon: Oregon’s always been known for thinking outside the box, so the Ducks’ decision to hire Taggart shouldn’t shock anyone. While at USF, he turned the program into a conference contender in four seasons within the confines of a Group of 5 programs. Imagine what he could do with the financial backing and the facilities of a school like Oregon? Grade: B-
Tom Allen, Indiana: Allen fell into the Indiana job after Kevin Wilson was fired following an internal investigation into allegations of mistreating players. During one season as the Hoosiers’ defensive coordinator, Allen turned a defense ranked last in the Big Ten in total defense in 2015 to ninth place in 2016. Grade: C
Brent Brennan, San Jose State: Brennan spent six seasons as an assistant coach at San Jose State while serving as the program’s recruiting coordinator before moving on to coach at Oregon State. He grew up in the area and even played football for the Spartans, so his familiarity with the school made him the perfect choice. Grade: C
Butch Davis, FIU: FIU athletics director Pete Garcia didn’t have to look far to find his next football coach, convincing long-time friend Butch Davis to leave broadcasting to coach the Panthers. Now they’ll work together to rebuild an FIU program where fundraising and recruiting will be top priorities if the Panthers hope to put together their first winning season since 2011. Grade: C
Jay Norvell, Nevada: A lifelong assistant coach, Norvell developed into one of the better offensive coordinators in college football, including stops at Oklahoma and Texas. He takes over a Nevada program that has played in a bowl game 10 out of the past 12 seasons. Grade: C
Jeff Tedford, Fresno State: Tedford joins a Fresno State program three years removed from winning the Mountain West Conference. The 55-year-old is back after spending the past few seasons as an offensive consultant. His resume of developing quarterbacks is unprecedented, including the likes of Aaron Rodgers, Kyle Boller, Trent Dilfer and David Carr. Grade: C