Updated Offensive Coordinator Candidates

[MMcCormick]

Updated List. I eliminated name that I don't think are realistic do to retention or salary limitations.

Eliminated Names: Seth Litrell, Phillip Montgomery, Justin Fuentes, Matt Luke, Sterlin Gilbert.

1. Tim Cramsey - Offensive Coordinator at Marshall coming off excellent year. Has been retained across two coaches at Marshall which is unusual. He's been a productive and sometimes record breaking offensive coordinator at five different schools. Marshall's offense gets better with every year he is there. This year it averaged 35 pts a game with a balanced run pass attack. Has had two years where his teams scored over 40 points a game at prior stops. Has a balanced run and pass offense. He's also a quarterbacks coach. Unlike other targets this one is affordable and is probably the most attainable under the radar type hire the Hoosiers could make.

2. Zack Kittley - Western Kentucky OC - has broken records with Western Kentucky's offense after doing the same as a head coach of Houston Baptist. Not much run game to speak of but his offense scored 41 points a game this year and was third in yards per play. He would be a short term answer as he's a likely head coach candidate. IU would have to be willing to go with an air raid spread which has not delivered as many wins as run game spreads.

3. Frank Ponce - App State Offensive Coordinator - First year offensive coordinator did a great job at App State. Highly regarded QB coach. Offense averaged 450 yards and 36 pts a game.

4. Willy Korn - OC at Coastal Carolina - Having an awful lot of success at Coastal Carolina. Question is whether the head coach who is heavily involved with the offense is the real genius here. Top OC's under offensive minded coaches tend to do well, but it's never a sure thing when the head coach is also heavily involved in the offense.

5. Barry Lunney Jr. Lunney has had two very strong years at OC at UTSA. Has the strangest resume in that he was a college offensive coordinator then became a high school offensive coordinator for eight years, then a college position coach then a college OC. He is highly regarded and was Arkansas's head coach for two games. Offense averaged 6 yards a play, 440 a game with 38 pts a game.

6. Eric Eidsness - Northern Illinois Keep an eye on this name. This guy is a serious up and comer who has done wonders at Northern Illinois. His offense has been very balanced. Was OC for six years at South Dakota State and oversaw record breaking offenses during this period. Has a very balanced spread attack. He coaches under a coach who was never an OC so I think Eidsness truly coordinates this offense unlike other candidates who are "right hand man" type coaches.

7. Ryan Grubb OC Fresno State - If you can't get Kalen Deboer maybe you get his protege. Grubb would be a strong candidate for three reasons. The first is that he's a long time line coach and if you hired the wrong line coach he's going to know how to step in and fix that. His teams allowed less than a sack a game for the past three seasons. He's also now the QB coach so he's got a very unusual background. And of course he coaches with Deboer so our players will know both his offense and his terminology. He coached two really good offensive coaches. Only question is whether he's a right hand man or the leader of the offense. Deboer is a front runner at Washington which probably rules Grubb out.


8. Anthony Tucker - Utah State OC. Former OC for Josh Heupel at UCF who has vastly improved Utah State's offense in his first year on the job. Pass heavy offense. Offense went from 15pts a game in the year before he got there to 32 a game this year. Had very balanced offenses at UCF. An ex running backs coach who coordinated the passing game at UCF.

10. Mike Thiessen OC Air Force. An unconventional pick for a school that might need an unconventional approach. Been an OC for a long time. Offenses are run heavy option hybrid that eat up clock and protect the defense. Has lead to an awful lot of wins.

11. . Sam Gregg - Liberty Offensive Line Coach - Former Offensive Coordinator at West Georgia for six years. Coached under a great offensive mind at Liberty and has a decade of former OC experience. Might be a strong candidate because of his background as both a coordinator and a line coach. Might kill two birds with one stone or hedge against another bad line coach hire.

12. Robert Weiner

13. Andrew Breiner - FIU - Offense has been productive for FIU on a terrible team. Joe Moorhead's former offensive coordinator at Mississipi State. An up and comer type coach. His current team is pass heavy. Not very balanced. Does not have the experience of some of the other candidates, but he's highly regarded. He had a solid year on a team that was falling apart. Admirable job.

14. Justin Frye - UCLA Offensive Coordinator Former IU player. Unlikely to leave an OC job at UCLA. Ranked lower because he's an unlikely candidate.

15. Brian Hartline - Ohio State Receivers Coach - Elite Elite recruiter. Is coaching under one of the best offensive minds in the country. Downside is no offensive coordinator experience. Would certainly fix our receivers though. He's viewed as a future coaching star and should at least be interviewed.

 

[Sobchak_Security]

What do you think about Tom Herman?

 

[MMcCormick]

What do you think about Tom Herman?

Would be a really strong hire.

 

[secondasky]

Updated "The List" with some bios. Building as we do. Let me know if I forgot anybody. Started to rank them by "Best Hires"

1. Seth Litrell - North Texas - Elite record as an offensive coordinator. 50-50 that he will be fired. Has coached at Indiana before with great success. Might be scooped up by a bigger school as he's got a great track record with offenses. Offenses at North Texas have been strong. Defenses have been terrible. Really balanced offenses with strong running games. Record setting offenses at Indiana and then UNC. Really balanced attack with a focus on the run game.

2. Phillip Montgomery - Tulsa - This one might be a good fit. Montgomery is likely to be fired and he was part of the Art Briles coaching tree and is former offensive coordinator at Baylor. Has shown balanced offenses in Briles run heavy spread. Everybody who coached under Briles seems to have the magic when it comes to offense. (Jeff Lebby at Ole Miss, Kendall Briles at Arkansas, Dino Baber, Sean Lewis under Babers).

3. Justin Fuente - Va Tech - Likely to be fired. Long time track record as a top offensive mind. Has shown the ability to both run the ball and pass. Seems likely to go to a major SEC school as his next stop. The kind of coach who coordinates for Nick Saban on a rejuvenation tour.

4. Tom Herman

4. Eric Eidsness - Northern Illinois Keep an eye on this name. This guy is a serious up and comer who has done wonders at Northern Illinois. His offense has been very balanced. Was OC for six years at South Dakota State and oversaw record breaking offenses during this period. Has a very balanced spread attack. He coaches under a coach who was never an OC so I think Eidsness truly coordinates this offense unlike other candidates who are "right hand man" type coaches.

5. Willy Korn - OC at Coastal Carolina - Having an awful lot of success at Coastal Carolina. Question is whether the head coach who is heavily involved with the offense is the real genius here. Top OC's under offensive minded coaches tend to do well, but it's never a sure thing when the head coach is also heavily involved in the offense.

6. Andrew Sowder -Offensive Coordinator - Kent State - Coaching under Sean Lewis one of the best offensive minds in college football. Lewis is a former Dino Babers OC and Babers is from the Art Briles coaching tree. Like most Briles spreads his offenses are run heavy. With an offensive head coach there is a question whether Sean Lewis or Sowder is the driving force behind this operation.

7. Anthony Tucker - Utah State OC. Former OC for Josh Heupel at UCF who has vastly improved Utah State's offense in his first year on the job. Pass heavy offense. Offense went from 15pts a game in the year before he got there to 32 a game this year. Had very balanced offenses at UCF. An ex running backs coach who coordinated the passing game at UCF.

8. . Sam Gregg - Liberty Offensive Line Coach - Former Offensive Coordinator at West Georgia for six years. Coached under a great offensive mind at Liberty and has a decade of former OC experience. Might be a strong candidate because of his background as both a coordinator and a line coach. Might kill two birds with one stone or hedge against another bad line coach hire.

9. Zack Kittley - Western Kentucky OC - has broken records with Western Kentucky's offense after doing the same as a head coach of Houston Baptist. He's a Leach air raid disciple and my prefer tree is Art Briles with the run spread, but he's put up point in batches. His offense puts a big strain on a defense as they don't use up much clock. Only downside is the air raid is not a cold weather friendly offense.

10. Andrew Breiner - FIU - Offense has been productive for FIU on a terrible team. Joe Moorhead's former offensive coordinator at Mississipi State. An up and comer type coach. His current team is pass heavy. Not very balanced. Does not have the experience of some of the other candidates, but he's highly regarded.

11. Justin Frye - UCLA Offensive Coordinator Former IU player. Unlikely to leave an OC job at UCLA. Ranked lower because he's an unlikely candidate.

12. Brian Hartline - Ohio State Receivers Coach - Elite Elite recruiter. Is coaching under one of the best offensive minds in the country. Downside is no offensive coordinator experience. Would certainly fix our receivers though.

13. Matt Drinkall - Tight Ends Coach Army - Former Head Coach and Offensive Coordinator with great success at small schools. Highly regarded at Army. Strong recruiter.

Joe Jon Finley - Tight Ends Coach Oklahoma

Brennan Marion - Pitt Receivers Coach - Former Offensive Coordinator

Nate Sheelhasse - Iowa State Offensive Line Coach

I like Littrell. He was responsible for bring Nate Sudfield to IU. Probably only a temporary hire until he gets another HC job.

 

[welshman#]

Updated "The List" with some bios. Building as we do. Let me know if I forgot anybody. Started to rank them by "Best Hires"

1. Seth Litrell - North Texas - Elite record as an offensive coordinator. 50-50 that he will be fired. Has coached at Indiana before with great success. Might be scooped up by a bigger school as he's got a great track record with offenses. Offenses at North Texas have been strong. Defenses have been terrible. Really balanced offenses with strong running games. Record setting offenses at Indiana and then UNC. Really balanced attack with a focus on the run game.

2. Phillip Montgomery - Tulsa - This one might be a good fit. Montgomery is likely to be fired and he was part of the Art Briles coaching tree and is former offensive coordinator at Baylor. Has shown balanced offenses in Briles run heavy spread. Everybody who coached under Briles seems to have the magic when it comes to offense. (Jeff Lebby at Ole Miss, Kendall Briles at Arkansas, Dino Baber, Sean Lewis under Babers).

3. Justin Fuente - Va Tech - Likely to be fired. Long time track record as a top offensive mind. Has shown the ability to both run the ball and pass. Seems likely to go to a major SEC school as his next stop. The kind of coach who coordinates for Nick Saban on a rejuvenation tour.

4. Tom Herman

4. Eric Eidsness - Northern Illinois Keep an eye on this name. This guy is a serious up and comer who has done wonders at Northern Illinois. His offense has been very balanced. Was OC for six years at South Dakota State and oversaw record breaking offenses during this period. Has a very balanced spread attack. He coaches under a coach who was never an OC so I think Eidsness truly coordinates this offense unlike other candidates who are "right hand man" type coaches.

5. Willy Korn - OC at Coastal Carolina - Having an awful lot of success at Coastal Carolina. Question is whether the head coach who is heavily involved with the offense is the real genius here. Top OC's under offensive minded coaches tend to do well, but it's never a sure thing when the head coach is also heavily involved in the offense.

6. Andrew Sowder -Offensive Coordinator - Kent State - Coaching under Sean Lewis one of the best offensive minds in college football. Lewis is a former Dino Babers OC and Babers is from the Art Briles coaching tree. Like most Briles spreads his offenses are run heavy. With an offensive head coach there is a question whether Sean Lewis or Sowder is the driving force behind this operation.

7. Anthony Tucker - Utah State OC. Former OC for Josh Heupel at UCF who has vastly improved Utah State's offense in his first year on the job. Pass heavy offense. Offense went from 15pts a game in the year before he got there to 32 a game this year. Had very balanced offenses at UCF. An ex running backs coach who coordinated the passing game at UCF.

8. . Sam Gregg - Liberty Offensive Line Coach - Former Offensive Coordinator at West Georgia for six years. Coached under a great offensive mind at Liberty and has a decade of former OC experience. Might be a strong candidate because of his background as both a coordinator and a line coach. Might kill two birds with one stone or hedge against another bad line coach hire.

9. Zack Kittley - Western Kentucky OC - has broken records with Western Kentucky's offense after doing the same as a head coach of Houston Baptist. He's a Leach air raid disciple and my prefer tree is Art Briles with the run spread, but he's put up point in batches. His offense puts a big strain on a defense as they don't use up much clock. Only downside is the air raid is not a cold weather friendly offense.

10. Andrew Breiner - FIU - Offense has been productive for FIU on a terrible team. Joe Moorhead's former offensive coordinator at Mississipi State. An up and comer type coach. His current team is pass heavy. Not very balanced. Does not have the experience of some of the other candidates, but he's highly regarded.

11. Justin Frye - UCLA Offensive Coordinator Former IU player. Unlikely to leave an OC job at UCLA. Ranked lower because he's an unlikely candidate.

12. Brian Hartline - Ohio State Receivers Coach - Elite Elite recruiter. Is coaching under one of the best offensive minds in the country. Downside is no offensive coordinator experience. Would certainly fix our receivers though.

13. Matt Drinkall - Tight Ends Coach Army - Former Head Coach and Offensive Coordinator with great success at small schools. Highly regarded at Army. Strong recruiter.

Joe Jon Finley - Tight Ends Coach Oklahoma

Brennan Marion - Pitt Receivers Coach - Former Offensive Coordinator

Nate Sheelhasse - Iowa State Offensive Line Coach

Here are some I mentioned the other day, both for OC and as possible position coaches:

if Allen were to look for new coaches in the off-season I assume he would continue his pattern of going with guys he already knows whenever possible

for example, I wouldn't be surprised if his first feeler/offer for a new OC might be sent to someone like Maurice Harris: https://www.liberty.edu/flames/staff/maurice-harris/
since he and Harris already worked together IIRC at both Arky State and Ole Miss, and Liberty's overall offense is one of the best in the FBS this year (one caveat: Harris is a WR guy, not a QB coach)

if Allen ends up in the market for a WR coach maybe he talks to Coach Creighton about a guy who was a player at Arky State when Allen coached there, RJ Fleming: https://emueagles.com/sports/football/roster/coaches/rj-fleming/1642

OL might be a little trickier since the OL coach Allen was with at USF, Danny Hope (yes, that Danny Hope), has apparently retired and the OL when Allen was at Ole Miss was Matt Luke, who now coaches for Kirby Smart at Georgia. Allen might have to go outside his comfort zone and, for example, maybe go after a guy like Matt Mattox: https://goutsa.com/sports/football/roster/coaches/matt-mattox/1048 or perhaps Nick Tabacca since he's coached at both Butler and Ball State: https://godeacs.com/sports/football/roster/coaches/nick-tabacca/744

if Harris weren't interested in joining Allen's staff as OC, one guy I'd like to see TA go after is UVA's QB coach Jason Beck: https://virginiasports.com/sports/football/roster/season/2021-22/coach/jason-beck/ because UVA's passing and total offense stats are outstanding this season and IIRC he's only making about $300,000

another guy who might be worth a look for OC is Anthony Tucker: https://utahstateaggies.com/sports/football/roster/coaches/anthony-tucker/573

and his WR coach might be worth consideration as a position coach too--Kyle Cefalo: https://utahstateaggies.com/sports/football/roster/coaches/kyle-cefalo/570

one guy who I think would potentially qualify at either WR or QB coach is Clint Trickett: https://herdzone.com/sports/football/roster/coaches/clint-trickett/623

a name that's been mentioned in the past for obvious reasons (he's really more of an OL coach than QB coach but could still be an OC) is Ryan Grubb: https://gobulldogs.com/sports/football/roster/coaches/ryan-grubb/2240

Seth Littrell's name has also been brought up in the event he's let go at UNT. If he's interested in returning to Bloomington and willing to take a 50-60% pay cut (he's currently making $2 Mil IIRC) it might be worth consideration.

And as long as potentially fired coaches are being considered, if Jake Spavital is fired this season, he might be worth a look (currently making $800,000 I think): https://txstatebobcats.com/sports/football/roster/coaches/jake-spavital/1376 but I'd expect Tex State to give him one more year

Some of us mentioned this guy when DeBoer left, Keith Heckendorf: https://astateredwolves.com/sports/football/roster/coaches/keith-heckendorf/705

another guy who will be heavily pursued if Ariz State fires Herm Edwards is Zak Hill: https://thesundevils.com/sports/football/roster/coaches/zak-hill/4466

 

[Nieman]

Fuente would probably be a pipe dream

 

[welshman#]

Fuente would probably be a pipe dream

He’ll probably end up on Saban’s staff as a well-paid “offensive analyst”

 

[Hoosiers47614]

Litrell makes a lot of sense given his familiarity with Indiana as a program, even if not with Tom Allen.
Montgomery would be a really good hire if he was actually available and interested, IMO.
Fuente seems completely unrealistic, as does Tom Herman. Can't imagine they'd be interested.

Absolutely do not want Kittley. Indiana has been there and done that with his style of offense, and all available evidence shows that the only thing it is really good for at the P5 level is putting up a lot of empty points and softening up your own defense for the other team by never giving them any rest at all, even when the offense is working. Tom Allen would never go for it, and I don't want to go down that road again, either.

 

[welshman#]

Litrell makes a lot of sense given his familiarity with Indiana as a program, even if not with Tom Allen.
Montgomery would be a really good hire if he was actually available and interested, IMO.
Fuente seems completely unrealistic, as does Tom Herman. Can't imagine they'd be interested.

Absolutely do not want Kittley. Indiana has been there and done that with his style of offense, and all available evidence shows that the only thing it is really good for at the P5 level is putting up a lot of empty points and softening up your own defense for the other team by never giving them any rest at all, even when the offense is working. Tom Allen would never go for it, and I don't want to go down that road again, either.

I don’t know the terms of Littrell’s buyout but I believe his current salary is about $2 Mil

I wonder how much of a pay cut he’d be willing to consider, especially if UNT would still owe him money if they fired him

 

[MMcCormick]

The top three are all potentially $1.5 million or above coordinators so they are not likely candidates unless they have mitigation clauses in their salaries and their new salaries count against what is owed to them. There are a lot of good names thrown out here. Looking at the candidates its amazing Nick Sheridan got the job to begin with. It was a huge risk. And Allen got slammed for taking it.

 

[MMcCormick]

Here are some I mentioned the other day, both for OC and as possible position coaches:

if Allen were to look for new coaches in the off-season I assume he would continue his pattern of going with guys he already knows whenever possible

for example, I wouldn't be surprised if his first feeler/offer for a new OC might be sent to someone like Maurice Harris: https://www.liberty.edu/flames/staff/maurice-harris/
since he and Harris already worked together IIRC at both Arky State and Ole Miss, and Liberty's overall offense is one of the best in the FBS this year (one caveat: Harris is a WR guy, not a QB coach)

if Allen ends up in the market for a WR coach maybe he talks to Coach Creighton about a guy who was a player at Arky State when Allen coached there, RJ Fleming: https://emueagles.com/sports/football/roster/coaches/rj-fleming/1642

OL might be a little trickier since the OL coach Allen was with at USF, Danny Hope (yes, that Danny Hope), has apparently retired and the OL when Allen was at Ole Miss was Matt Luke, who now coaches for Kirby Smart at Georgia. Allen might have to go outside his comfort zone and, for example, maybe go after a guy like Matt Mattox: https://goutsa.com/sports/football/roster/coaches/matt-mattox/1048 or perhaps Nick Tabacca since he's coached at both Butler and Ball State: https://godeacs.com/sports/football/roster/coaches/nick-tabacca/744

if Harris weren't interested in joining Allen's staff as OC, one guy I'd like to see TA go after is UVA's QB coach Jason Beck: https://virginiasports.com/sports/football/roster/season/2021-22/coach/jason-beck/ because UVA's passing and total offense stats are outstanding this season and IIRC he's only making about $300,000

another guy who might be worth a look for OC is Anthony Tucker: https://utahstateaggies.com/sports/football/roster/coaches/anthony-tucker/573

and his WR coach might be worth consideration as a position coach too--Kyle Cefalo: https://utahstateaggies.com/sports/football/roster/coaches/kyle-cefalo/570

one guy who I think would potentially qualify at either WR or QB coach is Clint Trickett: https://herdzone.com/sports/football/roster/coaches/clint-trickett/623

a name that's been mentioned in the past for obvious reasons (he's really more of an OL coach than QB coach but could still be an OC) is Ryan Grubb: https://gobulldogs.com/sports/football/roster/coaches/ryan-grubb/2240

Seth Littrell's name has also been brought up in the event he's let go at UNT. If he's interested in returning to Bloomington and willing to take a 50-60% pay cut (he's currently making $2 Mil IIRC) it might be worth consideration.

And as long as potentially fired coaches are being considered, if Jake Spavital is fired this season, he might be worth a look (currently making $800,000 I think): https://txstatebobcats.com/sports/football/roster/coaches/jake-spavital/1376 but I'd expect Tex State to give him one more year

Some of us mentioned this guy when DeBoer left, Keith Heckendorf: https://astateredwolves.com/sports/football/roster/coaches/keith-heckendorf/705

another guy who will be heavily pursued if Ariz State fires Herm Edwards is Zak Hill: https://thesundevils.com/sports/football/roster/coaches/zak-hill/4466

Matt Luke would be an interesting hire as Offensive Coordinator. I believe he was Freeze's OC at Ole Miss. He's been a head coach and would fit the head coach of the offense bill.

 

[Crusty The Baker]

This is a tough problem. What the athletic department can afford over the next decade is going to have big effects on the candidate list. Sheridan and Hiller are the OC, OL, and QB coach roles, so you need two people to cover three roles. Right now, the department spends $1M on salary and x on benefits for those two. Dolson et al will definitely have to increase the current budget to at least $1.3 - $1.5M over the next decade for base salary alone, plus more for performance bonuses, plus more if we replace other position coaches. To get some of the guys on this list, they’d have to up their budget well beyond that. This is a non-trivial amount of money for a place with a small stadium and thus small potential revenue. For example, selling out Memorial Stadium every game at current ticket prices would increase revenue by maybe $1 - 1.2M. When was the last time that happened? It won’t happen if this hire doesn’t work out. Hire the wrong guys and this becomes a huge problem. The Sheridan hire was, as you’ve pointed out, an enormous gamble, but maybe one that was driven by financial pressures, like falling basketball revenues due to the state of IUBB at the end of Archie.

Who among the financially viable candidates will stick around and find, attract, and develop under-the-radar NFL prospects like Jason Spriggs, Wes Martin, Dan Feeney, Tevin Coleman, and Jordan Howard? Who won’t jump ship in 2 years? We need continuity. That takes money and smart hires.

Side note: I think part of the reason group of 5 schools will never be in the playoffs is because not getting the playoff bowl and championship payouts would put a lot of Power 5 schools in a big bind. The Power 5 conferences won’t allow that to happen.

 

[jlasson]

This is a tough problem. What the athletic department can afford over the next decade is going to have big effects on the candidate list. Sheridan and Hiller are the OC, OL, and QB coach roles, so you need two people to cover three roles. Right now, the department spends $1M on salary and x on benefits for those two. Dolson et al will definitely have to increase the budget to probably $1.3 - $1.5M over the next decade for base salary alone, plus more for performance bonuses. To get some of the guys on this list, they’d have to up their budget well beyond that. This is a non-trivial amount of money for a place with a small stadium and thus small potential revenue. For example, selling out Memorial Stadium every game at current ticket prices would increase revenue by maybe $1 - 1.2M. When was the last time that happened? It won’t happen if this hire doesn’t work out. Hire the wrong guys and this becomes a huge problem.

Who among the financially viable candidates will stick around and attract and develop under-the-radar NFL prospects like Jason Spriggs, Wes Martin, Dan Feeney, Tevin Coleman, and Jordan Howard?

Side note: I think part of the reason group of 5 schools will never be in the playoffs is because not getting the playoff bowl and championship payouts would put a lot of their schools in a big bind. The big conferences won’t allow that to happen.

I would love for them to take a swing at Justin Frye, he could probably be O-line coach and OC, given his background. Then you just need to find a QB coach. Frye would definitely be expensive, but with all they've invested in Allen, they need to make sure this offense takes a big step forward next year and IUFB can finish somewhere around the 6-6, 7-5 range. I've said this before but if Allen looks bad after this season, Dolson looks worse, now is not the time to cheap out on assistants given the fact that a buyout of CTA wouldn't be possible for at least another two seasons.

 

[Crusty The Baker]

IU could model itself like Oregon. Maybe Dolson is. Similar stadium size and budget. Oregon spends $5M more on football than it brings in. That’s kinda risky long term. It relies on a steady high revenue from basketball also. Oregon also got some mystery $250M contribution to athletics in 2020.

 

[vesuvius13]

IUFB, coach Allen, and S. Dolson needs to nail the OC position if IU is to improve in the B1G. We have seen in the past when you have a very good OC what IU can do on offense. Whether it was Wilson or Littrell having an excellent OC designing plays and calling plays can work.

 

[welshman#]

Matt Luke would be an interesting hire as Offensive Coordinator. I believe he was Freeze's OC at Ole Miss. He's been a head coach and would fit the head coach of the offense bill.

I think he’s either Asst or Assoc Head Coach down there now—sorta similar to McCullough’s deal in Bloomington

 

[welshman#]

The top three are all potentially $1.5 million or above coordinators so they are not likely candidates unless they have mitigation clauses in their salaries and their new salaries count against what is owed to them. There are a lot of good names thrown out here. Looking at the candidates its amazing Nick Sheridan got the job to begin with. It was a huge risk. And Allen got slammed for taking it.

fwiw Littrell’s current annual guaranteed money is about $1.8 Mil and his contract has 2 more years on it. If he were to bail on UNT for another job he would owe them roughly $800,000 so I assume the reverse may also be true—if UNT let Littrell go now they’d possibly owe him something like $800,000–$1 Mil offset by whatever compensation he might get from a new coaching gig somewhere else.

 

[oldcougar77]

fwiw Littrell’s current annual guaranteed money is about $1.8 Mil and his contract has 2 more years on it. If he were to bail on UNT for another job he would owe them roughly $800,000 so I assume the reverse may also be true—if UNT let Littrell go now they’d possibly owe him something like $800,000–$1 Mil offset by whatever compensation he might get from a new coaching gig somewhere else.

I don't track any of this stuff the way that some of you do. But, honest question, do we want to hire a successful young coordinator who is likely to be gone a year or two later if he is successful and a head coaching opportunity presents itself ? Or are we better off finding someone older who isn't interested in all the additional work that comes with being a head coach ?

 

[welshman#]

This is a tough problem. What the athletic department can afford over the next decade is going to have big effects on the candidate list. Sheridan and Hiller are the OC, OL, and QB coach roles, so you need two people to cover three roles. Right now, the department spends $1M on salary and x on benefits for those two. Dolson et al will definitely have to increase the current budget to at least $1.3 - $1.5M over the next decade for base salary alone, plus more for performance bonuses, plus more if we replace other position coaches. To get some of the guys on this list, they’d have to up their budget well beyond that. This is a non-trivial amount of money for a place with a small stadium and thus small potential revenue. For example, selling out Memorial Stadium every game at current ticket prices would increase revenue by maybe $1 - 1.2M. When was the last time that happened? It won’t happen if this hire doesn’t work out. Hire the wrong guys and this becomes a huge problem. The Sheridan hire was, as you’ve pointed out, an enormous gamble, but maybe one that was driven by financial pressures, like falling basketball revenues due to the state of IUBB at the end of Archie.

Who among the financially viable candidates will stick around and attract and develop under-the-radar NFL prospects like Jason Spriggs, Wes Martin, Dan Feeney, Tevin Coleman, and Jordan Howard?

Side note: I think part of the reason group of 5 schools will never be in the playoffs is because not getting the playoff bowl and championship payouts would put a lot of their schools in a big bind. The big conferences won’t allow that to happen.

This is why in IU’s case going after guys already at/from big-time programs who were just released by their head coach (or their head coach was just fired) can sometimes be futile. They often were already getting paid more than IU can pay them, and in most years some other program with a larger budget will just out-bid IU for their services, e.g., LSU, USC, Washington, maybe Penn State, maybe Florida, maybe even Texas now, etc

That’s also why in looking at potential assistants I mainly look at guys from smaller programs that almost certainly couldn’t match IU in a bidding war. Realistically these are often the kind of coaches a program like IU’s has to take a gamble on and hope it pans out. Most of the guys I listed fall into that category: starting to establish a good reputation at a G5 school with a considerably smaller budget than IU’s.

The main exception would be Jason Beck, who’s already at a P5 school, but if he’s only making $300,000 then Allen/Dolson would be able to offer Beck a significant raise to come to Bloomington and coach in the B1G 10.

 

[oldcougar77]

This is why in IU’s case going after guys already at/from big-time programs who were just released by their head coach (or their head coach was just fired) can sometimes be futile. They often were already getting paid more than IU can pay them, and in most years some other program with a larger budget will just out-bid IU for their services, e.g., LSU, USC, Washington, maybe Penn State, maybe Florida, maybe even Texas now, etc

That’s also why in looking at potential assistants I mainly look at guys from smaller programs that almost certainly couldn’t match IU in a bidding war. Realistically these are often the kind of coaches a program like IU’s has to take a gamble on and hope it pans out. Most of the guys I listed fall into that category: starting to establish a good reputation at a G5 school with a considerably smaller budget than IU’s.

The main exception would be Jason Beck, who’s already at a P5 school, but if he’s only making $300,000 then Allen/Dolson would be able to offer Beck a significant raise to come to Bloomington and coach in the B1G 10.

Justin Frye is making 700k at UCLA. IU could easily match that ( I think they paid DeBoer more than that even). At the same salary, Frye would be much better off financially making that in Bloomington, IN than in SoCal. But I have no idea if there is any interest on the part of either party. Frye could also handle the OL along with his coordinator duties.

 

[welshman#]

Justin Frye is making 700k at UCLA. IU could easily match that ( I think they paid DeBoer more than that even). At the same salary, Frye would be much better off financially making that in Bloomington, IN than in SoCal. But I have no idea if there is any interest on the part of either party. Frye could also handle the OL along with his coordinator duties.

I don’t see any real motivation for Frye to leave UCLA at this point in time unless it’s for a job somewhere like LSU or one of the other “big boys” with an opening.

Or unless he’s privately convinced his current boss will be gone in a year and he himself has little or no chance of being that guy’s replacement, in which case Frye might be willing to consider any and all offers that could come his way during this off-season.

 

[MMcCormick]

I don't track any of this stuff the way that some of you do. But, honest question, do we want to hire a successful young coordinator who is likely to be gone a year or two later if he is successful and a head coaching opportunity presents itself ? Or are we better off finding someone older who isn't interested in all the additional work that comes with being a head coach ?

This is a good point. A hot young coordinator will get snapped up. They probably don't have the dollars to hire a Fuente or maybe even Litrell. The ideal hire is a career assistant or a smaller school head coach who got let go like Montgomery. The dream scenario is you end up with a career assistant like Phil Parker at Iowa who is elite but is not interested in head coaching offers at small schools. Indiana has hired guys who are pretty set on being head coaches and would take small school jobs. If you can pay $1 million you can often keep a career assistant guy from leaving for a MAC job.

 

[IU34373]

I'd still love to see either Barry Lunney Jr., the OC/QB Coach at UTSA, or Shannon Dawson, the OC/Passing Game Coordinator, at Houston be considered. While neither are P5 schools, both have had very productive offenses this year and both have experience at P5 schools. Both make at or under $200k now, for what that's worth.

 

[jlasson]

I don't track any of this stuff the way that some of you do. But, honest question, do we want to hire a successful young coordinator who is likely to be gone a year or two later if he is successful and a head coaching opportunity presents itself ? Or are we better off finding someone older who isn't interested in all the additional work that comes with being a head coach ?

I think the fact that CTA clearly has no ability to step in when the offense is failing means they should go with a more seasoned veteran as much as I'd like a flashy spread offense for IU, considering CTA is the opposite of an offensive guru(it always amazes me someone could understand one side of the ball so well and be completely inept at coaching the other side), he could easily wiff again and hire another Sheridan. Bring in a stable, proven veteran whose going to finish average to above average in PPG and knows how to play complementary football.

This team's identity has been defense ever since CTA took over and until this year CTA had maintained a level of success not reached at IU in 2 decades with his formula(granted that's a very low bar), but he cannot afford to take a chance on someone unproven and wiff on this hire or he will go down in infamy with most of his predecessors.

 

[MMcCormick]

I'd still love to see either Barry Lunney Jr., the OC/QB Coach at UTSA, or Shannon Dawson, the OC/Passing Game Coordinator, at Houston be considered. While neither are P5 schools, both have had very productive offenses this year and both have experience at P5 schools. Both make at or under $200k now, for what that's worth.

Both good candidates although I'd lean toward Lunney Jr. I believe Dawson has been a coordinator and it did not go so well.

 

[welshman#]

I don't track any of this stuff the way that some of you do. But, honest question, do we want to hire a successful young coordinator who is likely to be gone a year or two later if he is successful and a head coaching opportunity presents itself ? Or are we better off finding someone older who isn't interested in all the additional work that comes with being a head coach ?

Almost any coach (HC, Coordinator or position coach) who succeeds at a program like IU’s is a risk to be hired away by a wealthier program unless he’s nearing retirement age.

I personally would rather take my chances with a guy IU could lose due to his having notable success in Bloomington than just look for a “safe” guy who’s not as likely to leave either because he’s near the end of his career or he doesn’t succeed at a high enough level to cause other more prestigious programs to take an interest in hiring him.

Unlike IU basketball the football job never has been, and probably won’t be anytime soon, a “destination” job—even with the upgrades to Memorial Stadium and the new contract Dolson gave Allen last March. IMO it’s not just any given IU head coach who needs to think outside the box innovatively about how he runs his football program, it’s the entire athletic department that needs to think that way.

 

[Coach Geez]

I don't track any of this stuff the way that some of you do. But, honest question, do we want to hire a successful young coordinator who is likely to be gone a year or two later if he is successful and a head coaching opportunity presents itself ? Or are we better off finding someone older who isn't interested in all the additional work that comes with being a head coach ?

Need to hire a proven P5 play-caller, preferably one with previous head coaching experience. Allen has no clue what he is doing on the offensive side of the ball and it's even sadder that he's deferring to somebody like Nick Sheridan to run the show. I don't fault Nick Sheridan as much as I fault Tom Allen for putting Nick Sheridan in a position to fail. Sheridan simply doesn't have the acumen or the resume to be a P5 OC at this stage in his career.

Someone started a thread a few weeks back and I like the idea of pitching the job to someone like Kevin Sumlin or Rich Rodriguez. Hate to say it, but it's so bad right now that I may just entertain the idea of someone like Art Briles assuming he's vetted and cleared.

 

[welshman#]

I'd still love to see either Barry Lunney Jr., the OC/QB Coach at UTSA, or Shannon Dawson, the OC/Passing Game Coordinator, at Houston be considered. While neither are P5 schools, both have had very productive offenses this year and both have experience at P5 schools. Both make at or under $200k now, for what that's worth.

I don’t expect any program to be able to pry Lunney away until he’s certain about what Traylor’s actually going to do (Traylor’s recent raise & extension notwithstanding)

unless maybe Lunney gets an offer he can’t refuse (e.g., new OC at LSU)

 

[Sir_Saucy]

IU could model itself like Oregon. Maybe Dolson is. Similar stadium size and budget. Oregon spends $5M more on football than it brings in. That’s kinda risky long term. It relies on a steady high revenue from basketball also. Oregon also got some mystery $250M contribution to athletics in 2020.

Is there really a mystery where Oregon's money comes from?

 

[IU34373]

I don’t except any program to be able to pry Lunney away until he’s certain about what Traylor’s actually going to do (Traylor’s recent raise & extension notwithstanding)

unless maybe Lunney gets an offer he can’t refuse (e.g., new OC at LSU)

Agreed re: Trayor. I saw a week or so ago that he was rumored to be a contender for the TCU job. Not sure if a post UT and OU Big 12 gig is as appealing now if he could make a move to the B1G?

 

[welshman#]

Agreed re: Trayor. I saw a week or so ago that he was rumored to be a contender for the TCU job. Not sure if a post UT and OU Big 12 gig is as appealing now if he could make a move to the B1G?

People read “10 year extension” re: Traylor but the devil’s in the details. It’s 10 years @ only $2.8 Mil a year with a $7 Mil buyout that’s apparently only in place for a year

 

[F.Fletch]

Need to hire a proven P5 play-caller, preferably one with previous head coaching experience. Allen has no clue what he is doing on the offensive side of the ball and it's even sadder that he's deferring to somebody like Nick Sheridan to run the show. I don't fault Nick Sheridan as much as I fault Tom Allen for putting Nick Sheridan in a position to fail. Sheridan simply doesn't have the acumen or the resume to be a P5 OC at this stage in his career.

Someone started a thread a few weeks back and I like the idea of pitching the job to someone like Kevin Sumlin or Rich Rodriguez. Hate to say it, but it's so bad right now that I may just entertain the idea of someone like Art Briles assuming he's vetted and cleared.

We could have Al Borges tomorrow.

 

[MMcCormick]

Added Tunney Jr. to the list. Hope the IU staff reads the board as we got them a good start on their research.

 

[welshman#]

Agreed re: Trayor. I saw a week or so ago that he was rumored to be a contender for the TCU job. Not sure if a post UT and OU Big 12 gig is as appealing now if he could make a move to the B1G?

If Traylor leaves for a better head coaching job I expect Lunney to be the leading contender to replace him at UTSA. And I’d assume that position would be more attractive to him than just remaining an OC.

 

[welshman#]

Added Tunney Jr. to the list. Hope the IU staff reads the board as we got them a good start on their research.

Allen wouldn’t have to do very much research on a couple of the guys I listed—I think he’s already been on 2 coaching staffs with Harris, and 1 phone call to Coach Creighton should tell TA all he needs to know about Fleming

 

[Crusty The Baker]

Is there really a mystery where Oregon's money comes from?

Right. I should have italicized mystery, or put swooshes around it. My bad.

 

[welshman#]

Updated "The List" with some bios. Building as we do. Let me know if I forgot anybody. Started to rank them by "Best Hires"

1. Seth Litrell - North Texas - Elite record as an offensive coordinator. 50-50 that he will be fired. Has coached at Indiana before with great success. Might be scooped up by a bigger school as he's got a great track record with offenses. Offenses at North Texas have been strong. Defenses have been terrible. Really balanced offenses with strong running games. Record setting offenses at Indiana and then UNC. Really balanced attack with a focus on the run game.

2. Phillip Montgomery - Tulsa - This one might be a good fit. Montgomery is likely to be fired and he was part of the Art Briles coaching tree and is former offensive coordinator at Baylor. Has shown balanced offenses in Briles run heavy spread. Everybody who coached under Briles seems to have the magic when it comes to offense. (Jeff Lebby at Ole Miss, Kendall Briles at Arkansas, Dino Baber, Sean Lewis under Babers).

3. Justin Fuente - Va Tech - Likely to be fired. Long time track record as a top offensive mind. Has shown the ability to both run the ball and pass. Seems likely to go to a major SEC school as his next stop. The kind of coach who coordinates for Nick Saban on a rejuvenation tour.

4. Tom Herman

5. Matt Luke - Coached with Allen at Ole Miss. Former head coach of Ole Miss where he had productive offenses. Was former OC for Freeze and a line coach at Ole Miss. Currently line coach at Georgia. Probably a strong candidate if he's viewed as more than a line coach and a true OC.

6. Eric Eidsness - Northern Illinois Keep an eye on this name. This guy is a serious up and comer who has done wonders at Northern Illinois. His offense has been very balanced. Was OC for six years at South Dakota State and oversaw record breaking offenses during this period. Has a very balanced spread attack. He coaches under a coach who was never an OC so I think Eidsness truly coordinates this offense unlike other candidates who are "right hand man" type coaches.

7. Ryan Grubb OC Fresno State - If you can't get Kalen Deboer maybe you get his protege. Grubb would be a strong candidate for three reasons. The first is that he's a long time line coach and if you hired the wrong line coach he's going to know how to step in and fix that. His teams allowed less than a sack a game for the past three seasons. He's also now the QB coach so he's got a very unusual background. And of course he coaches with Deboer so our players will know both his offense and his terminology. He coached two really good offensive coaches. Only question is whether he's a right hand man or the leader of the offense.

7. Willy Korn - OC at Coastal Carolina - Having an awful lot of success at Coastal Carolina. Question is whether the head coach who is heavily involved with the offense is the real genius here. Top OC's under offensive minded coaches tend to do well, but it's never a sure thing when the head coach is also heavily involved in the offense.

8. Andrew Sowder -Offensive Coordinator - Kent State - Coaching under Sean Lewis one of the best offensive minds in college football. Lewis is a former Dino Babers OC and Babers is from the Art Briles coaching tree. Like most Briles spreads his offenses are run heavy. With an offensive head coach there is a question whether Sean Lewis or Sowder is the driving force behind this operation.

9. Anthony Tucker - Utah State OC. Former OC for Josh Heupel at UCF who has vastly improved Utah State's offense in his first year on the job. Pass heavy offense. Offense went from 15pts a game in the year before he got there to 32 a game this year. Had very balanced offenses at UCF. An ex running backs coach who coordinated the passing game at UCF.

10. Mike Thiessen OC Air Force. An unconventional pick for a school that might need an unconventional approach. Been an OC for a long time. Offenses are run heavy option hybrid that eat up clock and protect the defense. Has lead to an awful lot of wins.

10. Barry Lunney Jr. Lunney has had two very strong years at OC at UTSA. Has the strangest resume in that he was a college offensive coordinator then became a high school offensive coordinator for eight years, then a college position coach then a college OC. He is highly regarded and was Arkansas's head coach for two games.

11. . Sam Gregg - Liberty Offensive Line Coach - Former Offensive Coordinator at West Georgia for six years. Coached under a great offensive mind at Liberty and has a decade of former OC experience. Might be a strong candidate because of his background as both a coordinator and a line coach. Might kill two birds with one stone or hedge against another bad line coach hire.

11. Zack Kittley - Western Kentucky OC - has broken records with Western Kentucky's offense after doing the same as a head coach of Houston Baptist. He's a Leach air raid disciple and my prefer tree is Art Briles with the run spread, but he's put up point in batches. His offense puts a big strain on a defense as they don't use up much clock. Only downside is the air raid is not a cold weather friendly offense.

12. Andrew Breiner - FIU - Offense has been productive for FIU on a terrible team. Joe Moorhead's former offensive coordinator at Mississipi State. An up and comer type coach. His current team is pass heavy. Not very balanced. Does not have the experience of some of the other candidates, but he's highly regarded.

11. Justin Frye - UCLA Offensive Coordinator Former IU player. Unlikely to leave an OC job at UCLA. Ranked lower because he's an unlikely candidate.

13. Brian Hartline - Ohio State Receivers Coach - Elite Elite recruiter. Is coaching under one of the best offensive minds in the country. Downside is no offensive coordinator experience. Would certainly fix our receivers though.

14. Matt Drinkall - Tight Ends Coach Army - Former Head Coach and Offensive Coordinator with great success at small schools. Highly regarded at Army. Strong recruiter.

Joe Jon Finley - Tight Ends Coach Oklahoma

Brennan Marion - Pitt Receivers Coach - Former Offensive Coordinator

Nate Sheelhasse - Iowa State Offensive Line Coach

One interesting factoid about Philip Montgomery: it appears that, unlike Seth Littrell, Montgomery is in the final year of his current contract (and no extension has been offered that I’m aware of) so presumably no buyout would be involved.

It would also suggest that Tulsa may very well intend to replace him, which would make him a coaching free agent. I think his compensation is roughly comparable to Littrell’s ($1.75–$2 Mil) fwiw.

If TU does let him walk I’d be OK with Allen contacting him to gauge interest (although I expect him to probably end up somewhere in Texas or Oklahoma as someone’s OC).

 

[76-1]

Here's an out of the box thought (which may be out of the box because the box fell out of the truck on the interstate and was flattened 😉)...:

Pick up "soon to be unemployed" Mike Bloomgren, current HC of Rice as C/G's coach

Mike Bloomgren - Football Coach - Rice University Athletics

Dunlevie Family Head Football Coach Mike Bloomgren enters his sixth season looking to leverage the momentum gained by a return to the postseason into greate...

riceowls.com

And... pay over market value to Bill Durkin of Coastal Carolina as Tackles/TE's coach http://goccusports.com/sports/football/roster/coaches/bill-durkin/2066

And Then..., pay ultra top dollar to bring in Korn (from Coastal Carolina) as Quarterbacks/ Offensive Coordinator

Willy Korn - Football Coach - Coastal Carolina University Athletics

@willykorn Willy Korn was promoted to co-offensive coordinator in February 2019 and is in his sixth year overall at Coastal Carolina in 2022. Korn transitioned

goccusports.com

*//and then move Wright's duties to WR's coach...//

The key here is bringing two decent OL technique coaches in to bolster the Offensive Line play while also adding a Texas recruiter... Both have solid line coaching resume's that might interest OL recruits..., while also adding an innovative youngster at OC/QB's who can recruit the SE coast+...(with the understanding that Korn is literally HC of the Offense, and makes all the timeout calls on that side of the ball.., and that Tom will give him free rein, with him only stepping in at the start of the week to say "surprise me" and back in at the end of the week to be briefed on his "surprise"...).

In this scenario you'd end up with this staff on Offense:

Korn QB's/OC
McCollough RB's Asst. HC
Bloomgren C/G's (co-OL-Coord)
Durkin T/TE's (co-OL-Coord)
Wright WR's

Wright couldn't do any worse job than Heard has done this season...(in my opinion)... All he'd need to do is to say that if you drop the ball you sit and if you don't block you sit...., and enforce it..., whether you're a true FR or a SR+...(Instant Upgrade).

OR..., you let Wright move on too..., and bring in Coastal Carolina's WR coach..., but I don't think they'd stand for us wiping out the complete guts of their Offensive staff so we'd probably need to be content with picking up two of them...

 

[MMcCormick]

Well Fuente is on the market, might get picked up as a small school head coach, but more likely as a big school coordinator. Could see him at Bama, or LSU depending on how the dominoes fall.

 

[76-1]

Here's an out of the box thought (which may be out of the box because the box fell out of the truck on the interstate and was flattened 😉)...:

Pick up "soon to be unemployed" Mike Bloomgren, current HC of Rice as C/G's coach

Mike Bloomgren - Football Coach - Rice University Athletics

Dunlevie Family Head Football Coach Mike Bloomgren enters his sixth season looking to leverage the momentum gained by a return to the postseason into greate...

riceowls.com

And... pay over market value to Bill Durkin of Coastal Carolina as Tackles/TE's coach http://goccusports.com/sports/football/roster/coaches/bill-durkin/2066

And Then..., pay ultra top dollar to bring in Korn (from Coastal Carolina) as Quarterbacks/ Offensive Coordinator

Willy Korn - Football Coach - Coastal Carolina University Athletics

@willykorn Willy Korn was promoted to co-offensive coordinator in February 2019 and is in his sixth year overall at Coastal Carolina in 2022. Korn transitioned

goccusports.com

*//and then move Wright's duties to WR's coach...//

The key here is bringing two decent OL technique coaches in to bolster the Offensive Line play while also adding a Texas recruiter... Both have solid line coaching resume's that might interest OL recruits..., while also adding an innovative youngster at OC/QB's who can recruit the SE coast+...(with the understanding that Korn is literally HC of the Offense, and makes all the timeout calls on that side of the ball.., and that Tom will give him free rein, with him only stepping in at the start of the week to say "surprise me" and back in at the end of the week to be briefed on his "surprise"...).

In this scenario you'd end up with this staff on Offense:

Korn QB's/OC
McCollough RB's Asst. HC
Bloomgren C/G's (co-OL-Coord)
Durkin T/TE's (co-OL-Coord)
Wright WR's

Wright couldn't do any worse job than Heard has done this season...(in my opinion)... All he'd need to do is to say that if you drop the ball you sit and if you don't block you sit...., and enforce it..., whether you're a true FR or a SR+...(Instant Upgrade).

OR..., you let Wright move on too..., and bring in Coastal Carolina's WR coach..., but I don't think they'd stand for us wiping out the complete guts of their Offensive staff so we'd probably need to be content with picking up two of them...

Or you could substitute Jarret Anderson (of TCU) for Bloomgren (of Rice) and you'd still have a Texas Recruiter (maybe a better one) and one heck of an OL coach... (maybe a better one)...

Jarrett Anderson - Football Coach - TCU Athletics

After coming to TCU as a graduate assistant in 1998, Jarrett Anderson is in his 23rd year overall with the Horned Frogs. Following three seasons (2017-19) as

gofrogs.com