Grading College Football’s Coaching Carousel: How Did Key Programs Fare?
The 2023-24 college football coaching carousel โsaw significant movement,โ with several programs seeking to revitalize thier leadership. Here’s a look at how some key hires are being graded, based on initial assessments of their potential impact.
Kentucky hires โขMark Stoops: B+
While not aโฃ new โขhire, retaining Mark Stoops after โคhe interviewed for other jobs โis a significant win for Kentucky. Stoops has broughtโ consistent bowl appearances and a program-best 11-win season in 2023. His ability to โbuild a competitive program in the SEC, despiteโค resource limitations,โ is commendable. The key now is continued investmentโ in the program to โขmaintain momentum. This โmove helps, but maintaining successโค in aโ rapidly evolving landscape remains a challenge.
Michigan State hires Jonathan โฃSmith: B
(Hired Nov. 20)
Smith’s arrival at Michigan state represents a calculated risk. He successfully rebuilt Oregon State โfrom the ground up,demonstrating a clear vision and a commitment to playerโ development. โฃThough, transitioning that success โto the โBig Ten, and specifically to aโค programโข like Michigan State that has struggled recently, is a considerable undertaking.โข He’ll need to quicklyโ establish a strong recruitingโค base and address the Spartans’ on-fieldโ deficiencies.
LSU hires Blake Baker: B-
(Hired Dec 6)
Baker’sโค hiringโ is a bit of an unknown.He has a solidโ resume as a defensive coordinator, but this โขis his frist head coaching prospect at a โPower Five program. He’s known for his aggressiveโค defensive schemes and recruiting prowess,but can he translateโข that into consistent successโ in the SEC? LSU isโค a program with high expectations,and Baker willโข be under immediate pressureโ to deliver.
Colorado State hires Jim Mora: B
(Hired Nov. 25)
It’s a compliment to โขthe hire that most observers were surprised Mora didn’t โขland โa bigger job. Moraโข has a rare spectrum of experience, from being an NFL head coach who reached โan NFC Championshipโค Game โฃto taking over a 1-11 UConn program and winningโ nine games twice. His UCLA tenure also looks better in hindsight. His ceiling as a coach may not be โฃas high as others’,โ but he โขshoudl be able toโ bring structure, planning and vision to a program that has mostly lacked it for โคtwo decades, outside of โฃone brief โspurt. Can Mora use his West Coastโ connections to get โคbetter players toโฃ Colorado State? He โขhas done more with less, andโ Colorado State’s resources shouldn’t make it a “less.”
Oklahoma State hires Eric Morris: B+
(Hired nov. 25)
Morrisโ checks a lot of boxes for Oklahoma โคState. He has deep ties to Texas, having spent almost his โentireโค playing and coaching careerโ there. and he knows how to developโข quarterbacks, as โขnames like Patrick Mahomes, Cam Ward, John Mateer and now Drew Mestemaker have thrived under his watch. He has also shown an ability to do more with less at North Texas andโ FCS Incarnate Word.
But whileโฃ Morris’ offenses have long been good, his defenses have been up and down, and he’sโฃ won six games orโ fewer in four of โsix non-pandemic seasons โas a โhead coach as anโ inevitable result. The hire ofโข skyler Cassity as Mean Green defensive coordinator in 2025 was oneโ of Morris’ best moves.We don’t know yet whether Cassity will follow him to stillwater, but that โside of the ball will have to keep up with the offense.
Virginia Tech hires Jamesโค Franklin: A-
(Hired Nov. โ17)
Franklin was the No. 1 target from the โmoment he was fired at Penn State, and for good โขreason. he’d โneverโ missed โคa bowl game in 15 years at โVanderbilt or Penn State, outsideโ of the pandemic-altered โค2020 season. He turned Penn State into a top-10 program again. He dominated recruiting in the state of โVirginia while โคat Penn State. He has a long track record of fostering alignment and investment. All theโ characteristicsโค Virginia Tech needed,Franklin has them.โข He has only โwon one conference championship, and hisโ game management has come under fair criticism, โbut he checks off all the โother boxes of what Virginia Tech needed.
Kentโค Stateโข promotes Mark Carney: B
(Named interim coach in April, hired to full-time job Oct. 30)
What Carney has accomplished this season cannot be understated. โคHe became the interim head coach onโ the eve of spring practise in April,when coach Kenni Burns wasโข fired amid an investigation intoโฃ his financial โdealings. โthen his โdefensive coordinator left in the โฃsummer for an assistant job at North Dakota State.The โGolden โฃFlashesโ were 1-23 in the previous two โyears and appeared headed for a doomed 2023 season. Yet this year’s โteam isโข 4-7 and remained in bowlโ contention โuntil a lossโฃ to Central Michigan in the season’s penultimate week. Kent โฃState is arguably the toughest
