What’s that saying about the calm before the storm?
After FBS teams changed coaches a combined 59 times in 2011 and 2012, that number dipped to just 35 combined changes in the last two seasons.
The SEC has followed those larger currents. Following the ’11 and ’12 seasons, the conference experienced seven head coaching changes, including Arkansas twice. In the last two seasons, just two SEC teams have hired new coaches — Vanderbilt (Derek Mason) and Florida (Jim McElwain).
With seemingly every head coach in the SEC, and nationally, getting a contract extension and a raise in the last couple years, it seems like the college football coaching landscape could be set for another hemorrhaging of jobs in ’15 or ’16.
Even with the turn-and-burn attitude prevalent in the sport’s highest levels, the colossal group of new coaches hired after the ’11 and ’12 seasons mostly has gotten a hall pass. That could start to change pending the results of this year. (We’re looking at you, Kevin Sumlin, Bret Bielema, Gus Malzahn, Hugh Freeze and Butch Jones.)
One year after jobs at USC, Penn State and Texas all came open, the jobs at Florida, Michigan (Jim Harbaugh) and Nebraska (Mike Riley) were the most prominent coaching moves this offseason.
As we enter “talking season,” as Steve Spurrier calls it, here’s a reminder of the 15 first-year head coaches around the country.
| School | 2014 Coach | 2015 Coach |
|---|---|---|
| Buffalo | Jeff Quinn | Lance Leipold |
| Central Michigan | Dan Enos | John Bonamego |
| Colorado State | Jim McElwain | Mike Bobo |
| Florida | Will Muschamp | Jim McElwain |
| Houston | Tony Levine | Tom Herman |
| Kansas | Charlie Weis | David Beaty |
| Michigan | Brady Hoke | Jim Harbaugh |
| Nebraska | Bo Pelini | Mike Riley |
| Oregon State | Mike Riley | Gary Andersen |
| Pittsburgh | Paul Chryst | Pat Narduzzi |
| SMU | June Jones | Chad Morris |
| Troy | Larry Blakeney | Neal Brown |
| UNLV | Bobby Hauck | Tony Sanchez |
| Tulsa | Bill Blankenship | Philip Montgomery |
| Wisconsin | Gary Andersen | Paul Chryst |
A few other schools made changes connected to the SEC this year, most notably Troy, which hired Kentucky offensive coordinator Neal Brown.
Of course, Colorado State’s opening existed because the Gators hired away their coach. Speaking of Florida, Kansas finally shed the excess weight of Charlie Weis, joining the list of teams who continue to owe the former Gators offensive coordinator millions of dollars in 2015.
The SEC also faces several first-year head coaches, including former Pitt coach Paul Chryst (Wisconsin vs. Alabama) and former Ohio State offensive coordinator Tom Herman (Vanderbilt at Houston).
An itinerant journalist, Christopher has moved between states 11 times in seven years. Formally an injury-prone Division I 800-meter specialist, he now wanders the Rockies in search of high peaks.
