Top 5 College Football Defensive Coordinators Primed To Become Head Coaches

The Oregon Ducks have one of the most experienced defensive coordinators in college football in Tosh Lupoi. If the Ducks have another successful season on the defensive side of the ball, Lupoi could be primed to make the jump to head coach in 2026.

Oregon defensive coordinator Tosh Lupoi directs practice March 29, 2022. Tosh Lupoi / Chris Pietsch/The Register-Guard / USA TODAY NETWORK

As a head football coach, it's a blessing and a curse to have great offensive and defensive coordinators. It's great when their unit is rolling and helping teams win games, but is a curse because they could get poached at the start of the coaching carousel in the fall.

For Oregon Ducks coach Dan Lanning, he's already experienced the highs and lows of hiring great coordinators when Kenny Dillingham, Lanning's first offensive coordinator at Oregon, was hired away by Arizona State.

The Ducks have another assistant coach on the rise to becoming a head coach sooner rather than later in the form of defensive coordinator Tosh Lupoi.

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1. Georgia's Glenn Schumann

Georgia Defensive Glenn Schumann takes the field before the start of the SEC championship game against Texas in Atlanta, on Saturday, Dec. 7, 2024. / Joshua l. Jones Athens Banner-Herald USA TODAY NETWORK / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

Schumann continued on the defensive foundation laid by former defensive coodinator Dan Lanning. The Bulldogs are consistently among the top defenses in the country and that's in large part due to Schumann.

His ability to continue Georgia's success in developing players to the NFL and winning games in the SEC is nothing short of impressive. He's been floated as a legitimate head coaching candidate for a couple of years now and will more than likely be the one of the hottest names among coaching searches next offseason.

2. Oregon's Tosh Lupoi

Oregon defensive coordinator Tosh Lupoi watches practice Wednesday Aug. 24, 2022 in Eugene, Ore. / Ben Lonergan/The Register-Guard / USA TODAY NETWORK

Lupoi's work gets a bit overshadowed by the fact that Lanning is one of the best defensive minds in football. However, the proof is in the pudding with Lupoi and his work.

He helped lead the Ducks to a top-15 defense in yards allowed per game. Although the Ducks got blown out in the Rose Bowl by Ohio State to end their campaign last season, Lupoi's unit shined for the majority of the season. He's a tenacious recruiter and has experience at both the professional and college levels.

The Ducks have reloaded on the defensive side of the ball with some key transfer portal additions and if they have similar success, Lupoi could find himself as a serious head coach candidate in 2026.

3. Florida State's Tony White

Arizona State Sun Devils coach Tony White talks to defensive back Timarcus Davis (6) during spring football practice on Feb. 6 in Tempe. Arizona State spring football practice / Rob Schumacher/The Republic

White has been the defensive coordinator at four different FBS programs, including his current stop with Florida State. He got hired away from Nebraska this offseason by Florida State coach Mike Norvell and was made one of the highest paid assistant coaches in college football.

He has the experience and has proven to be a boost to any coaching staff in the country. If the Seminoles have a serious turnaround after an ugly 2024, White might be one-and-done in Tallahassee.

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4. Texas' Pete Kwiatkowski

11. (tie) Pete Kwiatkowski, Texas defensive coordinator, $1.7 million. / Ricardo B. Brazziell / USA TODAY NETWORK

Kwiatkowski is easily the most experienced coach on the list. He has been coaching for a long time and his first college coaching gig began in 1988 with Boise State.

Since then, he has served on numerous staffs, including the famous 2007 Fiesta Bowl-winning Boise State Broncos. He's been a defensive coordinator for the Broncos, Washington, and Texas. If Kwiatkowski helps lead the Longhorns' defense back to the College Football Playoff in 2025, he will surely be a hot name during the 2026 coaching carousel.

5. North Carolina's Stephen Belichick

Nov 24, 2019; Foxborough, MA, USA; New England Patriots defensive backs coach Stephen Belichick prior to a game against the New England Patriots at Gillette Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Bob DeChiara-Imagn Images / Bob DeChiara-Imagn Images

Belichick is entering his second season as a defensive coordinator and will be reunited with his dad, Bill, who became the head coach at North Carolina this offseason.

Although he has the Belichick last name, Stephen has began to build out his own coaching legacy. After spending over a decade working under Bill with the New England Patriots, Belichick was hired away by Washington Huskies' coach Jedd Fisch to be a defensive coordinator. He spent one season in Seattle before heading back east to Chapel Hill.

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