Top 10 College Football Head Coaching Hires
Almost immediately following a loss to Oklahoma State in Bedlam, Lincoln Riley packed his bags and headed for Southern California. It was the coaching hire heard 'round the world. Little did we know, he would kickstart the wildest coaching carousel of all time.
Dozens of teams are helmed by new leadership going into 2022. Some are big names, some are strategic hires. Which 10 coaching hires were the best? We'll explore below.
Ranking The Head Coaching Hires
Note: Before we begin, I have to emphasize this isn't a projected order of finish. This isn't ranking the teams. Heck, this isn't even really ranking the coaches themselves. This is a ranking of the job each school did hiring someone who will make a difference in their program.
1. Joe Moorhead (Oregon OC to Akron)
We're already starting off contentious. Akron had the best head coaching hire of the offseason? Akron?
Joe Moorhead has experience as the head coach at Mississippi State and has been offensive coordinator at top-level programs like Oregon and Penn State. Think of this as playing the NCAA 14 video game and opting to take over a small team to bring them to national fame.
This is by no means saying Moorhead is going to turn Akron into a power– or even a perennial bowl team, at that– but he's a huge name with a ton of experience. At a MAC program like Akron, that's enough to get them going in the right direction. This is the major splash hire no one is talking about.
2. Billy Napier (ULL to Florida)
In his time at Louisiana, Billy Napier won 10+ games three times. The Ragin' Cajuns had previously never accomplished that feat, posting a historic 0.427 win percent before he got there.
He built a culture of excellence in Lafayette and comes to Florida, a school that's struggled with culture and effort post-Urban Meyer. Napier also brought with him plenty of Louisiana staff and players.
The players quit on Florida last year and rebuilding the program rather than just the roster was necessary. He's a home run for Florida and should pick them right back up in a year or two.
3. Marcus Freeman (Notre Dame DC to Notre Dame HC)
Marcus Freeman is universally beloved by Notre Dame players. He's a terrific recruiter, being mostly responsible for Cincinnati's 2021 defensive success after serving as defensive coordinator there from 2017-20. In college, the ability to connect and drive a locker room is a coach's number-one trait.
Though the Fighting Irish are the butt of the "can't get it done in the big one" jokes, Notre Dame's won 10+ games in five straight seasons and seven times under Kelly. Replacing a coach with that much success isn't easy, and any outside coaching hire would come under immense pressure to just be Brian Kelly.
Not so with Freeman. There's a reason no other names were thrown around.
4. Lincoln Riley (Oklahoma to USC)
The one that started it all– Lincoln Riley to USC is either beloved or hated by everyone. Given his success in the transfer portal, this marriage is going to work out. In comes superstar Caleb Williams (already USC's best QB since Sam Darnold), Oregon standout Travis Dye, and Colorado playmaker Brenden Rice (Jerry Rice's son).
While projections may go a bit overboard on USC this season, they're on the right path. Players– not just from Oklahoma– want to play with Riley. They signed the number-one transfer class this year.
Plenty of Sooner fans rightfully want to see Riley crash and burn in SoCal. I'm here to tell you: don't hold your breath.
5. Mario Cristobal (Oregon to Miami)
Aside from being a former Hurricane during Miami's heyday, Mario Cristobal is one of the nation's best recruiters. While recruiting players in Miami shouldn't be a difficult task, the Canes have had ups and downs on the recruiting trail. Florida's biggest recruits often opt for Alabama, Georgia, and Ohio State rather than stay home.
Cristobal is here to fix that. He signed a top-10 class at Oregon and maintained top-15 classes annually after the Ducks fell into the mid-20s. He kept West Coast kids on the West Coast as opposed to bolting for the SEC.
The other huge strength for Cristobal is player development. Miami has been a perpetual offender at signing strong classes and going 5-7 every year. Players like Travis Dye and Verone McKinley III were a pair of three-stars turned superstar under Cristobal's direction.
6. Joey McGuire (Baylor asst. to Texas Tech)
This is where I feel the need to remind everyone: I'm not ranking teams or coaches outright, I'm ranking hires.
Joey McGuire is the least-known name on the long list of head coaching hires, but man is he a good one. He's cut his teeth in the state of Texas, becoming an extremely well-regarded coach among Texas high school players. He's a terrific recruiter and that matters in Lubbock.
Also weigh Tech's other hires: WKU's Zach Kittley as offensive coordinator and Oregon's Tim DeReyuter as defensive coordinator. It's clear McGuire is here to manage, direct, and recruit. He hired two of the nation's better playcallers to handle those duties.
7. Brian Kelly (Notre Dame to LSU)
Ignore the fake accents, ignore the weird and uncomfortable dances– Brian Kelly is a damn good coach. He won 10+ games at Notre Dame seven times in his career, made two College Football Playoffs, and even made an ACC Championship Game. Though Notre Dame hasn't captured national titles, Kelly wins games, period.
He's already a celebrity name among the college football world and, though maybe not culturally, Kelly is a great fit for LSU. Ole Miss paved the road for such a hire, finding wild success under well-known name Lane Kiffin. As did Texas A&M with Jimbo Fisher.
LSU has never struggled in recruiting, but turning those players into a championship-level team is another story. While expectations may weigh heavy on Kelly, there wasn't a better name out there for LSU to land.
8. Clay Helton (Georgia Southern)
Along the same lines as Joe Moorhead to Akron, smaller schools landing big-name coaches matters. It matters on the recruiting trail and it matters getting fans in the stands.
Like the Brian Kelly hire, think of this in terms of what Lane Kiffin has done in his career: Kiffin led FAU to two-11 win seasons. His name increased attendance, won recruits over, and won the Owls games. Clay Helton– though not the most accomplished coach at USC– emanates that same recognition that matters to recruits.
Georgia Southern isn't that far removed from a 10-win season under Chad Lunsford. The precedent is there. A move like this wouldn't work at a Georgia Tech or a Vanderbilt, but at a smaller program, it's a home run.
9. Brent Venables (Clemson DC to Oklahoma)
There's few coaches, much less coordinators out there that wouldn't collapse under the pressure of the Oklahoma head job. This is the first outside hire for the Sooners since 1999. However, Venables isn't really an outside hire; he coached at Oklahoma from 1999-2011 before being offered the Brinks truck to coach at Clemson.
While his last tenure in Norman didn't end on the best terms, he let bygones be bygones and returns to be the head coach. Venables isn't Lincoln Riley. But we often see programs hire the polar opposite of the previous head coach, even if they depart for another gig rather than being fired.
It's clear Venables is a popular choice at Oklahoma after he signed the nations' fourth-ranked transfer class this year.
10. Dan Lanning (Georgia DC to Oregon)
When you field one of the best defenses in college football history, you're bound to get some job offers. Lanning was dealt pocket aces with the Oregon job given how late Mario Cristobal made the move to Miami in the carousel and many of the hot names were off the table.
Lanning brings an interesting cast to Euegne after the entire previous regime was stripped. In comes Kenny Dillingham (Florida State OC), Tosh Lupoi (Jacksonville Jaguars assistant), Adrian Klemm (Steelers OL), and Matt Powledge (Baylor DBs coach).
He maintained a top-25 class despite Cristobal leaving the recruits he signed late in the recruiting cycle.
These are just the top 10 hires I chose, so don't think of Prye or Dykes as the "worst hires." There's more than a dozen more hires I left off the list, like Clemson OC Tony Elliott to Virginia and Jerry Kill to New Mexico State.
Honorable mentions
Sonny Cumbie (Texas Tech interim to Louisiana Tech)– Brings a ton of energy to a program that's been successful lately.
Rhett Lashlee (Miami OC to SMU)– Led what should have been a mess of a Miami offense to a top-50 points per drive mark and developed young star Tyler Van Dyke.
Sonny Dykes (SMU to TCU)– A fan favorite and popular among players. He brought two four-star recruits from SMU and a starting offensive lineman. Overall class struggled because of the move.
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