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FCS Coaching Carousel

IdaGriz01

Well-known member
The FBS coaching carousel gets a lot of attention, especially for the big-money Power-Five conference jobs. But, as we know, there is also a carousel at the FCS level. It’s just much, much harder to find the information. After looking over the sparse material out there, I decided I would look at who might be on the hot seat, based on those with bad records in 2017.

What I have found so far are ten school (including UM) that have new coaches. Of these teams, only one besides UM had a winning record: Hampton went 6-5, but their four-year 20-25 coach “stepped down” and was replaced. The combined 2017 records for the other eight teams was 24-64, a pretty dismal showing.
. East Tenn State (4-7) . . . . Holy Cross (4-7) . . . . Northwestern State (4-7)
. Florida A&M (3-8) . . . .. . . MVSU (2-9) . . . . . . . . Robert Morris (2-9)
. Fordham (4-7) . . . . . . . . . Montana (7-4) . . .. . . Tennessee Tech (1-10)
. Hampton (6-5)

I found seven teams that are currently looking for coaches. Their combined 2107 records were 17-60.
. Alabama A&M (4-7) . . . . . Delaware State (2-9)
. Alabama State (5-6) . . . . . Incarnate Word (1-10)
. Ark-Pine Bluff (2-9) . . . . . Morgan State (1-10)
. Davidson (2-9)

It’s changing fast, so the list could be different by the time I get this posted. But as of now, that’s a total of 17 teams out of all 123 FCS programs that are turning over their head coaches this year. And, despite the late date, there might be some other programs that could still pull the trigger.

Among the other major losers, there were several programs that have “excuses” or glimmers of hope that might allow the coaches some extra time. The coach for Albany (4-7), for example, started in 2014 and has a 21-24 record. But in two of those years, they had a winning record in the CAA. Houston Baptist has a disastrous record (12-39), but they only started football in 2014. Stetson is also a mess at 16-40, but they only restarted their program in 2013.

Still, in this block of teams where the coaches have had four to five years, I see four that seem primed for a change. Here, I show the 2017 record, [when the current coach was hired], his overall record, and comments.
. Stephen F. Austin (4-7) [2014] Overall 21-25. Not sure their fans are very happy with this.
. Cornell (3-7) [2013] Overall 12-38. School has buyout problems that may allow another year.
. Rhode Island (3-8) [2014] Overall 7-38. Expectations low, but maybe not that low.
. SE Mo State (3-8) [2014] Overall 13-26. Same as Rhode Island.

My list also includes three teams where the coaches have had more time … but the clock could be running out. (Same format)
. Bucknell (5-6) [2010] Overall 37-51. Apparently, winning doesn’t matter much.
. Northern Colorado (3-7) [2011] Overall 24-53. The coach is supposedly safe, but the college president who has supported his tenure is retiring … so he could have a problem with that feeble record.
. Cal Poly (1-10) [2009] Record 51-52. Has had some past success, but support is unraveling.

There were seventeen teams with awful records (none won more than four games and three didn’t win any) that had coaches completing their first, second or third years. These coaches might be safe, although the guys at Missouri State (8-25 overall since 2015) and VMI (5-28) should not feel too comfortable.

I also found seven programs with very bad 2017 records, but the coaches mostly have long tenures with reasonable success that cuts them a bit of slack. The William & Mary coach, for example, was 2-9 this year, but has an overall record of 245-189. Not sure the Sacred Heart (4-7, 2017) coach – who is 37-32 since 2012 – has a good enough record to feel safe.

Again, I know it seems way late to change now, but you really wonder how some of the programs noted above can afford to wait.
 
http://www.fcs.football/cfb/story.asp?i=20171213160439525369304&ref=rec&tm=&src=FCS
(STATS) - FCS schools with head coaching changes since the start of the 2017 season, with school, former coach and new coach if applicable:

Alabama A&M, James Spady (Nov. 19)

Alabama State, Brian Jenkins (Oct. 6), Donald Hill-Eley (Dec. 7)

Arkansas-Pine Bluff, Monte Coleman (Nov. 20)

Central Arkansas, Steve Campbell (Dec. 7), Nathan Brown (Dec. 9)

Davidson, Paul Nichols (Nov. 27)

Delaware State, Kenny Carter (Nov. 20)

ETSU, Carl Torbush (Dec. 8), Randy Sanders (Dec. 17)

Florida A&M, Alex Wood (Nov. 20), Willie Simmons (Dec. 11)

Fordham, Andrew Breiner (Dec. 5), Joe Conlin (Dec. 22)

Hampton, Connell Maynor (Nov. 20), Robert Prunty (Dec. 7)

Holy Cross, Tom Gilmore (Oct. 15), Bob Chesney (Dec. 14)

Incarnate Word, Larry Kennan (Nov. 27)

Mississippi Valley State, Rick Comegy (Nov. 20), Vincent Dancy (Dec. 19)

Morgan State, Fred Farrier (Dec. 18), Ernest Jones (interim, Dec. 18)

Montana, Bob Stitt (Nov. 20), Bobby Hauck (Dec. 1)

North Carolina Central, Jerry Mack (Dec. 8)

Northwestern State, Jay Thomas (Nov. 17), Brad Laird (Nov. 20)

Prairie View A&M, Willie Simmons (Dec. 9), Eric Dooley (Dec. 22)

Robert Morris, John Banaszak (Nov. 20), Bernard Clark (Dec. 19)

Tennessee Tech, Marcus Satterfield (Nov. 19), Dewayne Alexander (Dec. 22)

Wofford, Mike Ayers (Dec. 13)
 
GrizLogger said:
http://www.fcs.football/cfb/story.asp?i=20171213160439525369304&ref=rec&tm=&src=FCS
(STATS) - FCS schools with head coaching changes since the start of the 2017 season, with school, former coach and new coach if applicable:

Alabama A&M, James Spady (Nov. 19)
Alabama State, Brian Jenkins (Oct. 6), Donald Hill-Eley (Dec. 7)
Arkansas-Pine Bluff, Monte Coleman (Nov. 20)
Central Arkansas, Steve Campbell (Dec. 7), Nathan Brown (Dec. 9)
Davidson, Paul Nichols (Nov. 27)
Delaware State, Kenny Carter (Nov. 20)
ETSU, Carl Torbush (Dec. 8), Randy Sanders (Dec. 17)
Florida A&M, Alex Wood (Nov. 20), Willie Simmons (Dec. 11)
Fordham, Andrew Breiner (Dec. 5), Joe Conlin (Dec. 22)
Hampton, Connell Maynor (Nov. 20), Robert Prunty (Dec. 7)
Holy Cross, Tom Gilmore (Oct. 15), Bob Chesney (Dec. 14)
Incarnate Word, Larry Kennan (Nov. 27)
Mississippi Valley State, Rick Comegy (Nov. 20), Vincent Dancy (Dec. 19)
Morgan State, Fred Farrier (Dec. 18), Ernest Jones (interim, Dec. 18)
Montana, Bob Stitt (Nov. 20), Bobby Hauck (Dec. 1)
North Carolina Central, Jerry Mack (Dec. 8)
Northwestern State, Jay Thomas (Nov. 17), Brad Laird (Nov. 20)
Prairie View A&M, Willie Simmons (Dec. 9), Eric Dooley (Dec. 22)
Robert Morris, John Banaszak (Nov. 20), Bernard Clark (Dec. 19)
Tennessee Tech, Marcus Satterfield (Nov. 19), Dewayne Alexander (Dec. 22)
Wofford, Mike Ayers (Dec. 13)
Excellent. You found a more up-to-date list than I started with.

I had not seen that Alabama State had found a new coach. I probably should have mentioned Central Arkansas, but that was a case where a successful coach was hired away (by an FBS school) and replaced. The Morgan State case, with an interim actually named, is weird because it’s not clear whether or not they are still looking for a “permanent” coach.

The NC Central change is a new one that I did not catch because they had a pretty good year. I see the old coach moved to FBS Rice and had to be replaced.

The new coach at Prairie View A&M is another weird one, since that looks like it could be a sideways move for the old coach (to FAMU, but not confirmed).

Wofford also had a good year … but I see that the old coach has retired.

By my count then, that’s 14 new coaches, with 7 known to be looking (21/123 or 17% so far).

That still leaves all the coaches with bad records that I identified as possible candidates for "hit the road, Jack." ;) :lol:
 
IdaGriz01 said:
GrizLogger said:
http://www.fcs.football/cfb/story.asp?i=20171213160439525369304&ref=rec&tm=&src=FCS
(STATS) - FCS schools with head coaching changes since the start of the 2017 season, with school, former coach and new coach if applicable:

Alabama A&M, James Spady (Nov. 19)
Alabama State, Brian Jenkins (Oct. 6), Donald Hill-Eley (Dec. 7)
Arkansas-Pine Bluff, Monte Coleman (Nov. 20)
Central Arkansas, Steve Campbell (Dec. 7), Nathan Brown (Dec. 9)
Davidson, Paul Nichols (Nov. 27)
Delaware State, Kenny Carter (Nov. 20)
ETSU, Carl Torbush (Dec. 8), Randy Sanders (Dec. 17)
Florida A&M, Alex Wood (Nov. 20), Willie Simmons (Dec. 11)
Fordham, Andrew Breiner (Dec. 5), Joe Conlin (Dec. 22)
Hampton, Connell Maynor (Nov. 20), Robert Prunty (Dec. 7)
Holy Cross, Tom Gilmore (Oct. 15), Bob Chesney (Dec. 14)
Incarnate Word, Larry Kennan (Nov. 27)
Mississippi Valley State, Rick Comegy (Nov. 20), Vincent Dancy (Dec. 19)
Morgan State, Fred Farrier (Dec. 18), Ernest Jones (interim, Dec. 18)
Montana, Bob Stitt (Nov. 20), Bobby Hauck (Dec. 1)
North Carolina Central, Jerry Mack (Dec. 8)
Northwestern State, Jay Thomas (Nov. 17), Brad Laird (Nov. 20)
Prairie View A&M, Willie Simmons (Dec. 9), Eric Dooley (Dec. 22)
Robert Morris, John Banaszak (Nov. 20), Bernard Clark (Dec. 19)
Tennessee Tech, Marcus Satterfield (Nov. 19), Dewayne Alexander (Dec. 22)
Wofford, Mike Ayers (Dec. 13)
Excellent. You found a more up-to-date list than I started with.

I had not seen that Alabama State had found a new coach. I probably should have mentioned Central Arkansas, but that was a case where a successful coach was hired away (by an FBS school) and replaced. The Morgan State case, with an interim actually named, is weird because it’s not clear whether or not they are still looking for a “permanent” coach.

The NC Central change is a new one that I did not catch because they had a pretty good year. I see the old coach moved to FBS Rice and had to be replaced.

The new coach at Prairie View A&M is another weird one, since that looks like it could be a sideways move for the old coach (to FAMU, but not confirmed).

Wofford also had a good year … but I see that the old coach has retired.

By my count then, that’s 14 new coaches, with 7 known to be looking (21/123 or 17% so far).

That still leaves all the coaches with bad records that I identified as possible candidates for "hit the road, Jack." ;) :lol:

Western Illinois' head coach is headed to Arizona State.
 
ordigger said:
IdaGriz01 said:
GrizLogger said:
http://www.fcs.football/cfb/story.asp?i=20171213160439525369304&ref=rec&tm=&src=FCS
(STATS) - FCS schools with head coaching changes since the start of the 2017 season, with school, former coach and new coach if applicable:

Alabama A&M, James Spady (Nov. 19)
Alabama State, Brian Jenkins (Oct. 6), Donald Hill-Eley (Dec. 7)
Arkansas-Pine Bluff, Monte Coleman (Nov. 20)
Central Arkansas, Steve Campbell (Dec. 7), Nathan Brown (Dec. 9)
Davidson, Paul Nichols (Nov. 27)
Delaware State, Kenny Carter (Nov. 20)
ETSU, Carl Torbush (Dec. 8), Randy Sanders (Dec. 17)
Florida A&M, Alex Wood (Nov. 20), Willie Simmons (Dec. 11)
Fordham, Andrew Breiner (Dec. 5), Joe Conlin (Dec. 22)
Hampton, Connell Maynor (Nov. 20), Robert Prunty (Dec. 7)
Holy Cross, Tom Gilmore (Oct. 15), Bob Chesney (Dec. 14)
Incarnate Word, Larry Kennan (Nov. 27)
Mississippi Valley State, Rick Comegy (Nov. 20), Vincent Dancy (Dec. 19)
Morgan State, Fred Farrier (Dec. 18), Ernest Jones (interim, Dec. 18)
Montana, Bob Stitt (Nov. 20), Bobby Hauck (Dec. 1)
North Carolina Central, Jerry Mack (Dec. 8)
Northwestern State, Jay Thomas (Nov. 17), Brad Laird (Nov. 20)
Prairie View A&M, Willie Simmons (Dec. 9), Eric Dooley (Dec. 22)
Robert Morris, John Banaszak (Nov. 20), Bernard Clark (Dec. 19)
Tennessee Tech, Marcus Satterfield (Nov. 19), Dewayne Alexander (Dec. 22)
Wofford, Mike Ayers (Dec. 13)
Excellent. You found a more up-to-date list than I started with.

I had not seen that Alabama State had found a new coach. I probably should have mentioned Central Arkansas, but that was a case where a successful coach was hired away (by an FBS school) and replaced. The Morgan State case, with an interim actually named, is weird because it’s not clear whether or not they are still looking for a “permanent” coach.

The NC Central change is a new one that I did not catch because they had a pretty good year. I see the old coach moved to FBS Rice and had to be replaced.

The new coach at Prairie View A&M is another weird one, since that looks like it could be a sideways move for the old coach (to FAMU, but not confirmed).

Wofford also had a good year … but I see that the old coach has retired.

By my count then, that’s 14 new coaches, with 7 known to be looking (21/123 or 17% so far).

That still leaves all the coaches with bad records that I identified as possible candidates for "hit the road, Jack." ;) :lol:
Western Illinois' head coach is headed to Arizona State.
Just saw that on STATS.com, based on "multiple sources." Now up to 22 likely changes ... and that one wasn't even on my radar.

Another note on STATS.com says that the new Prairie View A&M coach was "poached" from Grambling.
 
Including the reported (but not yet confirmed) move of the Western Illinois coach to Arizona State, we’re still sitting at 22 changes for FCS head coaches. (That’s almost one in five, BTW.)

I’ve been watching for more announcements but have not seen anything (and it’s getting real late). So I got to looking at some of the situations that look ripe for changes … and figured that by posting them perhaps someone who knows something might join in. In each case, the problem is flagged by a bad year in 2017.

Bucknell (5-6). Coach has been there since 2010 and has an overall record of 37-51. Apparently, winning doesn’t matter much.

Cal Poly (1-10). Did well for awhile since 2009, but he’s now 51-52 overall. Seems like the natives are a bit restless.

Northern Colorado (3-7). Coach has had plenty of time (2011 to now), but has won less than a third of his games (24-53). From what I read, he’s been “protected” by the NoCol President, but that individual is apparently about to retire. Could be trouble.

Cornell (3-7). Coach has been there since 2013, but his record sucks at 12-38. Not sure how he still has a job.

Rhode Island (3-8). Granted, the coach has had just three years (2014-2017), but he’s only won 7 games during that time (7-38 overall). I know RI has been bad for awhile, but this guy does not look like the answer to a prayer.

Missouri State (3-8). This guy is not a lot better, starting in 2015 and has only won 8 games (8-25 overall). I know it’s the super-tough MVFC, but c’mon!

Portland State (0-11). Started with a bang in 2015, but he now has a record of just 12-22 overall. Natives seem to be restless there too.
 
What About this guy???

VHVi2wN4.0.0.jpeg
 
Getting back on track: There's been one more change ... Arkansas-Pine Bluff hired the Alcorn State defensive coordinator to be their head coach. So the working list now looks like this:

New Coaches Selected (15)
Alabama State (5-6)
Ark-Pine Bluff (2-9)
Central Arkansas (10-2)
East Tenn State (4-7)
Florida A&M (3-8)
Fordham (4-7)
Hampton (6-5)
Holy Cross (4-7)
Miss. VSU (2-9)
Montana (7-4)
Morgan State (1-10) Still identified as Interim.
Northwestern State (4-7)
Prairie View A&M (6-5)
Robert Morris (2-9)
Tennessee Tech (1-10)

Searching for a Coach (6 + 1)
Alabama A&M (4-7)
Davidson (2-9)
Delaware State (2-9)
Incarnate Word (1-10)
Western Illinois (8-4) Rumor only, so far: Coach hired away by FBS Arizona State.
North Carolina C (7-4) Good year, but coach moved to FBS Rice.
Wofford (10-3) Successful coach retired.
 
I’ve been keeping track, in a general way, of the other places where it seems like the coach could be on his way out. But with the holidays, not much is happening. Still, I have found some interesting stuff.

Bucknell (5-6) has been a mystery. In eight years, their coach has compiled a record of 37-51. However, he does have a 2017 claim to fame: His team, although they ended up next to last in the pathetic Patriot League, was the only team in the conference with a winning OOC record. I guess that’s enough to save his job. But it won’t get any easier. The Bison graduate 19 seniors, including nine regular starters and six of their eight 2017 all-Patriot League selections.

Marist (4-7) is an even bigger mystery. The coach has been there since 1992, and has compiled a record of 132-138. Over the last fifteen years, they’ve had just three winning seasons, the last one in 2013. It’s clear that football is just an after-thought there. Their 2016 attendance averaged 2,207 -- #115 out of all 123 FCS programs. Seems like they’d be better off dropping football and replacing it with, say … wrestling, to retain their D-I status. Way, way cheaper to run and far fewer schollies required -- making it much easier to meet Title IX quotas.

The Cornell (3-7) coach has had five years to compile a 12-38 record. Yet he still has a job. Of course, his team did upset the pre-season Ivy League favorite, Princeton. Princeton ended up with a mediocre year, but apparently that upset is enough to save the coach’s job.

The Georgetown (1-10) coach has only had four years on the job, going 11-33. Of course, G-town is a basketball school, so maybe they don’t care a lot about football. So far, the program’s only response has been to fire their offensive coordinator. The big complaint is their inability to recruit top local talent, and that did not seem to go well during the early-signing period. If recruiting does not pick up, we might expect some news out of Georgetown.

Southeast Missouri State (3-8) is another program with a four-season coach, and he’s gone 15-30. But their expectation are so low there that, back in November, they gave the guy a two-year extension (WTF!). Since then, they have hired a new offensive coordinator.
 
no mention here of Danny Rocco-one of the more successful coaches as far as the carousel is concerned. Rocco started his FCS career at Liberty in 2005, after the Flames' 1-10 season. he led Liberty to 6 consecutive winning seasons including 4 Big South titles. then he jumped to Richmond and strung together 5 winning seasons from '12 to '16 including a share of two CAA South titles and three consecutive playoff appearances. somehow floundering Delaware was able to lure him away at the end of last year, where he has begun to turn the once mighty Blue Hens around by posting a 7-4 record there his first season. expect big things from Delaware in a couple of years...this guy knows how to recruit and knows how to win in the Colonial. a school with the resources of Delaware stands to improve dramatically.
 
IdaGriz01 said:
I’ve been keeping track, in a general way, of the other places where it seems like the coach could be on his way out. But with the holidays, not much is happening. Still, I have found some interesting stuff.

Bucknell (5-6) has been a mystery. In eight years, their coach has compiled a record of 37-51. However, he does have a 2017 claim to fame: His team, although they ended up next to last in the pathetic Patriot League, was the only team in the conference with a winning OOC record. I guess that’s enough to save his job. But it won’t get any easier. The Bison graduate 19 seniors, including nine regular starters and six of their eight 2017 all-Patriot League selections.

Marist (4-7) is an even bigger mystery. The coach has been there since 1992, and has compiled a record of 132-138. Over the last fifteen years, they’ve had just three winning seasons, the last one in 2013. It’s clear that football is just an after-thought there. Their 2016 attendance averaged 2,207 -- #115 out of all 123 FCS programs. Seems like they’d be better off dropping football and replacing it with, say … wrestling, to retain their D-I status. Way, way cheaper to run and far fewer schollies required -- making it much easier to meet Title IX quotas.

The Cornell (3-7) coach has had five years to compile a 12-38 record. Yet he still has a job. Of course, his team did upset the pre-season Ivy League favorite, Princeton. Princeton ended up with a mediocre year, but apparently that upset is enough to save the coach’s job.

The Georgetown (1-10) coach has only had four years on the job, going 11-33. Of course, G-town is a basketball school, so maybe they don’t care a lot about football. So far, the program’s only response has been to fire their offensive coordinator. The big complaint is their inability to recruit top local talent, and that did not seem to go well during the early-signing period. If recruiting does not pick up, we might expect some news out of Georgetown.

Southeast Missouri State (3-8) is another program with a four-season coach, and he’s gone 15-30. But their expectation are so low there that, back in November, they gave the guy a two-year extension (WTF!). Since then, they have hired a new offensive coordinator.

Georgetown has rigorous academic standards, and that may hinder their ability to recruit. They are up against the Ivies and lots of hotshot liberal arts schools in recruiting.


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IdaGriz01 said:
I’ve been keeping track, in a general way, of the other places where it seems like the coach could be on his way out. But with the holidays, not much is happening. Still, I have found some interesting stuff.

Bucknell (5-6) has been a mystery. In eight years, their coach has compiled a record of 37-51. However, he does have a 2017 claim to fame: His team, although they ended up next to last in the pathetic Patriot League, was the only team in the conference with a winning OOC record. I guess that’s enough to save his job. But it won’t get any easier. The Bison graduate 19 seniors, including nine regular starters and six of their eight 2017 all-Patriot League selections.

Marist (4-7) is an even bigger mystery. The coach has been there since 1992, and has compiled a record of 132-138. Over the last fifteen years, they’ve had just three winning seasons, the last one in 2013. It’s clear that football is just an after-thought there. Their 2016 attendance averaged 2,207 -- #115 out of all 123 FCS programs. Seems like they’d be better off dropping football and replacing it with, say … wrestling, to retain their D-I status. Way, way cheaper to run and far fewer schollies required -- making it much easier to meet Title IX quotas.

The Cornell (3-7) coach has had five years to compile a 12-38 record. Yet he still has a job. Of course, his team did upset the pre-season Ivy League favorite, Princeton. Princeton ended up with a mediocre year, but apparently that upset is enough to save the coach’s job.

The Georgetown (1-10) coach has only had four years on the job, going 11-33. Of course, G-town is a basketball school, so maybe they don’t care a lot about football. So far, the program’s only response has been to fire their offensive coordinator. The big complaint is their inability to recruit top local talent, and that did not seem to go well during the early-signing period. If recruiting does not pick up, we might expect some news out of Georgetown.

Southeast Missouri State (3-8) is another program with a four-season coach, and he’s gone 15-30. But their expectation are so low there that, back in November, they gave the guy a two-year extension (WTF!). Since then, they have hired a new offensive coordinator.

Georgetown has rigorous academic standards, and that may hinder their ability to recruit. They are up against the Ivies and lots of hotshot liberal arts schools in recruiting.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
 
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