BAMANEWSBOT
Staff
Ten years ago, Dabo Swinney began his first full season as Clemson's head coach. This was, at the time, a controversial hire. Swinney went 4-3 in his first effort as an interim coach in 2008, and had never been more than a position coach. Yet, here in 2019, he's one of the best coaches in all of college football, having brought a pair of national titles to the Tigers program. In hindsight, the hire was nothing short of genius.
Stories like Swinney's are rare, but they are possible. And when the coaching carousel picks up in about five to six months, a success story like Swinney's could be set into motion. With that in mind, I asked around the coaching fraternity and some fellow beat writers -- a special thanks go to Football Scoop and Chris Vannini of The Athletic, among others -- to rattle off some names who could be the next "it" coach.
There were no hard and fast guidelines -- some coaches are known more for recruiting while others are more Xs and Os-based -- but overall I stuck with younger coaches who still have a lot of room left to grow. As you'll see, there are many coordinators listed, and with good reason. They're earning the trust to call plays and lead either an offense or defense. However, there are some out-of-the-box examples as well. Obviously, there are more qualified candidates than the ones listed below, but these names should be ones to watch over the coming years.
Let's get to it.
Alabama DC/ILB coach Pete Golding: This is a name who came up more than once among the people I spoke with. One person described Golding as having "Jimbo Fisher vibes." That's a strong connection seeing as Fisher was a one-time member of Nick Saban's staff at LSU. Like a lot of others mentioned here, Golding's worked his way up through the ranks, from Division II to the top program in all of college football. At 35, he's leading the Crimson Tide defense after serving as the co-DC a season ago. Saban's best assistants usually have no problem getting a head coaching job, and Golding's turn is likely coming up soon.
www.cbssports.com
Stories like Swinney's are rare, but they are possible. And when the coaching carousel picks up in about five to six months, a success story like Swinney's could be set into motion. With that in mind, I asked around the coaching fraternity and some fellow beat writers -- a special thanks go to Football Scoop and Chris Vannini of The Athletic, among others -- to rattle off some names who could be the next "it" coach.
There were no hard and fast guidelines -- some coaches are known more for recruiting while others are more Xs and Os-based -- but overall I stuck with younger coaches who still have a lot of room left to grow. As you'll see, there are many coordinators listed, and with good reason. They're earning the trust to call plays and lead either an offense or defense. However, there are some out-of-the-box examples as well. Obviously, there are more qualified candidates than the ones listed below, but these names should be ones to watch over the coming years.
Let's get to it.
Alabama DC/ILB coach Pete Golding: This is a name who came up more than once among the people I spoke with. One person described Golding as having "Jimbo Fisher vibes." That's a strong connection seeing as Fisher was a one-time member of Nick Saban's staff at LSU. Like a lot of others mentioned here, Golding's worked his way up through the ranks, from Division II to the top program in all of college football. At 35, he's leading the Crimson Tide defense after serving as the co-DC a season ago. Saban's best assistants usually have no problem getting a head coaching job, and Golding's turn is likely coming up soon.
Searching for the next Dabo Swinney: Rising college football assistant coaches to keep an eye on
Success stories like Swinney's are rare, but possible with the right person and program
www.cbssports.com
