The college football coaching carousel is currently at full tilt. It seems that the transfer portal, NIL, coach firings, and which coach will end up where has sadly overshadowed Saturday box scores and AP ranking storylines. Head coaching jobs are opening right and left, the candidate pool is growing, and it is leaving some programs see-sawing between whether or not to join in on the chaos. 

Athletic directors around the country are debating if they should print their college football head coaching Power(4)Ball lottery tickets while also deciding whether or not to cash out their current coaches’ MegaMillions buyout slips. You can’t win if you don’t play, right? Right??

Let’s take a look at which programs are turning off their “No Vacancy” sign. 

Couldn’t Make It To August 1st:

Troy Taylor – Stanford Head Coach (6-18, two seasons) – Fired March 25, 2025

According to ESPN, Taylor was dismissed a week after ESPN reported that two outside firms had found he bullied and belittled female athletic staffers, sought to have an NCAA compliance officer removed after she warned him of rules violations and repeatedly made "inappropriate" comments to another woman about her appearance.

Kenni Burns – Kent State Head Coach (1-23 in two seasons) – Fired April 15, 2025

Damn, ol’ boy couldn’t even make it to the Easter 2025. Why? Well, first off, he wasn’t any good, like plenty of past coaches at Kent State. Though it wasn’t his coaching ability that got him fired. Burns was burning through his university sponsored credit card for personal use. He was placed on administrative leave with pay March 27, a couple of days before the start of spring practice and fired by mid-April. 

Wake Me Up When September Ends: 

Brent Pry – Virginia Tech Head Coach (16-24, four seasons) – Fired September 14, 2025

According to ESPN, Pry entered the year on the hot seat after the Hokies finished 6-6 in each of the past two regular seasons, and though losses to South Carolina (24-11) and Vanderbilt (44-20) didn't help his cause, an embarrassing 45-26 home defeat to in-state rival Old Dominion was the last straw. The defeat left Virginia Tech 0-3 for the first time since 1987. Ouch. 

DeShaun Foster – UCLA Head Coach (5-10, two seasons) – Fired September 14, 2025

The UCLA alumna didn’t last two seasons for the Bruins. While a big and well-known name, Foster was sent packing after an 0-3 start to the 2025 season. Foster, while a great running back for UCLA and for the Texans, couldn’t seem to replicate his own success on the field as a head coach. Will he get another chance somewhere else? 

Mike Gundy – Oklahoma State Head Coach (170-90, 21 seasons) – Fired September 23, 2025

Past his prime? Stubborn? Passion no longer? NIL not his style? There have been many takes on former Cowboys Head Coach, Mike Gundy. The former mullet sporting head coach has insinuated he’s not done coaching, but where? Mike’s brother, and former beloved OU running back coach, Cale Gundy, stated they’d end up at the same program. Will the Gundy pair flirt with a Power 4 program or could we see the Gundy bros rockin’ mid-major gear next year?

Sam Pittman - Arkansas Razorbacks Head Coach (32-34, six seasons) - Fired September 28, 2025

Pittman was fired at the end of September after six seasons in Fayetteville. Arkansas could never really get it off the ground with Pittman as the head guy, unfortunately. The future for Sam Pittman? I believe he’s near the age where he may just hang it up and retire. If so, hold up an ol’ col beer and cheers to Sam Pittman. 

 Axed in October:

Trent Dilfer – UAB Head Coach (9-21, three seasons) – Fired October 12, 2025 

Dilfer, despite being an NFL quarterback, never showed any promise in being a college football head coach. He took over the Blazers in 2022 but had never really got the Blazers off the ground. Dilfer had previously coached high school football in Nashville, but his time as a college football head coach, in Birmingham, AL, did not work out so swell.  

Trent Bray – Oregon State Head Coach (5-14, two seasons) – Fired October 12, 2025

Bray was dismissed with the Beavers winless in their first seven games. It was the worst start for Oregon State since 1991, when it started 0-10. Bray didn’t receive much leeway from his alma mater.

James Franklin – Penn State Head Coach (104-45, 12 seasons) – Fired October 12, 2025

The landscape changed when Franklin was fired, truthfully speaking. It raised the bar for any and all college football programs to justify firing their head coach. If Penn State, who was a few plays away from the National Championship game last year, can fire their coach after a 3-game losing streak, then so can everyone else. Franklin’s firing was a huge turning point. 

Jay Norvell – Colorado State Head Coach (18-26, four seasons)– Fired October 19, 2025

According to ESPN, Norvell was dismissed after the Rams fell to 2-5 following a loss to Hawaii. He came to Colorado State from Nevada, where he went 33-26 and guided teams to four consecutive bowl appearances. Colorado State has one winning season since 2017, which came last fall when the team went 8-5 and reached the Arizona Bowl.

Billy Napier – Florida Head Coach (22-23, four seasons) – Fired October 19, 2025

We knew this one was coming, though being fired after a win was a little bit surprising. The Gators from Gainesville fell victim to the possibility of the college football head coaching lottery tickets, I believe. Napier wasn’t going to survive the season, but his firing after some decent wins, including Texas, was maybe a bit too soon this season. 

Brian Kelly – Louisiana State (LSU) Head Coach (34-14, four seasons) – Fired October, 26, 2025

After Kelly was let go by LSU, many spoke out about how bad of a person he was/is and how bad he treated his players. That was not necessarily a surprise, because Kelly was infamously known for throwing his players under the bus in the post-game press conferences. If future programs put importance on character and team building, I don’t believe Kelly will be considered for those teams. Kelly negotiated a buyout with LSU for a bit cheaper than he was due, but he will command a pretty penny at any school that decides to bring him in and take the BK risk.