Industry insiders warned us in 2020. Despite a higher-than-expected number of college football coaching changes amid the coronavirus pandemic, the upcoming carousel had a chance to be historically active.
The predictions are coming true.
Beginning with USC after two games and LSU after seven, schools are making coaching changes fast and furiously. Clay Helton, fired at USC, landed a new job at Georgia Southern by early November. In the span of a week, Florida moved on from Dan Mullen and replaced him with Louisiana's Billy Napier.
And that was just the start. Hours after he quashed rumors that he would be going to LSU, Lincoln Riley was leaving Oklahoma and was headed to USC (taking defensive coordinator Alex Grinch with him). Then came the stunning news that it was Brian Kelly who would move to LSU, leaving Notre Dame with the Irish still in the hunt for a College Football Playoff spot. Notre Dame moved on by elevating defensive coordinator Marcus Freeman to head coach. And now Manny Diaz is out at Miami, with Oregon's Mario Cristobal his replacement.
The early signing period for recruiting is fueling athletic directors this year, as they hope to finalize hires in time to salvage or bolster classes. The flurry of activity could continue until mid-December. Additionally, schools will look to lock up their coaches with contract extensions, as Penn State did with a new 10-year deal for James Franklin, Michigan State did with Mel Tucker and Ole Miss did with Lane Kiffin. BYU also gave coach Kalani Sitake an "unprecedented" new deal through 2027.
We've got you covered. Here we'll provide the latest intel from Adam Rittenberg, Chris Low, Mark Schlabach and others on the biggest coaching searches, the jobs that could come open soon and the candidates to fill the vacancies. It will be updated throughout the carousel.
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Other vacancies | Filled jobs
The latest chatter
All times Eastern.
• Wednesday, 8 p.m.: Temple has hired Texas running backs coach Stan Drayton as its next head coach. Drayton, 50, spent the past five seasons at Texas under coaches Tom Herman and Steve Sarkisian. While there, he worked alongside Temple athletic director Arthur Johnson, a Texas administrator from 2011 until being hired at Temple on Oct. 6.
• Saturday, 6 p.m.: Oregon is hiring Georgia defensive coordinator Dan Lanning as its head coach. Lanning, 35, had been the defensive coordinator and outside linebackers coach at Georgia since 2019. Lanning will be replacing Mario Cristobal, who left Oregon for the open head-coaching position at Miami earlier this week.
Other vacancies
Nevada
Out: Jay Norvell (33-26 at Nevada; hired by Colorado State Dec. 6)
The skinny: Norvell had been the lowest-paid coach in the Mountain West with Nevada at roughly $620,000 annually and is expected to get a sizable raise to move within the conference to Colorado State. Nevada might need to boost its salary package in hiring his replacement.
Filled jobs
Oregon
In: Georgia defensive coordinator Dan Lanning as its head coach. Lanning, 35, had been the defensive coordinator and outside linebackers coach at Georgia since 2019. Lanning led a Georgia defense in 2021 that was the best in the country.
Out: Mario Cristobal (35-13 at Oregon; left Dec. 6 to become head coach at Miami)
Oklahoma
In: Clemson defensive coordinator Brent Venables
Venables has been a major part of Clemson's championship run under Dabo Swinney and has a long history at Oklahoma. He was on the Sooners' staff from 1999 to 2011, serving as co-defensive coordinator from 1999 to 2003 and defensive coordinator from 2004 to 2011. He had turned down multiple head-coaching opportunities in recent years to stay at Clemson. Venables, 50, helped guide the Sooners to the 2000 BCS national championship and then the Tigers to two CFP titles in 2016 and 2018.
Out: Lincoln Riley (55-10 at Oklahoma); accepted USC position Nov. 28
Notre Dame
In: Marcus Freeman (promoted from defensive coordinator on Dec. 3)
Retaining the popular Freeman, who has sparked Notre Dame's recruiting efforts and improved the defense throughout the season, became a top priority for AD Jack Swarbrick. In his first season with the Irish, the 35-year-old Freeman led a transformation on the defensive side of the ball. The Irish rank sixth nationally in interceptions (15) and defensive touchdowns (4), seventh in total sacks (40.0), 11th in turnovers gained (23) and scoring defense (18.2). The 40 team sacks is one shy of the program record of 41 set during the 1996 season.
Out: Brian Kelly (113-40 at Notre Dame); accepted LSU position Nov. 29
LSU
In: Brian Kelly (113-40 at Notre Dame)
This was a shocker as Kelly agreed to a 10-year, $95 million deal that also includes incentives to move from South Bend to Baton Rouge. Kelly, 60, became the winningest coach in Notre Dame history earlier this season, surpassing Knute Rockne.
Out: Ed Orgeron (51-20 at LSU; announced he won't return in 2022 on Oct. 17)
USC
In: Lincoln Riley (55-10 at Oklahoma)
Riley, 38, accepted the head-coaching position at USC, the school announced Sunday night. Riley, whose Sooners were eliminated from the Big 12 championship game after a 37-33 loss to Oklahoma State on Saturday, went 55-10 in five seasons under Riley, winning four straight Big 12 titles and making the College Football Playoff three times.
Out: Clay Helton (46-24 at USC; fired Sept. 13)
• More on Riley to USC: What it means for Riley, Trojans | Impact on recruiting
Florida
In: Billy Napier (38-12 at Louisiana)
Napier, 42, has been at Louisiana the past four seasons and led the Ragin' Cajuns to 10 or more wins in each of the past three seasons. Before his arrival, Louisiana had never won 10 games in a season in program history. Napier turned down multiple SEC head-coaching opportunities in recent years and again emerged as a target for several high-profile positions this season. LSU and Virginia Tech were also interested in Napier during this hiring cycle.
Out: Dan Mullen (34-15 at Florida; fired Nov. 21)
Virginia Tech
In: Penn State defensive coordinator Brent Pry. Pry, who has worked the past six seasons as the Nittany Lions' defensive coordinator, has helped produce top-25 units in total defense in eight of his past 12 seasons. The Nittany Lions rank seventh in scoring defense this season, allowing 16.8 points per game.
Out: Justin Fuente (43-31 at Virginia Tech)
Washington
In: Fresno State coach Kalen DeBoer. DeBoer will head to Seattle after spending just two seasons at Fresno State, where he compiled a 12-6, including a 9-3 mark this season. Prior to becoming the head coach at Fresno, DeBoer spent the 2019 season as the offensive coordinator at Indiana, which followed a two-year stint as the offensive coordinator under Jeff Tedford at Fresno State.
Out: Jimmy Lake (7-6 at Washington)
TCU
In: SMU coach Sonny Dykes. Dykes, 52, spent the 2017 season as an offensive analyst at TCU under Gary Patterson, recharging after a bad experience at the end with Cal. Dykes then landed the SMU job, where he went 30-18, including 8-4 this season.
Out: Gary Patterson (181-79 at TCU)
Washington State
In: Interim coach Jake Dickert. In his second season as WSU's defensive coordinator, Dickert was elevated to acting head coach Oct. 18 after the school fired Nick Rolovich for not complying with the state's vaccine mandate. Since taking over as acting coach, Dickert, 38, has guided Washington State to a 3-2 record, capped by the school's most lopsided Apple Cup victory ever, a 40-13 triumph over Washington on Friday night in Seattle.
Out: Nick Rolovich (5-6 at Washington State)
Texas Tech
In: Baylor associate coach Joey McGuire. A successful longtime Texas high school coach, McGuire was in his fifth year with the Bears.
Out: Matt Wells (18-20 at Texas Tech)
Virginia
In: Clemson offensive coordinator Tony Elliott. Elliott, 42, won two national titles with Clemson as co-offensive coordinator before taking over the role solely in 2020. In 2017, he earned the Broyles Award as college football's best assistant coach. This will be Elliott's first head-coaching job.
Out: Bronco Mendenhall (36-38 in six seasons at Virginia; steppping down)
Duke
In: Texas A&M defensive coordinator Mike Elko. Elko, 44, had spent the previous four seasons with the Aggies as defensive coordinator and safeties coach before accepting the head coaching job at Duke. Before his time at Texas A&M, he also has defensive coordinator Power 5 experience at Notre Dame and Wake Forest.
Out: David Cutcliffe (77-97 at Duke; mutually agreed to part ways on Nov. 28)
Temple
In: Texas running backs coach Stan Drayton. Drayton coached running backs at six Power 5 schools, making two stops at Florida and working under Urban Meyer at both Florida and Ohio State. He spent five total seasons as an NFL assistant with Green Bay and Chicago, and made two stops in and around the Philadelphia area as running backs coach at Penn (1995) and Villanova (1996 to 1999).
Out: Rod Carey (12-20 at Temple; fired Nov. 29)
Florida International
In: Memphis defensive coordinator Mike MacIntyre. MacIntyre, 56, earned national coach of the year honors in 2016, when he guided Colorado to a South Division title and the Pac-12 championship game. He was fired in 2018 after consecutive five-win seasons. MacIntyre went 16-21 at San Jose State prior to his time in Colorado.
Out: Butch Davis (24-30 at FIU)
Fresno State
In: Jeff Tedford. Although the school interviewed other candidates, Tedford always was the clear favorite to return as he has recovered from the health issues that forced him to leave a few years back. Tedford led Fresno State to 22 wins in his first two seasons before the team went 4-8 in 2019. He went 82-57 as Cal's coach from 2002 to 2012.
Out: Kalen DeBoer (12-6 at Fresno State; hired as Washington head coach Nov. 29)
Colorado State
In: Nevada coach Jay Norvell, who compiled a 33-26 record in five seasons at Nevada, including an 8-4 mark this year. Norvell was the lowest-paid coach in the Mountain West with Nevada at roughly $620,000 annually and is expected to get a sizable raise to move within the conference.
Out: Steve Addazio (4-12 at Colorado State)
Louisiana
In: Co-offensive coordinator Michael Desormeaux. The Ragin' Cajuns promoted Desormeaux, who also served as tight ends coach, on Dec. 5. A former Louisiana quarterback, Desormeaux earned Sun Belt Offensive Player of the Year honors in 2008.
Out: Billy Napier (39-12 at Louisiana; named head coach at Florida Nov. 28)
Akron
In: Oregon offensive coordinator Joe Moorhead. Moorhead, 48, spent the past two seasons as the offensive playcaller and quarterbacks coach for the 10th-ranked Ducks, who lost to No. 17 Utah in the Pac-12 championship game. He spent the 2018 and 2019 seasons as Mississippi State coach, going 14-12 with two bowl appearances before being fired in January 2020. He had received consideration for Power 5 head-coaching opportunities this year, sources told ESPN.
Out: Tom Arth (3-24 at Akron)
Troy
In: Kentucky co-defensive coordinator Jon Sumrall. Sumrall, 39, has spent the past three seasons on Kentucky's staff, and added the co-defensive coordinator title in 2021. He coached at Troy from 2015 to 2018, working with the linebackers and serving as special teams coordinator.
Out: Chip Lindsey (15-19 at Troy)
Louisiana Tech
In: Texas Tech offensive coordinator Sonny Cumbie. Cumbie, 40, served as interim head coach after Matt Wells was fired in October. He returned to his alma mater after the 2020 season as offensive coordinator and spent the previous seven seasons as an offensive coordinator and quarterbacks coach at TCU.
Out: Skip Holtz (64-50 at Louisiana Tech)
SMU
In: Miami offensive coordinator Rhett Lashlee. Lashlee served as SMU's offensive coordinator in 2018-19 under Sonny Dykes before leaving to fill the same role under Manny Diaz at Miami.
Out: Sonny Dykes (30-17 at SMU)
Jacksonville State
In: UL Monroe offensive coordinator Rich Rodriguez. The former coach at West Virginia, Michigan and Arizona just completed his first season at ULM under coach Terry Bowden. Jacksonville State earlier this month accepted an invitation to join Conference USA and compete in the FBS beginning in 2023.
Out: John Grass (71-26 at JSU)
New Mexico State
In: TCU special assistant Jerry Kill. The interim head coach at TCU the last few weeks, Kill, 60, last served as a permanent head coach at Minnesota, which he led from 2011 until 2015, when he had to retire for medical reasons. He has a career record of 154-101.
Out: Doug Martin (25-74 at New Mexico State)
UMass
In: Arizona defensive coordinator Don Brown. This is Brown's second go-round as head coach of the Minutemen; he went 43-19 from 2004 to 2008 -- the winningest five-year period in team history -- while UMass competed in the FCS. From there, he served as DC at five FBS programs, including Michigan from 2016-2020.
Out: Walt Bell (2-23 at UMass)
UConn
In: Jim Mora. The former UCLA/NFL coach last held a coaching job in 2017, his final year with the Bruins. He went 46-30 at UCLA after 25 years in the NFL, including head-coaching stops with Atlanta (2004-06) and Seattle (2009).
Out: Randy Edsall (6-32 in second stint at UConn)
Georgia Southern
In: Clay Helton. He was out of work for only about six weeks after being ousted from USC, where he went 46-24.
Out: Chad Lunsford (28-21 at Georgia Southern)