Way Too Early Power 4 Coaching Carousel Predictions
In what has been a wild season of college football, firing coaches has been one of the main takeaways.
Penn State Football canned James Franklin just six games into the season.
LSU coach Brian Kelly was let go in the last weekend of October. Most recently, Auburn has decided to jump ship on Hugh Freeze.
Things are still extremely preliminary in these coaching searches. As the coaching carousel picks up steam, here’s a best guess of what the landscape will look like when the carousel stops spinning.
Coaching Carousel Predictions
Group of Five Risers
Arkansas: Ryan Silverfield
The young, up-and-coming Memphis head coach seems like a perfect candidate to fill Arkansas’ vacant head coach position. Silverfield has Memphis humming and may be looking to make a leap to the next level. He has had a dominant few years at Memphis and knows what it would take to recruit in Arkansas.
Auburn: Jon Sumrall
Auburn is a good job opening. Jon Sumrall is a good coach. It makes sense. Sumrall’s name has been buzzing ever since the Tigers fired Freeze. Sumrall is a guy with southern roots. He’s had success at Troy and is doing well in year 2 at Tulane. Sumrall to Auburn makes sense.
Oklahoma State: Eric Morris
After moving on from the tenured Mike Gundy, Eric Morris is a name that makes sense for the Cowboys. In his 3rd season at North Texas, Morris has led North Texas to an 8-1 start this season, behind a high flying offense. In the always surprising Big 12 world, Morris, who is a Big 12 guy himself, could be a great fit at Oklahoma State.
Blue Bloods Find Their Guy
Penn State: Eli Drinkwitz
The Nittany Lions have plenty of options right now.
Pat Fitzgerald, Mike Elko, Brian Hartline, and several others are in the mix. Eli Drinkwitz, however, seems like the most plausible option. The former Appalachian State turned Missouri coach has had success at both stops.
(Mandatory Credit: John Reed-Imagn Images)
Additionally, he is only 42 and would likely bring a stable of Pennsylvania products to Happy Valley with him.
Another reason Drinkwitz would make sense at Penn State is that it seems Pat Kraft wants an experienced head coach. Eli Drinkwitz seems like a probable fit at Penn State.
Florida: Lane Kiffin
Lane Kiffin is an interesting coaching candidate.
The Ole Miss Rebels coach has been mentioned for a bunch of jobs, yet has failed to sign an extension. That should be eyebrow raising. Kiffin has bounced around a lot, but Florida makes sense for him. He has experience coaching in Florida, it is a better job than Ole Miss, and he can run an eccentric operation down there.
LSU: Clark Lea
This may not be a super splashy hire for LSU, but I think it would be a good one. Clark Lea has his alma matter, Vanderbilt rolling, but you have to ask: how long is that really sustainable? As a guy with southern roots, going to a highly successful program like LSU makes a lot of sense for Lea.
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A Familiar Face Finds a New Home
Virginia Tech: James Franklin
The former Penn State Football head coach has been rumored to Virginia Tech. Where there is smoke, there is a fire.
Franklin would be a great fit at Virginia Tech. Coming off of a brutal Brent Pry era, Hokies fans are just eager to win some games. Franklin could easily get them back up and running with 7-9 wins per year and solid recruiting.
It’s close to home for Franklin and would have way less pressure than a Flroida or LSU type of job. James Franklin to Virginia Tech is a move I would anticipate happening soon.
UCLA: Tim Skipper
After firing DeShaun Foster, UCLA found a little bit of juice with interim head coach, Tim Skipper. Skipper led them to victory over Penn State in his first week and followed that up with 2 more wins. Since taking the job, he has only faltered against the Indiana Hoosiers. It would make sense for the Bruins to keep riding the wave of Tim Skipper.
Stanford: Spencer Danielson
Almost no one is talking about the Stanford job opening. It is understandable, but I think it’s a better job than meets the eye. With Andrew Luck at GM, the Cardinals seem to be serious about competing again.
Boise State head coach Spencer Danielson would do great at Stanford. Danielson is a west coast guy, who was locked up with Boise State too deep into the coaching carousel last season to make a move. This year, he could change that. Stanford is a level up from Boise State.
Plus, Danielson is young and could easily continue to climb the ranks.
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Purdy was born and raised in central Ohio and served for four years writing for his high school's newsletter. Currently studying Biblical Studies at Lancaster Bible College in Pennsylvania, Ian has been a lifelong Nittany Lion fan.
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