Coaching Carousel (South Florida)

South Florida Bulls

A couple of years ago, Skip Holtz was an up and comer in the college football coaching circles.  After winning the Conference USA title two years in a row at East Carolina Holtz got his first crack at a BCS conference job.  Holtz took over at South Florida for Jim Leavitt who was fired for alleged abuse of players.

It started out well for Holtz.  His first year in Tampa was alright.  They won 8 and beat Clemson in the Mieneke Car Care Bowl.  However the success of that initial season didn't last.  They only won 5 games last year and only 3 games this season.  His best year was with Leavitt's players.  They've gotten worse every year.  At the end of three years the administration felt that they needed a change.

The South Florida job is one that many thought could be a sleeping giant.  They are in the fertile Florida recruiting grounds and even though Florida State, Miami, and Florida rule the state the Bulls can still get plenty of players.  They've improved their facilities and play in an NFL stadium which can be enticing to prospects.  Let's remember that Leavitt had them all the way up to #2 in the nation at one point before he was fired.  So the potential to have success is there.

Potential Cadidates
Mario Cristobal (Florida International Head Coach)
It was Cristobal that was a hot name last year and was reportedly offered the Rutgers, Penn State, and Pittsburgh jobs.  Cristobal turned down all those jobs hoping that his veteran team would allow him to get a better job this next year.  Well injuries ruin their season and Cristobal isn't as hot of a name anymore.  But he is still a good coach and would be a perfect fit for the Bulls.

Willie Taggert (Western Kentucky Head Coach)
Unlike Cristobal, Taggert is a very hot name for available jobs but he has been very selective on where he wants to go.  He wants to find the right fit for himself.  That might be at South Florida.  Taggert is a Florida native and has had success recruiting within the state.  Most importantly he has the support of a lot of top high school programs within the state.

Chad Morris (Clemson Head Coach)
Morris' name hasn't been thrown around too much for this job.  Mainly because he's been rumored to higher profile jobs.  But this could be a great first head coaching job for him.  He can bring his spread offense to South Florida where he can get the fast athletes he is use to at Clemson.  But his lack of head coaching experience could hurt him.

Gus Malzahn (Arkansas State Heach Coach)
Much like Morris, Malzahn would bring an exciting style of offense to South Florida.  But also unlike Morris, Malzhan has experience running a program and that could give him an edge.  He is an up and coming name having success where ever he has been.  Malzahn could be interested in this job because it would be a step up job wise and give him a shot at a BCS level job.

Coaching Carousel (Kentucky Wildcats)

What was longer rumored to happen has finally come true.  It was announced that Joker Phillips would no longer be the head coach after the season was over.  Phillips was the "Head Coach in Waiting" under Rich Brooks and took over in 2010.

But much like other "HCIW" Phillips hasn't had much success.  His career record is 12-23 and never won more than 6 games in a season.  Joker's best year was his first where he took the Wildcats to the Compass Bowl where they lost to Pittsburgh. Phillips has been known as a offensive mind, but his offensives at Kentucky have been relatively pedestrian.

The Kentucky job isn't the greatest gig in college football, but it isn't terrible.  They play in the marquee conference (SEC) but are in the East Division which is easier (relatively speaking) than the West.  They've been able to attract talent, so that won't scare too many coaches away.

Potential Candidates
Bobby Petrino (Former Arkansas Head Coach)
Petrino is the top name in the search and would be the best case scenario for the the Wildcats.  Petrino is a proven winner and has had success in the blue grass state before.  He turned Louisville into a BCS team before leaving for the Atlanta Falcons.  He'd bring instant credibility to the Wildcats with the recruits. However he has some baggage.  But as we've seen with Kentucky and John Calipari, they're not afraid of that if you win.

Dirk Koetter (Atlanta Falcons Offensive Coordinator)
Since Phillips has been in a sense fired, one name that has surfaced is Koetter's.  Koetter has head coaching experience at Boise State and Arizona State.  He had success at both spots, but couldn't sustain it at ASU.  He is the current OC with the Falcons who are enjoying a breakout season from Matt Ryan.  Koetter might not be the biggest name or even the Wildcats top choice, but he could be their fall back guy if their top choices decline.

Willie Taggert (Western Kentucky Head Coach)
Ever since Western Kentucky came into Lexington and knocked off the Wildcats people have had their eye on Taggert.  Taggert is an up and coming coach who is in his first gig as a head coach.  He was the RB coach at Stanford before.  He's been trained under Jim Harbaugh and that is a good thing.  Plus he has experience recruiting in the Kentucky area.  The draw back is that Taggert is coaching at his Alma Mater and may hold out for the perfect job to come up.  This may not be it.

Sonny Dykes (Louisiana Tech Head Coach)
Another up and coming name to consider is the current Louisiana Tech head coach Sonny Dykes.  Dykes has the Bulldogs at 9-1 and will likely win the WAC and have an outside shot at a BCS Bowl.  Dykes is a spread offense guru who learned his trade under Mike Leach and Hal Mumme.  Before taking over at LaTech he was the offensive coordinator at Arizona and Texas Tech.  Dykes also was an assistant for two stints at Kentucky when Hal Mumme.  He probably won't be their first choice, but it would be hard to find a better coach who would want this job than Dykes.

David Cutcliff (Duke Head Coach)
An under the radar coach who could do well might be the current Duke head coach.  Cutcliff is no stranger to the SEC after he was the OC for Tennessee in the Peyton Manning era and then was the Mississippi HC also.  Even though Cutcliff was fired from Ole Miss the Rebels were relatively successful and haven't gotten back to the level of success he had there.  Now at Duke he has turned this doormat program into being bowl eligible for the first time in over 15 years and are still in the race for the Division Title.  If Cutcliff can do that at Duke, what could he do at Kentucky?