Potential candidates for Florida Gators head coach

[mUSiC-man]

if they decide to move on from Dan Mullen

Florida head coach replacements for Dan Mullen​

5. James Franklin, Penn State head coach​

James Franklin has been linked to every other coaching job out there. Why not Florida?

The Penn State head coach has spent time in the SEC before at Vanderbilt. There he worked miracles despite being at the hardest place to win in the conference.

He's taken a step forward with the Nittany Lions but the Gators could give him an even more fertile recruiting ground with the resources to boot.

4. Luke Fickell, Cincinnati head coach​

There isn't a hotter name on the coaching carousel than Luke Fickell. He's led Cincinnati to the No. 3 ranking this season but it no one-season wonder. This campaign has been coming with 11-win seasons in 2018 and 2019 before posting a 9-1 record in 2020.

Fickell has developed lower-end recruits into lean, mean fighting machines.

He's on the radar for just about every opening but getting him to leave the state of Ohio for Florida would be tricky.

3. Joe Brady, Carolina Panthers offensive coordinator​

Joe Brady engineered one of the most high-powered offenses in college football history when he was the passing game coordinator for LSU in 2019. Now he's the offensive coordinator for the Carolina Panthers and rehabilitating Sam Darnold's pro career.

Even though he's quite young, it might be time for Brady to take the next step into a head coaching opportunity. Someone is going to give him that chance sooner than later.

He was born and raised in Florida, so the Gators could pitch to bring him home.

2. Mark Stoops, Kentucky head coach​

No one has done more with less than Mark Stoops at Kentucky. Working in the shadow of their illustrious basketball program, Stoops has spent the last decade pulling the Wildcats out of the SEC basement.

In 2018 they won 10 games and they've started the 2021 season on a 6-0 run. What he's done with Kentucky has been impressive. He's earned a promotion.

He's also familiar with the state of Florida and its recruiting footprint. He was previously a DBs coach at South Florida and Miami before serving as a defensive coordinator at Florida State.

1. Jamey Chadwell, Coastal Carolina head coach​

You probably didn't know what Coastal Carolina was a few years ago. The fact that you know now is down to Jamey Chadwell.

The Chanticleers head coach has successfully transitioned the program into the FBS, winning the Sun Belt in 2020 while picking up Coach of the Year honors. They've opened 2021 at 6-0 as well.

Chadwell has an eye for offense and has won in multiple places as a head coach.

The only thing he lacks is major college football experience. Florida would be taking a chance on him, but it could pay off big time.

 

[cockn'fyr]

Well if so, i would think caldwell and fickell are the only takers!

 

[gamecock stock]

Chadwell will be a P5 Head Coach somewhere next season. The key in that description of him is that he "has won in multiple places as a head coach". That is the fact that his few detractors here ignore.

 

[jsusc]

Well if so, i would think caldwell and fickell are the only takers!

I would think Stoops as well. I think he's done as much as can be done at Kentucky.

 

[85alum#]

What are you talking about? I’ve not heard anything about UF wanting to get rid of him. I know LSU is now looking but UF?

 

[PerchedOnRings]

What are you talking about? I’ve not heard anything about UF wanting to get rid of him. I know LSU is now looking but UF?

Fan base is unhappy with DC & Mullen supported him. Coastal guy is not on ESPN’s list of potential candidates at all.

 

[PC31]

I doubt Florida even knows Caldwells number. ZERO chance he replaces Mullen.
Still it's interesting LSU and Florida are so committed to winning. Must be nice.

 

[PC31]

I would think Stoops as well. I think he's done as much as can be done at Kentucky.

Man if I was Stoops I don't know if I jump. He seems like a bad fit for UF and LSU but finally has his swerve at KY. EGO is a thing tho.......

 

[GarnetBeamer]

lol… Chadwell? Was that article written by Chadwell? He will eventually get a shot in a power five school, but absolutely nowhere near the status of somewhere like Florida starting out.

 

[gamecocks247]

Can we hire Mullen and put Beamer back at coordinating recruiting?

 

[GarnetBeamer]

Maybe we could get him as OC/QB coach. That would be a fantastic upgrade for us. Won’t happen, but we can dream.

 

[titaniumspur]

Mullen is covering for Todd Grantham. You can’t do that anymore.

 

[CatClause]

Stoops ain't going anywhere! He wanted the UK job so he could be closer to his Mom in Youngstown, OH. Ohio State comes callin', maybe.....but not Fla.

 

[robertfootball]

I bet LSU will give Dabo a call and make him say no. Florida will too if it comes to that.

 

[chief2791]

Don't think Stoops is a Florida guy. He's right in his element where he's at. Bigger job geographically near KY comes open, he entertains it IMO, but he's happy for the time being where he's at.

Too big of a first big job for Chadwell. A job like ours or TN was the next step, but FL not going to take a chance on him IMO.

Brady, he's an NFL guy.

Franklin or Fickell are probably the only two legit candidates on the list.

There's no guarantee that Franklin or Fickell would be better than Mullen. He's a weirdo, but the man can call offensive plays.

 

[biting curve]

I bet LSU will give Dabo a call and make him say no. Florida will too if it comes to that.

They’re going to call on every employed high profile coach there is.

Getting one to say yes is going to be tough.

They’ll likely start with Urban, then work down the list. I think they’re not going to have an easy search, eventually the program is going to have to answer for the sexual assault allegations and other issues. Most HBC’s now are paid very well, they may not want to deal with the issues for close to what they’re already making.

The team has a lot of internal and culture issues, I think they’d love to hire an AA Coach.

The AD wants to make a splash, if he went that route seems like his targets would be Tucker, Franklin, or Bieniemy. A bolder hire would be Deion.

 

[PELION]

Surely Florida won’t hire Chadwell when USC has him right here and decided to go with Beamer instead ?

 

[Harvard Gamecock]

It would be fitting if UF went back to Urban. Then, and I didn't think this was humanly possible, I can hate UF even more.

 

[atl-cock]

I heard Heath Kline address coaching hires last week (I stream 107.5 in my car when driving around Atlanta), where he mentioned that a major consideration which ADs have when considering candidates for an HC position is recruiting contacts in the area.

Forget for a moment that Chadwell is at CCU. If he was at, say Minnesota, but had no substantial recruiting contacts in the state of Florida, would Gainesville give him serious consideration?

 

[gamecock stock]

I heard Heath Kline address coaching hires last week (I stream 107.5 in my car when driving around Atlanta), where he mentioned that a major consideration which ADs have when considering candidates for an HC position is recruiting contacts in the area.

I suspect Auburn is glad that was not a major consideration when they went searching for a new Head Coach last year.

 

[DarkCock]

Remember when Muschamp was there coach and they had really good defenses and no offense? Same with McElwain. "If we could at least be exciting..."

Now they are losing "exciting" games to LSU and Bama and they're still not happy.

Because there is no way to lose that makes anyone happy. Wish some posters would stop stating otherwise.

 

[DarkCock]

I suspect Auburn is glad that was not a major consideration when they went searching for a new Head Coach last year.

Are they glad? They must have won last week. Wait til they lose the next one, they won't be glad.

"Recruiting contacts in the area" was the main reason I was one of the biggest supporters on this board for hiring Kirby Smart. Unfortunately, that didn't work out. But it would have been a good hire, don't you agree?

 

[gamecock stock]

Who knows.....they might talk SOS out of retirement. Didn't Bill Snyder come out of retirement to coach Kansas State a 2nd time? He was nearly 80 when he retired a 2nd time. Spurrier is a youngish looking 76.

 

[gamecock stock]

Are they glad? They must have won last week. Wait til they lose the next one, they won't be glad.

That's true everywhere, even Clemson, I'm told. The point is that familiarity with recruiting area did not stop Auburn from hiring who they did.

 

[gamecock stock]

Are they glad? They must have won last week. Wait til they lose the next one, they won't be glad.

"Recruiting contacts in the area" was the main reason I was one of the biggest supporters on this board for hiring Kirby Smart. Unfortunately, that didn't work out. But it would have been a good hire, don't you agree?

Yeah Auburn won last week. They upset nationally-ranked Arkansas, ON THE ROAD, and are now nationally-ranked themselves.

Recruiting territory familiarity comes and is developed. Good coaches, not as easily made.

 

[atl-cock]

Who knows.....they might talk SOS out of retirement. Didn't Bill Snyder come out of retirement to coach Kansas State a 2nd time? He was nearly 80 when he retired a 2nd time. Spurrier is a youngish looking 76.

Spurrier unretired to coach Orlando in the AAF. But that does not involve recruiting, etc. as does college.

Can't see it happening. Anywhere.

 

[rogue cock]

Yeah Auburn won last week. They upset nationally-ranked Arkansas, ON THE ROAD, and are now nationally-ranked themselves.

Recruiting territory familiarity comes and is developed. Good coaches, not as easily made.

Spurrier hired EJ and Lawing, both had great recruiting connections in the Carolinas. Not sure who else but Auburn hired Bobo who has recruiting connections throughout Georgia....and his offense is doing great there.

 

[gamecock stock]

Spurrier hired EJ and Lawing, both had great recruiting connections in the Carolinas. Not sure who else but Auburn hired Bobo who has recruiting connections throughout Georgia....and his offense is doing great there.

Absolutely. That's why I have never concerned myself with whether or not a Head Coach is from this area when an opening has developed. A Head Coach can hire people with recruiting connections while he becomes familiar with and develops such connections himself in the area.

 

[gamecock stock]

Spurrier unretired to coach Orlando in the AAF. But that does not involve recruiting, etc. as does college.

Can't see it happening. Anywhere.

I'm not and was not predicting it. Just thinking out loud with a "what if".

 

[midline]

Don't see Chadwell at Florida. I think he is a great coach, and would do well at UF, but UF needs to make a bigger splash than someone from CCU. Though I could see Chadwell getting something like Virginia Tech if they make a change. I'd say Stoops would be a good choice there. Done a great job at Kentucky without the recruiting advantages he would have at UF

 

[alphazeta]

Are they glad? They must have won last week. Wait til they lose the next one, they won't be glad.

"Recruiting contacts in the area" was the main reason I was one of the biggest supporters on this board for hiring Kirby Smart. Unfortunately, that didn't work out. But it would have been a good hire, don't you agree?

Kirby Smart would never have taken the Carolina job if offered. He had been campaigning for the Georgia job for years behind the scenes. He used the vacancy at Carolina to pressure the UGA athletic director to dismiss Mark Richt.

 

[Gamecocks321]

As a Panthers fan, they can have Joe Brady. Dude has been a bust so far.

 

[CatClause]

I would think Stoops as well. I think he's done as much as can be done at Kentucky.

Nope! 10-2 in 2019. Has a real chance at 11-1 this season.

 

[DeBoer31]

UF has shown the best, most rewarding pattern than any other football program in modern history when it comes to hiring lightning rod, immediate impact, innovative offensive coaches.
SOS, U. Meyer and Dan Mullen (who was a huge part of UMs success). I don't think they would pull the trigger on Chadwell although he fits the mold of those 3 with his success, constant upward trajectory and consistency and new spin on offensive philosophy.
I think Chadwell is more likely to get considered than Mark Stoops because of the recent history of HC hires. A couple other recent hires that are "like" Stoops (defensive guys): Ron Zook and Will Muschamp.

If you're a betting man....bet on an offensive guy to get this job if it comes open. I wouldn't rule out Malzahn or Freeze either.....and if Malzahn went to UF, then we would have huge 1990s problems on our hands again at USC.

 

[Harvard Gamecock]

UF has shown the best, most rewarding pattern than any other football program in modern history when it comes to hiring lightning rod, immediate impact, innovative offensive coaches.
SOS, U. Meyer and Dan Mullen

There was also some serious duds in there as well, Zook, McElwain and of course Muschamp.

 

[BattleshipTexas]

Don't think Stoops is a Florida guy.

Why? He has coached at South Florida, Miami and Florida State. Seems to like Florida from that viewpoint.

 

[BattleshipTexas]

Nope! 10-2 in 2019. Has a real chance at 11-1 this season.

His point was he isn't going to win the SEC at Kentucky with who he can recruit there. He could at Florida.

 

[OldWiseCock]

There's no opening. UF won't can Mullen after one subpar season.

If they did, why not go after Art Briles.

 

[uscg1984]

What are you talking about? I’ve not heard anything about UF wanting to get rid of him. I know LSU is now looking but UF?

I know several Florida fans that are growing tired of Mullen. They are very disappointed in the way this season is going and are rapidly approaching "put up or shut up" time for him. Barring a total collapse over the rest of this season, I don't think they are ready to fire him now, but he's only going to get one more year to demonstrate he can get them to where they want to be. Make no mistake, Florida fans expect to play in SEC Championship games. Right now, he's not recruiting at a level that will likely get them there and they believe he has been very hard-headed about some obvious issues with the program.

 

[uscg1984]

Stoops ain't going anywhere! He wanted the UK job so he could be closer to his Mom in Youngstown, OH. Ohio State comes callin', maybe.....but not Fla.

I think Stoops is to Kentucky what Kirk Ferentz is to Iowa. He probably isn't going to win an SEC title at Kentucky, but he will keep them relevant and will allow them to flirt with a 10-win season every now and then. In between, there will be some 5 and 6 win seasons, but probably more 7 and 8 win seasons. I think that will keep Kentucky fans happy for a long time and if he's smart, should keep him happy the rest of his career.