Before Nick Saban retired as Alabama's coach on Jan. 10, many of the coaching carousel's most intriguing transactions had taken place at the coordinator and assistant-coaching levels. That doesn't mean there hasn't been substantial movement since his announcement.
Arkansas has a new offensive coordinator in Bobby Petrino, who elevated the program to a No. 5 finish in his final season as Razorbacks head coach in 2011 before being fired for lying about an inappropriate relationship with a staff member. USC coach Lincoln Riley addressed a floundering defense by reshaping the staff with notable names. After three straight losses to Michigan, Ohio State coach Ryan Day distanced himself a bit from the offense and brought in UCLA head coach Chip Kelly as the lead playcaller, after Bill O'Brien left for Boston College. Notable assistant moves also were made at Notre Dame, Oklahoma, LSU and at other programs poised to contend for the 12-team College Football Playoff.
The fallout from Saban's retirement also overhauled the staff at Alabama -- which plucked two sitting FBS head coaches for its defensive staff -- and at programs such as Washington and Arizona, which will have new staffs as they move into new conferences this fall.
Here's a look back at the most significant coordinator/staffing nuggets from the past few months and how those moves will impact the 2024 season.
USC's star-studded staff begins to rebuild struggling defense
Riley's masterful work with offenses and specifically quarterbacks -- three Heisman Trophy winners, a Heisman runner-up and possibly three No. 1 overall picks in seven drafts -- only magnifies what is keeping him from winning on college football's biggest stages. He has to get his defense in order, especially after USC allowed 31.7 points per game over the past two years. Riley stuck with coordinator Alex Grinch during the Oklahoma-to-USC transition, and after a rough end to the 2022 season, only to fire him in early November.
His reshaping of the Trojans' defensive staff suggests an understanding that he needed to stretch beyond his comfort zone and add a group of assistants packed with leadership experience.
USC went across town and hired D'Anton Lynn away from UCLA to lead the defense. Lynn, the son of NFL assistant coach Anthony Lynn, helped the Bruins improve from 89th nationally in points allowed in 2022 to 14th this past season (18.4 points per game), marking the first time since 2006 they had given up fewer than 20. UCLA also led the nation in rushing defense for part of the season before finishing second behind Penn State. Lynn will be joined by Eric Henderson, who will serve as co-coordinator and defensive line coach after coaching Aaron Donald and the Los Angeles Rams defensive front.
After losing defensive backs coach Donte Williams to Georgia, USC replaced him with Doug Belk, who spent the past five seasons in a coordinator role with Houston and not long ago seemed on the fast track to a head-coaching position. Arguably USC's most interesting addition is Matt Entz, who left North Dakota State's head-coaching job to become linebackers coach and assistant head coach for defense. Entz guided the Bison to two FCS national titles and a 60-11 overall record.
The end result is a dramatically different staff that gives USC a chance to change its fortunes on defense in a conference (Big Ten) that demands it.
Without Saban, Alabama's staff begins new era
For the first time since 2006, Alabama will step on the practice field without Saban calling the shots. New Crimson Tide coach Kalen DeBoer will generate most of the attention, as everything he says and does will initially be viewed through the Saban prism. DeBoer's staff also will be studied closely. Although he retained defensive line coach Freddie Roach and running backs coach Robert Gillespie -- as well as some key Saban aides in areas such as sports medicine (Jeff Allen) and operations (Ellis Ponder) -- most of the staff has turned over. DeBoer brought a mix of familiar faces from Washington and previous coaching stops, and a few new ones, to Tuscaloosa.
The allure of Alabama, even post-Saban, showed up as DeBoer added two defensive assistants who left seemingly secure FBS head-coaching positions -- coordinator Kane Wommack (South Alabama) and defensive backs coach Maurice Linguist (Buffalo). DeBoer worked with Wommack as coordinators at Indiana in 2019, but he has never overlapped with Linguist, who has coached in the SEC at Texas A&M and Mississippi State.
Most of Alabama's new assistants came from Washington, including wide receivers coach JaMarcus Shephard and tight ends coach Nick Sheridan. But after offensive coordinator Ryan Grubb and offensive line coach Scott Huff left for the Seattle Seahawks, DeBoer had to pivot. He's expected to have Shephard and Sheridan serve as co-offensive coordinators, with Sheridan also shifting to oversee the quarterbacks. Sheridan has playcalling experience at Indiana and would be next in line at Alabama, according to sources, although DeBoer also could handle those duties himself.
The big question around DeBoer and his assistants is how they will fit into the SEC. After outside linebackers coach William Inge left for Tennessee, DeBoer hired Baylor's Christian Robinson, who brings extensive SEC experience after coaching linebackers at Auburn and Florida, and serving as a graduate assistant with three other SEC teams. Only Robinson, Roach, Gillespie and Linguist have spent significant time in the league.
Comfort with Kelly should allow Ohio State's Day to be a true CEO
Timing is essential in the coaching carousel, and Ohio State seemingly benefited from a sequence of moves that happened very late in the cycle. On Jan. 31, Boston College coach and former Ohio State assistant Jeff Hafley left his post to become Green Bay Packers defensive coordinator. O'Brien, hired 12 days earlier as Ohio State's offensive coordinator, quickly became a top candidate for the BC job. When BC finalized O'Brien's hiring Feb. 9, Day quickly acted in hiring UCLA's Kelly, who had been interviewing for NFL offensive coordinator jobs but had yet to land one.
Perhaps Day could have hired Kelly the first time around, but with so many NFL coordinator jobs unsettled, it would have been tougher. Day gets his former coach and longtime mentor at his side for a season with the absolute highest of expectations. Kelly hasn't held a coordinator title since 2008 at Oregon, but has remained very involved in the offensive schemes as a college coach (Oregon, UCLA) and in the NFL (Philadelphia, San Francisco).
Day spoke extensively Feb. 7 -- two days before O'Brien's departure and Kelly's hire -- about the struggle he had in relinquishing playcalling, but also the necessity to do so, given the enhanced workload for college head coaches. "Do I want to? No, I don't," he said. "I love the football part of it. I love calling plays. I love being in there. ... I know that my energy and time and all that stuff needs to be in other areas."
While Day didn't know for sure that O'Brien would be leaving, he stressed that "making sure the right person's in place is critical." Although the O'Brien-Day dynamic might have been highly successful this fall, the two had not worked together before. Day and Kelly, meanwhile, have a special connection that should help ease Day as he steps away from calling plays.
Petrino back at Arkansas in a make-or-break season for Pittman
I've covered college football long enough to know that nothing is impossible in the coaching carousel, where second (and third ... and fourth) chances are handed out like coupons at the grocery store. But it's still amazing to type these words: Bobby Petrino is the offensive coordinator at Arkansas.
The Hogs certainly need a boost in production after slipping to 105th nationally in yards per game and 67th in scoring, which led to coordinator Dan Enos' dismissal. Despite a head coach (Sam Pittman) squarely on the hot seat for 2024, Arkansas entered the coordinator market very early and still offered the money and prestige of a solid SEC gig. The team had options with coaches who would have generated far fewer headlines. Still, the Hogs picked Petrino.
In Petrino, Arkansas rehires a celebrated offensive playcaller whose ability to pull the right schematic strings has helped him overcome a complicated past. Texas A&M brought in Petrino to spark its offense last fall, and might have generated a breakthrough if top quarterback Conner Weigman had remained healthy. The Aggies still rose to 24th nationally in scoring, a jump from 100th in 2022, although they fattened up on teams such as New Mexico (52 points), Louisiana-Monroe (47), Mississippi State (51) and Abilene Christian (38). Petrino is certainly capable of stabilizing and upgrading Arkansas' offense, but things could go the other way too. No matter what, Petrino's performance and conduct will be under a microscope.
Notre Dame turns to familiar face in Denbrock as it seeks elite offense
Since the 2012 season, Notre Dame has made one appearance in the BCS national championship and two in the four team CFP. The Irish scored a combined 31 points in those three losses. As the CFP expands to 12 teams, Notre Dame expects to be an annual contender, but won't truly push for a national title until upgrading its offense. The Irish set a team scoring record with 39.2 points per game in 2023, good for No. 7 nationally, but averaged only 19 points in their three losses and eclipsed 23 points just twice against ranked opponents. After a wayward coordinator search in early 2023 led to Gerad Parker's promotion, Notre Dame was more targeted in finding Parker's successor, hiring Mike Denbrock from LSU.
Denbrock is familiar with Notre Dame after serving as an assistant under coach Brian Kelly from 2010 to 2016, including the 2014 season as offensive coordinator. He also coached Notre Dame's tight ends earlier in his career under Tyrone Willingham. Last fall, Denbrock oversaw an LSU offense that led the FBS in points (45.5) and yards per game (543.5) and produced Heisman Trophy-winning quarterback Jayden Daniels. He understands Notre Dame's strengths, including offensive line and tight end, but also the areas that need a boost, like the wide receiver position. Denbrock also inherits an intriguing quarterback with a high ceiling in Duke transfer Riley Leonard.
New assistants at Michigan, Washington try to reload
Very little about the Michigan and Washington programs that kick off practice this spring will resemble the teams that met for the national championship Jan. 8 in Houston, including the two assistant coach groups. Washington is under new leadership in coach Jedd Fisch, who brought over his offensive staff from Arizona and two defensive assistants -- John Richardson (defensive backs) and Jason Kaufusi (defensive ends/outside linebackers).
Fisch's coordinators are sons of Super Bowl-winning coaches in Brennan Carroll (Pete), who served as Arizona's offensive coordinator under Fisch for the past three seasons, and Steve Belichick (Bill), the Huskies' new defensive coordinator. Steve Belichick, who I'm calling the Montlake Mullet, is a first-time coordinator in his first job away from the New England Patriots and his father. Fisch, who worked with the Belichicks and the Patriots in 2020, also hired Vinnie Sunseri, a former Alabama standout and a Patriots assistant for the past four seasons, to coach defensive backs.
Michigan's staff has a bit more continuity, at least on offense, where new coach Sherrone Moore promoted quarterbacks coach Kirk Campbell to fill his role of coordinator and shifted tight ends coach Grant Newsome to fill Moore's other main responsibility, the offensive line. Both moves make sense for continuity, but Campbell, in particular, will be watched as he has more influence over Michigan's offense. Campbell worked well within the Jim Harbaugh-constructed offense and helped J.J. McCarthy last fall, but he also comes from the Joe Moorhead tree and could try some different elements to attack defenses, especially as Michigan figures out a murky quarterback situation.
Michigan's entire defensive staff is NFL-bound, and Moore is turning to longtime NFL assistant Wink Martindale to lead the unit as coordinator. Martindale served as Baltimore Ravens defensive coordinator under coach John Harbaugh and had Michigan's past two defensive coordinators, Mike Macdonald and Jesse Minter, working under him. The Wolverines' Ravens-based defensive structure probably won't change much. The 60-year-old has not coached in college since 2003, when he was Western Kentucky's defensive coordinator, and the personnel landscape has changed dramatically. Michigan will need to make smart position coach hires around Martindale, but is set to benefit from the return of players such as cornerback Will Johnson, safety Rod Moore and linemen Mason Graham and Kenneth Grant.
Assistants who could soon be on the head-coaching radar
Every coaching cycle churns out a select group of assistants, usually coordinators, who move into new roles that position them to become head coaches if they succeed. Texas A&M offensive coordinator Collin Klein, LSU defensive coordinator Blake Baker and Penn State offensive coordinator Andy Kotelnicki are in this category after leaving comfortable situations where they thrived for higher-pressure, risk/reward jobs that could boost their profiles. Klein, who was a Heisman Trophy finalist as a quarterback at Kansas State, had spent all but one season of his coaching career at his alma mater. He became the team's primary offensive coordinator in 2022, and after rebuffing interest from Notre Dame a year ago, looked set to remain with K-State. But deep-pocketed Texas A&M made a push and Klein left to take over the offense under new Aggies coach Mike Elko. If Klein can help the Aggies turn a corner on offense and push for the CFP, he will be among the most coveted coordinators on the head-coaching radar.
Baker also will put himself in the mix for a head-coach job if he repairs a talented but deeply flawed unit that finished 78th nationally in points allowed and 101st in pass efficiency on defense. Baker thrived as Missouri's defensive coordinator, receiving two new contracts, and could have stayed to help the Tigers chase their first CFP berth. Instead, he returned to Louisiana, where he had spent four years as Louisiana Tech's defensive coordinator and a season as LSU's linebackers coach. The 41-year-old from Texas could be a candidate for power conference jobs if he does well in Baton Rouge.
Kotelnicki played a key role in reviving Kansas with his innovative offense, which helped KU rank 18th nationally in scoring (35.2 points per game) over the past two seasons. He moves to Penn State, which is seeking its first CFP appearance, to boost a passing game that finished 77th nationally in 2023. Although Kotelnicki likely could have landed a Group of 5 job directly from Kansas, his chances to aim higher would go up with success in Happy Valley.
Five intriguing under-the-radar coordinators to know for 2024
The goal here is to get fans smarter about the assistant ranks for the 2024 season. There are several new hires who might have slipped under the radar but could end up being very important, or at least interesting, as teams hit the practice field this spring.
Here are five to know for 2024:
Pitt OC Kade Bell: The 30-year-old with just one year of FBS experience -- as an offensive analyst at South Florida in 2019 -- isn't the typical Pat Narduzzi OC hire, but could be exactly what Pitt needs after it finished 114th nationally in scoring last season. Bell first became a coordinator at 25 with Valdosta State and shined the past few seasons for Western Carolina, which had the No. 4 offense in the FCS in 2023 (37.5 PPG).
Oklahoma DC Zac Alley: The defensive coordinator role for a Brent Venables-coached team has some limitations, as Venables will largely shape the defense himself. But the hiring of Alley, who in 2021 became the youngest FBS coordinator at age 27, certainly drew attention. Alley worked under Venables as a student assistant at Clemson and then as a graduate assistant. He spent only two seasons as a Boise State position coach before becoming a coordinator at Louisiana-Monroe and then Jacksonville State, which won nine games in 2023.
TCU DC Andy Avalos: The signs for TCU's tumble from national runner-up to 5-7 surfaced in the opener, as the Horned Frogs surrendered 510 passing yards to Colorado's Shedeur Sanders, a single-game team record. Coach Sonny Dykes eventually replaced DC Joe Gillespie with Avalos, who was surprisingly fired as Boise State's coach midway through his third season. Avalos, 42, thrived as a coordinator at both Boise State and Oregon, which was 13th nationally in yards per play allowed and 17th in points allowed from 2019 to 2020.
Northwestern OC Zach Lujan: Since 2015, Northwestern has five bowl wins and four AP Top 25 finishes despite an offense that has ranked 125th nationally in scoring and 129th in yards per play. The formula isn't sustainable in the new Big Ten, which is why coach David Braun hired Lujan. He helped South Dakota State win consecutive FCS national titles as offensive coordinator and quarterbacks coach with a unit that rose to No. 6 in scoring and No. 5 in rushing in 2023. The Alaska native played at SDSU and has spent his entire coaching career there. This is a big jump for him, but an interesting one.
Syracuse DC Elijah Robinson: Syracuse wasn't bashful in hiring coach Fran Brown, labeling him as "the nation's No. 1 recruiter" in its official announcement. Brown brings significant recruiting clout to the Orange and so does Robinson, who helped Texas A&M sign the nation's No. 1 recruiting class in 2022. A New Jersey native who played line at Penn State, Robinson, 38, returns to the Northeast and will be instrumental in shaping Brown's first few rosters at SU. He was a co-coordinator with Texas A&M in 2023 but now gets his chance to run the show.