The coaching carousel never stops turning in college football, and this list should inform you of the major moves to know before the 2024 season starts. All of these moves significantly impact college football futures odds at DraftKings Sportsbook.
2024 College Football’s Biggest Coaching Moves
Kalen DeBoer- From Washington Head Coach to Alabama Head Coach
There was no bigger change in college football this offseason than the departure of Nick Saban from Alabama. Saban was arguably the face of the entire sport and had the most dominant run of the 21st century.
Alabama decided to replace Saban with Kalen DeBoer after DeBoer led Washington to the National Championship game in his second season with the Huskies. DeBoer has had a meteoric rise in the sport. Fifteen years ago, he was an FCS coach. Ten years ago, he was an assistant at Eastern Michigan, and five years ago, he wasn’t even a head coach yet. Now, he is replacing a titan of the sport at one of the country’s premiere programs.
DeBoer doesn’t have the name recognition or prestige of Nick Saban when it comes to the recruiting front, but you will struggle to find a better offensive mind in the sport. DeBoer is a proven winner everywhere he goes, but his biggest immediate impact could be bringing QB Jalen Milroe’s game to the next level.
Chip Kelly- From UCLA Head Coach to Ohio State Offensive Coordinator
Ohio State believes they have a National Championship-level team and is going all-in this offseason. Michigan is in a transition year with the departures of Jim Harbaugh, JJ McCarthy, and many other NFL talents. That included paying big money to bring in Chip Kelly as their OC.
It’s rare for a head coach to leave a major program like UCLA to be a coordinator at another program, but Kelly said he was tired of the duties of a head coach and just wanted to focus on coaching offense. Kelly has had an up-and-down career between his college and NFL ventures, but Ohio State believes he is the right fit for this job.
Chip Kelly is a great run-game schemer, making him a great fit for the personnel here. Will Howard is a great runner at QB, and Quinshon Judkins and Treveyon Henderson are among the best running back duos in the nation. Only time will tell if everything clicks in place, but Ohio State has done everything to put together the right team to compete this year.
Jedd Fisch- From Arizona Head Coach to Washington Head Coach
Kalen DeBoer departed Washington, leaving that job vacant as Washington heads to the Big Ten. Jedd Fisch just had a huge year at Arizona, where he coached one of the country’s best offenses. Fisch jumped at the opportunity to coach at Washington, where he believes he has a better chance to win a national title than he did at Arizona.
It is certainly a transition year for Washington as Fisch replaced DeBoer and Michael Penix Jr. left for the NFL. However, Washington did secure Will Rogers from Mississippi State at quarterback, and Fisch hired Steve Belichick from the Patriots as his defensive coordinator.
It could be a tough first year in the Big Ten as the team transitions to a new era, but Jedd Fisch has a bright offensive mind and should do well long-term at this job.
Sherrone Moore- From Michigan Offensive Coordinator to Michigan Head Coach
Another massive departure from the college football world was revealed when Jim Harbaugh took the Chargers’ head coaching job. Harbaugh had just won a National Championship at Michigan, but he claimed he was ready for a new challenge. Surely, the incoming sanctions on Michigan and Harbaugh, some of which have already been announced, also played a major role in this decision.
However, Michigan is trying to maintain some continuity by promoting Sherrone Moore, who also acted as the interim head coach when Harbaugh was suspended last season. It is also worth monitoring to see if Moore faces any sanctions or suspensions in the coming months.
Controversy aside, Michigan players love Sherrone Moore, as evidenced when he filled in as head coach last season. He also has a great offensive mind, especially in the run game. It is certainly a transition year for Michigan, but Moore should embrace this role long-term and succeed.
Mike Elko- From Duke Head Coach to Texas A&M Head Coach
This was one of the best hires of the offseason. Texas A&M has been in a rut under Jimbo Fisher, and after a run of disappointing seasons, they have finally decided to make a change.
Mike Elko was the perfect hire. He was formerly the defensive coordinator at Texas A&M, so he is already well-liked by fans and boosters. He also proved that he can run a program incredibly well with what he did at Duke. He turned them from a bottom-tier ACC program into a real contender in just a few years.
Elko now has the backing of one of the biggest NIL collectives in the country in prime recruiting territory. Texas A&M has a chance to start winning right away and is a dark horse candidate to make the playoffs this year. However, long-term, I think this is definitely a home-run hire for the Aggies.
Curt Cignetti- From JMU Head Coach to Indiana Head Coach
Similarly to Kalen DeBoer, Curt Cignetti is a rising star in the sport. Similarly to DeBoer, his rise has taken him to the Indiana Hoosiers. Cignetti was a head coach at a Division II school less than 10 years ago before taking the Elon job at the FCS level and, most recently, the JMU job in 2019.
Cignetti led the Dukes as they transitioned from FCS to FBS football. He found immediate success at the FBS level, which rarely ever happens. He had JMU playing like one of the best Group of Five teams in the country, which secured him this job at Indiana.
Cignetti brought a large chunk of his coaching staff and players from JMU to Indiana. This will make the transition much easier for Cignetti, and I expect him to hit the ground running at Indiana. Their talent doesn’t have them towards the top of the Big Ten, but I expect Cignetti to exceed expectations at Indiana for a couple of seasons before getting a big-time job somewhere.
Andy Kotelnicki- From Kansas Offensive Coordinator to Penn State Offensive Coordinator
Chip Kelly got all the headlines, but I think this was the best coordinator hire in the Big Ten this offseason. James Franklin has struggled to get this Penn State offense going over the past few seasons and decided to change things up with this hire. Kotelnicki has been the offensive coordinator at Kansas over the past three seasons and turned their offense into one of the best in the nation.
Drew Allar has been touted as a potential superstar quarterback, but his talent was not properly utilized last season. James Franklin and Penn State fans hope that Kotelnicki will unlock everything that Drew Allar can do.
Blake Baker- From Missouri Defensive Coordinator to LSU Defensive Coordinator
This is the first of two examples of how program prestige and money can sway coaches even within the same conference. Over the last two seasons, Blake Baker turned Missouri into one of the best defenses in the country. Now, he returns to his Louisiana roots (he played football at Tulane) to try to fix the LSU defense.
Last year, Jayden Daniels won the Heisman, and LSU had a ridiculously explosive offense. However, they failed to reach their potential because their defense was historically bad. Brian Kelly hopes that Blake Baker can come in and immediately impact this defense.
D’Anton Lynn- From UCLA Defensive Coordinator to USC Defensive Coordinator
Alex Grinch was Lincoln Riley’s defensive coordinator over the last few seasons at both USC and Oklahoma. He was widely criticized for years for the USC defense’s poor performances. Even an average defense would likely have seen USC make the Playoff with Caleb Williams.
Riley finally decided to move on from Grinch this offseason and hired D’Anton Lynn from UCLA. Lynn is the son of former Chargers head coach Anthony Lynn and had extensive NFL coaching experience before taking the UCLA DC job last season. He immediately took a bottom-tier defense and made it the 11th-best defense in the nation by total yardage.
Riley hopes that despite losing Caleb Williams, his team can improve this year because of the jump they could make on the defensive side of the ball. USC has a decent amount of talent on the defensive side of the ball, so Lynn could immediately turn around their numbers just like he did at UCLA.
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