The coaching carousel began to spin on Sunday when three coaches were fired after lackluster performances on the job. Mike Houston and Will Hall haven’t been up to snuff over the last several seasons while Oklahoma OC Seth Littrell commanded one of the worst offenses in college football.
At a university like Oklahoma, that just wasn’t going to cut it. It didn’t help matters when his unit turned the ball over on three straight possessions and put his team in a 21-0 hole just six minutes into the game. While that should quiet the locals who have been fed up with Littrell for weeks, I am not sure anything other than an influx of talent is going to fix that unit this season.
More on the Oklahoma situation at another time. The carousel started up much later than we have seen in recent years, some of that can be like attributed to the transfer portal and the number of players we have recently seen opt to redshirt the season with the intention of entering the portal. With the portal a team can turn around much quicker giving some coaches more of a leash.
However, this might be the opening of the floodgates in the coming weeks and we have a list of coaches who should have their heads on a swivel. Five coaches who could be next on the chopping block.
Dave Aranda, Baylor Bears
This past weekend the Baylor Bears took out a lot of frustration on the Texas Tech Red Raiders in the 59-35 victory. For Aranda to earn more time in Waco they will need more of those types of performances. The positive news is the Bears don’t have a daunting schedule over the next six weeks with home matchups against Oklahoma State, TCU, and Kansas. They will go on the road to face West Virginia and Houston. Aranda must do no better than 3-2 the rest of the way and win a bowl game to earn another season, otherwise he could be on the chopping block.
Billy Napier, Florida Gators
Over the last four games, Billy Napier might be working his way off the hot seat for this season. During that stretch, Florida is 3-1 and the only loss came in overtime to the Tennessee Volunteers in Knoxville. He isn’t out of the woods just yet with games against the Georgia Bulldogs, Texas Longhorns, LSU Tigers, and Ole Miss Rebels in November. Napier needs just two wins to get to bowl eligibility and they have a hapless FSU Seminoles team on the schedule as well, getting to 6-6 feels like a win with the schedule they had in 2024. However, we know it can unravel at any time, which is why he is still on our red alert list.
Sonny Dykes, TCU Horned Frogs
Much like Dave Aranda, Dykes hasn’t looked quite the same as his one magical season upon his arrival in Fort Worth, Texas. You could argue that his last season and a half look reminiscent of his time at Cal-Berkley. Following the loss to Georgia in the 2022 CFP title game, the Frogs have been a meager 9-10 in those 19 games since. Not having Gary Patterson’s players on the roster has had a negative impact. The Frogs may not make a move this season unless they fail to make a bowl game for the second consecutive season.
Mack Brown, North Carolina Tar Heels
The second tenure in Chapel Hill started off on the right track but the train has started coming off the rails as of late. The Tar Heels are losers of four straight including a 70-50 high-scoring affair against James Madison that started the streak after beginning the year 3-0. It isn’t just the fact that UNC has dropped four in a row but the manner in which some of these games have ended. The Tar Heels blew games against rival Duke and Georgia Tech in two of the last three. It might be time for Mack to retire and this time for good.
Stan Drayton, Temple Owls
Stan Drayton earned his mettle as a running back’s coach at the collegiate level. Most notably with the Texas Longhorns and Ohio State Buckeyes working with Bijan Robinson, Roschon Johnson, and Ezekiel Elliott. He is well equipped to coach the backs but being a head coach might not be his calling, however, winning at Temple seems laborious. Drayton is 3-16 in AAC play over the last three seasons and just 8-23 overall. The Owls will likely join the coaching carousel sooner rather than later.
Five more to monitor
- Sonny Cumbie, Louisiana Tech Bulldogs (8-22 since 2022)
- Trent Dilfer, UAB Blazers (5-14 since 2023)
- Mike Locksley, Maryland Terrapins (33-36 since 2015)
- Ryan Walters, Purdue Boilermakers (5-14 since 2023)
- Joe Moorhead, Akron Zips (5-26 since 2022)