Lincoln Riley to USC, Full 2021 College Football Head Coaching Carousel Tracker

Out: Clay Helton
In: Lincoln Riley

The Trojans made the most shocking hire of the coaching cycle over the weekend, luring Riley from Oklahoma. Speculation swelled around Riley’s name in recent weeks, but the rumor mill largely focused on the LSU vacancy.

Instead, USC backed up a Brinks truck and landed arguably the most coveted young coach in the country to revive its program. The Trojans have finished as a top-five team only once in the last decade and have not seriously competed for a championship since Pete Carroll’s departure after the 2009 season.

Riley brings with him a 55-10 career record as a head coach and a reputation as perhaps the sport’s brightest offensive innovator. Oklahoma produced two Heisman winners (Baker Mayfield and Kyler Murray) and a finalist (Jalen Hurts) in Riley’s five seasons with the program. The Sooners never lost more than two games in a season under Riley. 

Oklahoma

Out: Lincoln Riley
In: TBD

Riley’s departure leaves a major hole in Norman, one that will almost certainly be filled with a splashy hire. Oklahoma can ill-afford to take a step backward as the program prepares to join the SEC in 2025, and the Sooners administration will want to find a coach who can spearhead the next era.

Bob Stoops will coach Oklahoma in its upcoming bowl game, and it’s possible the 61-year-old still has the itch. Stoops briefly returned to coaching in 2020 as part of the XFL reboot and has maintained close ties to the Oklahoma program. While he’s not exactly young, Stoops is nine years younger than Nick Saban.

Another name worth monitoring: Tennessee coach Josh Heupel, a former Sooners quarterback who led the program to a national title and served as an assistant under Stoops from 2006 to 2014. 

LSU

Out: Ed Orgeron
In: TBD

Thought to be the most coveted job on the market, LSU has seemingly found tepid waters as it searches for Orgeron’s replacement. USC poached the Tigers’ oft-rumored primary target in Riley, and LSU saw Florida create and fill its vacancy in the span of a week.

LSU has known Orgeron would not return for the 2022 season since Oct. 17 and does not appear close to making a hire. It’s clear the administration wants to make a major splash here, so don’t be surprised if LSU takes its time to make sure the program lands the right name.

Worth noting: The last three full-time coaches at LSU won a national title. This is a prime job. 

Florida

Out: Dan Mullen
In: Billy Napier

It did not take long for Dan Mullen to wear out his welcome in Gainesville. After finishing no worse than 13th in the final Associated Press poll his first three seasons, Mullen was fired after a disappointing 5-6 record in 2021. 

Patience is not a virtue in SEC football, and Mullen found out the hard way that one down season can lead to your departure. 

Napier, who cut his teeth under Dabo Swinney and Nick Saban, was an instant success in his first head-coaching job at Louisiana. The Rajun’ Cajuns went a combined 32-5 over the last three seasons to emerge as the juggernaut of the Sun Belt Conference. Before Napier’s arrival, Lousiana had never won 10 games in a season; it’s now done so three straight years.

TCU

Out: Gary Patterson
In: Sonny Dykes

Patterson is a bonafide TCU legend, but it was time for a change. The Horned Frogs haven’t finished with more than seven wins since 2017, and Patterson’s faced a clear uphill battle recruiting against Big 12 competition. While Patterson deserves credit for building TCU into a program that attracted Big 12 recruitment, the administration wanted someone who can potentially take the team to the next level.

Enter Dykes, who was considered the favorite to replace Patterson throughout the search process. The 52-year-old is coming off a successful four-year run at SMU, leading the Mustangs to bowl eligibility each of the last three seasons.

TCU is Dykes’ second run at coaching a Power Five program. He previously went 19-30 in four years at Cal.

Washington

Out: Jimmy Lake
In: TBD

Out: Matt Wells
In: Joey McGuire

Texas Tech made sure its next head coach had strong ties to the state. McGuire is a UT Arlington grad who spent 14 seasons as the head coach at Cedar Hill (TX) High School before moving to the college ranks with Baylor. He most recently served as the associate head coach and outside linebackers coach under Dave Aranda.

Texas Tech has not won more than six games in a season since 2015. The program has not been well-run since Mike Leach’s departure, as evidenced by Kliff Kingsbury finding success in the NFL despite being fired from his post in Lubbock.

McGuire will have his work cut out getting the program back into consistent Big 12 contention. 

Duke

Out: David Cutcliffe

In: TBD

Cutcliffe and Duke mutually agreed to part ways after the team concluded a 3-9 season over the weekend. The Peyton Manning-endorsed coach will likely head into retirement after a 14-year tenure that included six bowl appearances.

The Blue Devils will likely focus on a young coordinator who can use the program as a stepping stone to a larger job. Duke’s football program has consistently struggled to maintain the success of its basketball program, something that does not appear to be changing anytime soon.