The college football regular season has completed its 12-game course for most teams, which means that the coaching transactions are flying fast and furious across the country. Vacancies are opening in some places and are being filled in others. Texas A&M fired coach Kevin Sumlin on Sunday, creating an opening at a high-profile program which is either an elite job or a thankless job, depending on a person’s individual perspective. The big story attached to Texas A&M is that the Aggies are pursuing a superstar head coach. Everyone is waiting what he will do, and then the context of the job will become more apparent in one way or another.
Jimbo Fisher, Head Coach, Florida State
The college football world is nervous and on edge. People are beginning to think that this might really happen. Jimbo Fisher, coach of the 2013 national champion Florida State Seminoles, who has resurrected a proud program and made it a regular winner – this year being a notable exception – is reportedly considering going to Texas A&M. Fisher and his staff have been paid very handsomely at Florida State. Money is not his object. He is not leaving so that he can make a pile of money, because he is already making bank at Florida State. What might lure Fisher out of Tallahassee is a desire to have a fresh start and build something new. More specifically, Fisher would be able to be a head coach in the SEC after being the offensive coordinator for Nick Saban’s national championship team at LSU in 2003. Winning a national title in the SEC at a program other than LSU or Saban’s current team, Alabama, might appeal to him as a challenge to tackle in his career. If Fisher takes the job, Florida State would not be guaranteed a home-run hire. The Seminoles could fall into a very precarious position.
We will see what Fisher does. If he rejects the job, then the next three candidates below could fit into the coaching search.
Brent Venables, Defensive Coordinator, Clemson
A national championship-winning defensive coordinator with experience under Bob Stoops and Oklahoma before Dabo Swinney and Clemson would come across as a very attractive hire for A&M, a school which thinks of itself as an elite college football school. Venables has experience, he has won big, and he is looking for his first head coaching gig. Venables would not need to worry about working his way up the ladder. This would be a top-tier job and a place where he could greatly enhance his reputation if the Aggies thrive under his leaderhip.
Mike Gundy, Head Coach, Oklahoma State
Gundy always seems to come up in coaching searches. People laugh off the idea that he will leave Oklahoma State, and that might still be true here. Nevertheless, a loss to Oklahoma late in the season might give Gundy second thoughts about being able to win at a higher rate at another program. Bigger surprises have taken place in the past, that’s for sure. The late-season loss to Kansas State might have given Gundy just enough hesitancy to think about his other options.
Willie Taggart, Head Coach, Oregon
If Jimbo Fisher leaves for A&M, Taggart will be one of the first candidates mentioned for Florida State. However, if Fisher stays at FSU, Taggart could be seriously considered by the Aggies. He has coached around the country at three different schools. He would be an excellent recruiter, the key question being his selection of coordinators. Many people would regard Taggart as an excellent hire under the circumstances, but will the coaching search last that long?
In an odd twist, it appears that the Florida State Seminoles have begun doing their background on Willie Taggart as a possible head coach replacement of their own. Remember that he coached at South Florida and did very well there, so he knows the area very well. The Seminoles might feel like Fisher is on his way out and if so, Taggart could be the man they target as a replacement.
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