UNLV’s Barry Odom Name Linked To Washington Job

Could the Rebels need a new head coach?

Coaching season is getting silly, again

Former Fresno State head coach Kalen DeBoer just led Washington to the national title game, and now he is upgrading again by reportedly taking the Alabama job. It is not officially, official, but it is a done deal.

Now all the eyes of college football turn their eyes to the Pacific Northwest for who can take over for DeBoer’s Huskies. It will take a certain type of coach to lead Washington not only to the Big Ten but attempt to maintain its status as a national title contender team.

ESPN’s Pete Thamel tossed out a list of possible candidates and a few have Mountain West ties. There is former Fresno State and current Washington offensive coordinator Ryan Grubb, who is an obvious choice.

The other name that will make UNLV fan’s head steam is reading that Barry Odom’s name is on the list.

Washington will be an attractive job. Officials there — for now — won't have any college market competition. Quick list (no order): Lance Leipold, Jedd Fisch, Matt Campbell, Ryan Grubb, Barry Odom, Chris Klieman, Kyle Whittingham, Dave Clawson, Kalani Sitake.

— Pete Thamel (@PeteThamel) January 12, 2024

Odom led UNLV to one of the best seasons ever in Las Vegas so to see his name on this very early list is not surprising. The turnaround has to make him enticing, as does his solid success as the Missouri head coach and helping Arkansas’s defense improve over the past few years.

Going to a soon-to-be Big Ten program has to be attractive to Odom. It will be a massive pay raise and going up against better competition. Jayden Maiava leaving and ultimately ending up at USC is a blow to the Rebels next year and might be a reason for Odom to look elsewhere.

However, there is no indicator that Odom is looking for a new job but getting a massive call up to a bigger league and everything that comes with it would be hard to turn down.

This list does not mean that Odom is a candidate by any stretch but it is a name that could be connected to this job.

At this time, there is no need for UNLV fans to panic about losing Odom, but maybe keep those alerts on for Thamel tweets about this job search.

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