It was going to be a (somewhat) quiet, predictable coaching carousel. There were 19 coaching changes, which was considered a slow year for a carousel that never seems to stop spinning.
Then Nick Saban shocked the world by retiring. Then Jim Harbaugh did what we always thought was possible by going to the NFL.
Chip Kelly took a pay cut leaving as head coach at UCLA to become offensive coordinator at Ohio State, perhaps adding job security while remaining in the Big Ten. Bill O'Brien made a pit stop at Ohio State before taking over Boston College when Jeff Hafley got out ahead of the posse, leaving to take over as Packers defensive coordinator.
These moves were among nine late coaching changes that occurred since we thought that carousel had slowed to a stop. Think again.
It has been more than six months since Pat Fitzgerald was fired at Northwestern last July. Since the summer, 29 schools have changed coaches, continuing a recent trend.
There have been a combined 85 coaching changes in the last three offseasons. Six schools have changed coaches twice in that short span: Duke, Nevada, New Mexico State, Troy, UAB and Washington.
The turnover has been such that three of the four College Football Playoff semifinalists from 2023 enter 2024 with new coaches. Eighteen of the 29 schools with new coaches had winning records last season. More than half the Mountain West jobs turned over (seven).
As the game realigns, so do the coaches. Moore is among eight new coaches who have never run a program. The money is bigger than ever, but so is the pressure.
Here are the eight late hires that rounded out the silly season. At least we think it's finished.
Check out grades for the first set of coaching hires -- including Michigan State's Jonathan Smith, Texas A&M's Mike Elko and 18 others -- right here.
| Team | Coach | Grade | Analysis |
|---|---|---|---|
 | Brent Brennan | A | Arizona's budget deficit is deeper than the Grand Canyon. Athletic director Dave Heeke just got fired. The Wildcats needed someone to calm the waters. Ties to the job? Check. Great early impressions? Check. Capable? Check. Anyone who wins the Mountain West at SJSU can coach anywhere. Brennan wanted this job from the moment it opened; heck, he wanted it in 2020. Brennan was an Arizona GA under the legendary Dick Tomey in 2000, following him SJSU. Because of an intense lobbying effort from the existing coaching staff and former players, Brennan was able to keep the core of the team that won 10 games in 2023. That means the Wildcats could retain the favorite's role in the Big 12. Brennan, 50, is ready to do big things. |
 | Bill O'Brien | A- | It was messy for BC to get to this point, but it worked out. Jeff Hafley read the room and got out before he could be let go after next season. O'Brien became a college head coach again for the first time in 11 years. In the interim, Obie coached in the NFL (Texans, also GM), helped Bryce Young win a Heisman Trophy at Alabama and got in on the tail end of whatever was left of the Patriots under Belichick. O'Brien knows the region. Expectations won't be sky high. And unlike his time at Alabama, the sky won't fall if he doesn't win the national championship. O'Brien should also be able to establish some continuity at quarterback. The man did coach Tom Brady, Deshaun Watson and Young, after all. |
 | Jedd Fisch | B+ | Arizona is a mess, and Fisch got out at the right time after one of the more impressive turnaround jobs in recent years. His offensive expertise should help after the loss of Michael Penix Jr. and Rome Odunze. If he can take Arizona from 1-11 to 10-3 in three years, what will he do with Washington's resources? Still, this is not a slam dunk. Fisch has held 11 jobs since 2008. That doesn't make him an outlier, but Washington should be a destination job. For questions of loyalty, who among us wouldn't jump at going to the Big Ten for $7.75 million? Still, fans must wonder whether Fisch is biding time until the job at his alma matter, Florida, opens. Washington got two years and a national title run from Kalen DeBoer. You'd sign up for that in a heartbeat from Fisch. |
 | Sherrone Moore | B+ | Would Moore have replaced Harbaugh had his boss not been suspended for six games? Moore oversaw four wins, yet he is the second Michigan leader without head coaching experience since 1959 (Lloyd Carr). Moore was the logical choice, but sources tell CBS Sports there was some talk among the board of regents for an open search to consider proven coaches. In the afterglow of a national title and with any pending NCAA sanctions still a ways off, Moore will be given plenty of time. In fact, Michigan might have enough talent left over to get into the new 12-team playoff. Moore is a heck of a play caller and recruiter. He didn't just prove himself this season; he proved himself over six years as an assistant. Still, running the whole show at Michigan is different. It will be fascinating to watch. |
 | Ken Nuimatalolo | B | A program that is historically a stepping-stone job landed a keeper. Coach Ken spent 21 years at Navy taking the Midshipmen to unprecedented heights. He was responsible for nine of the record 14 straight wins against Army. There were 10 winning seasons and Navy's first win over a ranked team in 23 years. Nuimatalolo was responsible for Navy breaking Notre Dame's death grip on the rivalry. Basically, he more than kept Navy -- a service academy -- in the national conversation during a time of upheaval. By taking SJSU, Nuimatalolo, 58, proved he has plenty left in the coaching tank. The Spartans could compete annually for the Mountain West if Nuimatalolo successfully switches from the triple option at Navy to a spread-based attack. |
 | Major Applewhite | B- | Nick Saban's first offensive coordinator at Alabama (2007) is coming full circle. The one-time Next Big Thing is now 47 trying to rebound as a head coach. USA seems to be a logical place after Kane Wommack bounced to Bama. Applewhite was OC for the best three-year run (22-16) in Jaguars history. In those seasons, USA finished sixth, fourth and third in Sun Belt total offense. The average of 440 yards per game in 2023 was a school record. Applewhite deserves a second chance at running the ship after going 15-11 in two seasons at Houston. |
 | Deshaun Foster | B- | This seems like a safe, logical hire. Foster is a native Bruin and Californian having played under Bob Toledo. He spent a decade as a UCLA assistant, the last seven as running backs coach. The hire keeps the staff, roster and recruiting class somewhat unified. His bad timing aside, Kelly left a solid program behind, winning 25 games over the last three seasons and beating the snot out of USC last year. Foster's biggest immediate mandate is to shepherd UCLA into the Big Ten. That means recruiting. That means getting a meaningful collective. That means squeezing all of it out of a budget that is underwater and 14th in the the Big Ten (per USA Today). That means being a CEO coach since Foster has never been a coordinator. |
 | Tony Sanchez | C+ | The loss of Jerry Kill in Las Cruces cannot be understated. Before stepping down recently, Kill led the Aggies to their first 10-win season since 1960. The man was a force of nature, turning water into wine, dust into diamonds -- on the football field. Sanchez was elevated from wide receivers coach at NMSU after going 20-40 at UNLV from 2015-19. To an extent, Bill Belichick could have taken over and the Aggies would have been worse off. It takes someone special to coach at New Mexico State. Kill was invested in the program, the roster and the future. Sanchez brings experience and continuity, but is he Jerry Kill? |
 | Dell McGee | B- | Whatever coaching experience McGee lacks -- he's never been a coordinator -- is made up in his experience as a recruiter, bringing in upwards of 30 blue-chip athletes while at Georgia. McGee has been a valued Kirby Smart assistant since 2016. The Panthers had better run the damn ball because that's what McGee does best. He's in a perfect conference where a CEO-type top recruiter can win the league. This is good get for Georgia State considering the circumstances -- Shawn Elliott leaving earlier this month to be South Carolina's ... run game coordinator. |
