Tag: Coaches

Notre Dame assistant a possibility for Syracuse head coach opening?

A Notre Dame assistant coach is rumored to be in the running for the Syracuse opening. Here is what he said about that possibility Monday.

The college football coaching carousel is starting to really get moving.  Although the regular season didn’t see many coaches lose jobs early on, the firings have become more regular in recent days.

One job that will be open in a matter of days is the Syracuse football head coach job.  Dino Babers has held that post since 2016 and has finished with a winning record just twice during his run.

The 5-6 Orange will be moving on from him following their regular season finale against Wake Forest on Saturday.  Could the opening be one that pulls a prominent Notre Dame assistant coach away from South Bend?

Defensive coordinator Al Golden has had success on the east coast, specifically at Temple, where he put life into what had been a dead program.  Success there led him to getting the Miami job starting in 2011.  Could Golden be headed back to the ACC?

He was asked about it Monday by Tyler Horka of Blue-Gold Illustrated.  Here is what Golden said:

If you’re looking for a hard no, that response certainly doesn’t give it.

I have no idea if Golden is going to get offered the job, if he’s seriously interested in it, or what is going to happen.

What I do know is that when you have success as a unit then services are wanted by other programs.  I do appreciate Golden not coming out in full denial and then leaving a few weeks down the road, although I wouldn’t be surprised if he did ultimately go.

Eagles’ linebacker Nakobe Dean expected to land on injured reserve with a foot injury

Philadelphia Eagles linebacker Nakobe Dean suffered a Lisfranc sprain and the 2nd-year defender will likely go on injured reserve according to Mike Garafalo

The Eagles are set to be without second-year linebacker Nakobe Dean for an extended period after the former Georgia All-American suffered a Lisfranc sprain.

It’s the second time Dean will miss an extended period of action after he suffered a foot injury against New England that placed him on injured reserve for four weeks.

Dean, 22, started on Sunday afternoon and has been a part of a three-man rotation with Nicholas Morrow and Zach Cunningham.

After not missing a game with an injury in college, Dean has struggled to stay on the field this season, his first as an NFL starter, and he’s been a critical figure in the success of Sean Desai’s defense.

According to PFF, Dean has 26 tackles, 11 stops, and one sack, with an 80.2 grade against the run.

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Multiple former Alabama stars rank among top 25 players in the NFL under the age of 25

Alabama football continues to produce the best young talent in the NFL as voted by coaches and executives

The National Football League is more talented than it has ever been with players quickly establishing themselves as elite-level players before even turning 25. Part of that is because college development has never been better with programs like the Alabama Crimson Tide pumping out three to four first-round prospects every single year at the age of 21.

According to the Athletic, seven front-office executives and five NFL coaches came together to vote on the Top 25 players in the NFL under the age of 25, and former Crimson Tide players dominated the list (Subscription required). Broncos‘ Patrick Surtain II was voted No. 4, Jets‘ Quinnen Williams No. 7, Eagles‘ Jalen Hurts No. 8, Dolphins‘ Jaylen Waddle No. 11, Raiders‘ Josh Jacobs No. 17, Eagles’ DeVonta Smith No. 18 and Cowboys‘ Trevon Diggs No. 24.

If you look at essentially any roster in the NFL, you are more than likely going to find at least one former Alabama player who is a core piece of that franchise. The things Nick Saban has been able to do for his collegiate players are something we will never see again in our lifetime. In fact, this list will probably grow next year as Bryce Young, Will Anderson Jr. and Jahmyr Gibbs are without a doubt three of the most exciting young players in this past draft.

People used to think that Nick Saban and the Alabama program worked you so hard in college that the juice was gone by the time they got to the NFL, now they are without a doubt the best program at producing NFL talent. For example, the list doesn’t even include Jerry Jeudy who has been the lone bright spot on an anemic Denver offense or Landon Dickerson who was a Pro Bowler for Philadelphia in 2022.

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Top quotes from Chiefs August 16 post-practice press conference

Check out all of the best quotes from the #Chiefs’ August 16 post-practice press conference:

The Kansas City Chiefs conducted their penultimate practice session in St. Joseph on Wednesday ahead of their preseason Week 2 matchup against the Arizona Cardinals this weekend. Workouts at training camp have provided the Chiefs’ coaches and front office personnel with valuable insight about every prospect on Kansas City’s 90-man roster.

Instead of having their players talk to the media after Wednesday’s practice session, the Chiefs turned the microphone over to these often-overlooked members of their staff to inform the media about what they’ve learned after weeks of preparation for the 2023 season.

Check out their top quotes below:

Where does Billy Napier rank among SEC coaches?

At the end of the day, wins get you ranked higher on a list like this. Florida’s 6-7 record in Year 1 under Billy Napier wasn’t enough to move him up the totem pole.

Billy Napier’s first year at the University of Florida didn’t produce the kind of results any Gators fans wanted to see, and he enters Year 2 a spot lower at No. 11 on USA TODAY Sports‘ SEC football coach rankings heading into the 2023 season.

There’s reason to believe that things will turn around now that Napier has a team full of players he recruited to the school, but the Gators aren’t getting much love from the national media.

“Napier’s Louisiana tenure took off in his second season,” Blake Toppmeyer wrote for USA TODAY. “If he’s primed Florida for a similar Year 2 ascent, he’s done a good job of hiding it. Napier inherited a program thinner on talent and depth than it should be, and deficiencies remain. Napier’s biggest issue: He hasn’t developed or attracted a quarterback to Florida’s standard.”

Toppmeyer suggests that all Napier needs to do is win enough games to avoid getting fired after just two seasons on the job. While it may sound a bit ridiculous to fire a man who hasn’t had adequate time to fix the problems he didn’t create, it’s the reality of the SEC right now.

At the top of the list, of course, are Nick Saban and Kirby White, but perhaps not in the order you might expect. Georgia‘s head coach has taken over the No. 1 position, moving the Alabama legend down to the No. 2 spot. Brian Kelly (LSU), Lane Kiffin (Ole Miss) and Josh Heupel (Tennessee) round out the top five.

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Legendary Saints DL La’Roi Glover to join the team’s coaching staff for training camp

Legendary New Orleans Saints defensive lineman La’Roi Glover to join the team’s coaching staff for training camp and preseason:

Now this is cool: Nola.com’s Jeff Duncan reports that the New Orleans Saints are bringing La’Roi Glover onto their coaching staff for training camp and the team’s preseason games. Glover is this year’s Bill Walsh Diversity Coaching fellow, a program the NFL describes as an opportunity “to give talented coaches the opportunity to observe, participate, gain experience, and ultimately gain a full-time NFL coaching position.”

Glover bagged 50 sacks in just five years (and 79 games) with New Orleans, earning Pro Bowl and All-Pro recognition in his final two seasons with the team. He went on to star for the Dallas Cowboys and closed out his career with the Rams, ending his run in the NFL with 83.5 sacks and six Pro Bowl appearances. He was selected for the Pro Football Hall of Fame’s All-2000s Team as well as the Saints’ team Hall of Fame. Glover recently coached the XFL’s St. Louis Battlehawks defensive line.

He’s one of several former Saints players on the team’s coaching staff this season. Jahri Evans was hired as an offensive assistant after he worked with the team as a coaching intern last summer, taking the job once filled by his old teammate Zach Strief. Having the kind of experience Evans and Glover bring is highly valuable. Hopefully it pays off well in the fall.

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Here are the new staff members joining the Florida Gators in 2023

A few major changes to the Florida coaching staff went down over the offseason, but don’t forget about the smaller positions that were filled as well!

Most Gators fans know that Florida will have a new man running the defense this season in Austin Armstrong, but Billy Napier has made eight more additions to his staff over the offseason, according to Gators Online.

Armstrong was already transitioning to the SEC as a new member of Alabama’s defensive staff when Napier came knocking. He couldn’t turn down an SEC coordinator gig under a head coach he’s familiar with — Armstrong and Napier worked together in Louisana.

Napier didn’t bring in any newcomers to fill the three position coaching spots that opened following staff departures to the NFL. He promoted cornerbacks coach Corey Raymond to defensive backs coach, elevated Russ Callaway to the tight ends coach spot and rehired former Florida wide receivers coach Billy Gonzelez.

The bulk of the eight first-year staff members are in quality control roles and are assigned to a position group. Eric Kiesau oversees the offense while Blake Shrader covers the defense. As far as position-specific assignments, Allen Brown has defensive backs, Kaleb Johnson has offensive linemen, Chad Lucas has wide receivers and Justin Posthuma has tight ends.

Napier also brought in Tyler Miles as the new director of player athletic development and John Donovan as a senior offensive analyst. Donovan did the same job for the Green Bay Packers a season ago, while Miles was an assistant director of sports performance at Duke.

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The top 10 winningest active college football coaches

These coaches have the most wins of any college football coach still on the sidelines today.

Everyone sees the fame and money that comes with being a college football head coach, but nobody sees the countless hours and dedication that goes into it. From building the right staff around you, recruiting the right players, and then actually winning the games it is much easier said than done. Even with all of the work, there is no promise that you will build a winning program or have a successful career.

In a profession that is filled with constant turnover and new hires, very few coaches can ever achieve that level of winning, let alone sustain it. This is what makes all of the guys who have made this list so impressive is that they’ve never dropped the intensity and never settled for mediocrity. The SEC is as strong as it has ever been in terms of coaching, and in 2023, there will be two new faces.

Below are the 10 college football coaches with the most active wins.

Reports: Saints part ways with longtime analytics chief in mutual split

Reports: Saints part ways with longtime analytics chief Ryan Herman in ‘cordial, mutual’ split

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Here’s a change to the New Orleans Saints’ front office, as first reported by Nola.com’s Jeff Duncan and confirmed by NewOrleans.Football’s Mike Triplett: analytics chief Ryan Herman is not returning after a six-year run with the team. Triplett adds that it was a “cordial, mutual” decision to go in a different direction once Herman’s contract ended, giving him an opportunity to devote more time to his family.

Herman worked in the player personnel department in football research and strategy, primarily focusing on weekly in-season studies on developing trends around the league as well as advanced scouting on future opponents. He wore a couple of different hats, also assisting Khai Harley in managing the salary cap, and the Saints will need to replace him and his contributions to the team.

Maybe they’ll more fully embrace the analytical side of the game and build a more robust advanced-stats team, as has become more popular around the league. Ex-Saints head coach Sean Payton talked up the resources available to him now with the Denver Broncos compared to those in New Orleans, and it’s an area the team could improve upon. They left a lot of meat on the bone last year with conservative in-game decisions on fourth down, and Dennis Allen could benefit from stronger information to help him out in that phase.

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Watch: Travis Kelce can’t ID nametag-wearing Dennis Allen while trying to name NFL coaches

Watch: Travis Kelce can’t ID nametag-wearing Dennis Allen while trying to name NFL coaches

Ouch. Dennis Allen can do everything right and still catch a stray. Pro Bowl tight end Travis Kelce attempted to name every head coach in the NFL during an episode of his “New Heights” podcast, but the New Orleans Saints head coach was one of a dozen or so coaches he couldn’t identify from the lineup of an annual group photo at NFL owners meetings in Phoenix.

He could identify former Saints coach Sean Payton at first glance, of course — quipping a wry “Broncos country, let’s ride,” in passing — but was stumped when it came to Dennis Allen.

“And then,” Kelce said, pausing in thought, “No clue.”

It sure doesn’t help that Allen is one of the only coaches in the photo wearing his event credentials lanyard for the league meetings. That’s probably hard to read in a grainy, zoomed-in photograph, but still: ouch. Hopefully Allen can lead the Saints back to the playoffs this year and put himself on more peoples’ radar.

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