College football coach hirings tracker: Updated list of every new hire for 2026, from Lane Kiffin to Collin Klein

The college football coaching carousel is constantly spinning. But during the months of November and December, the carousel becomes especially chaotic.

So far in 2025, we've seen plenty of positions open, including marquee jobs such as Penn State, Florida, and LSU.

Let's take a look at the 2025 jobs that have been filled, as well as the ones that still remain open.

MORE: Chip Kelly's six best CFB coaching fits in 2026

College football coach hirings 2026

Virginia Tech: James Franklin 

Virginia Tech has failed to be a consistent ACC contender since Frank Beamer retired in 2015. After cycling through hires Justin Fuente and Brent Pry, the Hokie faithful are hoping James Franklin can lead VT into a new era.

Franklin is 128-60 as a head coach, and his 68.1% win percentage is far greater than VT's all-time 746-503-44 record in football. Franklin will need to prove he can win games against ranked opponents, as he is 4-21 against Top-10 teams. But his track record suggests he could turn things around in Blacksburg quickly.

Oklahoma State: Eric Morris 

Oklahoma State faced the difficult task of replacing the winningest coach in school history, Mike Gundy, following a 4-11 record dating back to last season. The Cowboys have turned to North Texas head coach Eric Morris to take on the challenge.

Official announcement from Oklahoma State pic.twitter.com/l0A3OPyIsk

Morris has gone 21-15 over three seasons with the Mean Green, including a 10-1 record so far in 2025. In fact, North Texas is in the hunt for the Group of Five playoff spot this season.

Prior to arriving at North Texas, he led FCS Incarnate Word to a 24-18 record from 2018-2021, guiding his teams to two conference titles and two playoff appearances.

He has worked with some impressive signal-callers as an offensive coordinator as well. During his stint with Washington State in 2022, he helped Cam Ward have a breakout season. Before Incarnate Word, he was Texas Tech's offensive coordinator from 2013-2017, during which he helped Patrick Mahomes have a record-breaking college career.

Morris, who will coach North Texas until the season's conclusion, played quarterback for the Red Raiders from 2004-08. His familiarity with the Southwest recruiting landscape should help bring Oklahoma State back to its winning ways quickly.

Kent State: Mark Carney

Kent State didn't have to go far to find its next head coach. The Golden Flashes fired head coach Kenni Burns in April for violating multiple university policies. He had gone a combined 1-23 over his last two seasons.

Carney, who had been on staff at Kent State since 2023, was named the interim head coach. After leading Kent State to a 3-5 start to the season in late October, the school removed the interim tag and made him the permanent head coach. The Golden Flashes are 4-7 heading into the final week of the season.

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Colorado State: Jim Mora Jr.

UConn's Jim Mora Jr. is headed back West to replace Jay Norvell as head coach at Colorado State. The son of former NFL coach Jim Mora, Mora Jr. enjoyed his most success as a head coach while at UCLA from 2012-2017, including consecutive 10-win seasons that ended with bowl victories.

He's since compiled back-to-back winning seasons at UConn, where he's gone 27-23 after helming the FBS independent program in 2022. Mora Jr. is 73-53 overall throughout his NCAA coaching career and went 31-33 across four NFL seasons with the Falcons and Seahawks.

Oregon State: JaMarcus Shephard

Oregon State hired Alabama co-offensive coordinator the post of head coach, the school announced on Nov. 28. Shephard agreed to a five-year deal with the Beavers. He will take over for Trent Bray, who was dumped after going 5-14 across two seasons in Beaverton.

Shephard is an experienced tactician, having previously turned out for Washington State and Washington. During his time with the Crimson Tide, Shephard helped facilitate the development of an impressive WR room that included Germie Bernard and Ryan Williams. He also coached Rome Odunze, Ja'Lynn Polk and Jalen McMillan during his two-year stint with the Huskies.

"I'm honored to lead the Oregon State University football program and to join a community that cares so deeply about its student-athletes," Shephard said said in a statement. "We will build a culture rooted in toughness, integrity, and relentless effort, and I'm excited to get to work with our players, staff, and supporters to write the next great chapter of Beaver football."

Stanford: Tavita Pritchard

Stanford announced the hiring of Tavita Pritchard as head coach on Nov. 28, replacing interim coach Frank Reich, whose hire was always expected to be a one-year role. 

The 38-year-old Pritchard was in his third season as the Washington Commanders' quarterbacks coach, but he is a Stanford man at heart after spending four years as a quarterback with the Cardinal and another 13 on the coaching staff in various roles.

Pritchard spent most of 2008 as Stanford's starter, but he was quickly replaced by none other than Andrew Luck in 2009. As the hands-on general manager of the program, Luck made the decision to hire Pritchard, who spent five seasons as the program's offensive coordinator under David Shaw before Shaw departed at the end of the 2022 season. 

Arkansas: Ryan Silverfield

Arkansas is hiring Ryan Silverfield as its head coach, according to multiple reports. 

Silverfield spent the last six seasons as the head coach at Memphis after replacing Mike Norvell, guiding the Tigers to five winning seasons without ever finishing under .500. Silverfield is 29-9 over his last three seasons, though Memphis fell a bit short of playoff expectations in 2025 with an 8-4 campaign.

USF's Alex Golesh was reported to be a top candidate at Arkansas after Sam Pittman's firing, but the Florida-born Silverfield is headed to Fayetteville while Golesh is Auburn-bound. 

Auburn: Alex Golesh

Auburn is hiring USF's Alex Golesh as head coach to replace Hugh Freeze. Tulane's Jon Sumrall was reported to be a top target of the Tigers' search, but with Florida in the running for Sumrall, the school pivoted to Golesh.

Born in Moscow before coming over to the U.S. with his family at seven years old, Golesh spent nearly two decades as a collegiate assistant at different stops before becoming the head coach at South Florida in 2023. Golesh helped drag the Bulls out of a dark period, leading USF to three consecutive winning seasons including a 9-3 campaign in 2025.

Florida: Jon Sumrall

Florida is hiring Tulane's Jon Sumrall as its next head coach. Sumrall, who was a candidate for the Auburn job before Florida pivoted away from Lane Kiffin, is 42-11 in four seasons as a head coach between Troy and Tulane. 

Sumrall went 23-4 at Troy before replacing Willie Fritz at Tulane and sustaining some of the success Fritz established in New Orleans. The Green Wave went 9-5 with Darian Mensah at quarterback in 2024 and are 10-2 in 2025 with wins over Duke and Northwestern.

The Gators went with a Group of Five head coach again after hiring Billy Napier four years ago, and expectations will be sky-high for Sumrall in the SEC.

LSU: Lane Kiffin

Lane Kiffin made it official on Nov. 30, announcing that he will be the next head coach at LSU after a weeks-long saga.

Kiffin just wrapped up an 11-win season at Ole Miss, where he went 55-19 in six seasons and effectively locked up a College Football Playoff berth for the Rebels in 2025. Despite the success, a massive seven-year contract and the promise of resources to build a championship-caliber roster lured Kiffin to Baton Rouge. 

LSU fired Brian Kelly in October and targeted Kiffin from the start, never wavering until they landed their man exactly five weeks later.

Ole Miss: Pete Golding

Ole Miss announced the promotion of Pete Golding to full-time head coach after Lane Kiffin's departure for LSU.

The Rebels reportedly spoke to Jon Sumrall and Alex Golesh as Kiffin debated on a potential exit, but both Sumrall and Golesh found other SEC jobs before Kiffin's official departure. Ole Miss is instead choosing Golding, who has spent the last three seasons as the program's defensive coordinator after five seasons as Alabama's defensive coordinator under Nick Saban.

This is Golding's first head coaching job at any level. 

Michigan State: Pat Fitzgerald

Michigan State intends to hire Pat Fitzgerald, according to the Detroit Free Press.

The Spartans job opened up on Nov. 30 when Jonathan Smith was fired after only two seasons, and it didn't take long for Fitzgerald to emerge as an obvious candidate. The 51-year-old spent 17 seasons as the head coach at Northwestern from 2006-22, posting a winning record despite the Wildcats having some of the scarcest resources in the Big Ten.

Fitzgerald's tenure in Evanston ended amid a hazing scandal in 2023, after which he sued the school for wrongful termination and settled the suit with Northwestern stating the longtime coach did not operate or condone any hazing program. 

UCLA: Bob Chesney

UCLA is set to hire Bob Chesney as its head football coach, according to multiple reports.

Chesney was Curt Cignetti's replacement at James Madison two cycles ago, and his jump to the Big Ten is the latest step in quite a rise for the 48-year-old. Chesney spent three seasons as a head coach at D-3 Salve Regina, five at D-2 Assumption and six at FCS Holy Cross before landing with the Dukes, who are 20-5 in his two seasons and have a chance to reach the College Football Playoff this season.

Chesney was born and raised in Pennsylvania and doesn't have any coaching ties to the west coast, so UCLA appears to be going with what it feels is the best candidate available rather than someone with local connections. 

Kentucky: Will Stein

Kentucky is set to hire Will Stein to replace Mark Stoops as the head coach, per multiple reports. 

Stein most recently was the offensive coordinator for Oregon. He will return home as he was born in Louisville, Kentucky. Despite playing for Louisville in college, Stein claims that he grew up a Wildcats fan.

This is his first head coaching gig. He has served as the offensive coordinator for Oregon since 2023. 

North Texas: Neal Brown

North Texas is finalizing a five-year deal with former West Virginia head coach Neal Brown, per Pete Thamel. 

He was fired after the 2024 season by the Mountaineers. He tallied a 37-35 record between 2019 and 2024 with West Virginia. This will be Brown's third head coaching gig. He was first the head coach at Troy from 2015 to 2018, and his 35-16 record there saw him earn the West Virginia job starting in 2019.

Brown didn't find a coaching job for the 2025 season. Instead, he served as the assistant to the head coach at Texas.

California: Tosh Lupoi

Lupoi is finalizing a deal to become the next head coach at Cal, per multiple reports. 

He is currently the defensive coordinator at Oregon, but gets to return home. Lupoi went to the University of California for college and served as its defensive line coach from 2008 to 2011. He has bounced out various defensive positions with stops across college football and the NFL.

After three seasons in the NFL, Lupoi returned to the college ranks, becoming Dan Lanning's linebackers coach and defensive coordinator starting in 2022. This will be his first opportunity of being a head coach. 

USF: Brian Hartline

South Florida is set to hire Brian Hartline as its head football coach, replacing Alex Golesh.

Hartline's name has surfaced in connection with some Power Four jobs after receiving high praise for his work with wide receivers at Ohio State. Currently the Buckeyes' offensive coordinator, Hartline has spent the last nine seasons on Ohio State's staff, dating back to the Urban Meyer era, but he spent time in South Florida in the NFL while playing for the Miami Dolphins and returns to the region to try to keep the Bulls near the top of the AAC.

Kansas State: Collin Klein

Kansas State is hiring Texas A&M offensive coordinator Collin Klein as its head football coach, The Mercury reported, with Chris Klieman set to retire after seven seasons.

It's a homecoming for Klein, as he was a Heisman Trophy finalist as the Wildcats' starting quarterback in 2012 and spent seven seasons as an assistant on Kansas State's staff between Bill Snyder and Klieman before joining Mike Elko in College Station. Just 36 years old, Klein takes over a Wildcats program that has earned bowl eligibility in each of the last five seasons.

James Madison: Billy Napier

James Madison's coach in 2025 was Bob Chesney who left the program to become the new head coach for UCLA. To replace him, James Madison is hiring former Florida head coach Billy Napier, per Pete Thamel.

Napier spent four seasons at the University of Louisiana and tallied a 40-12 record. The success earned him the nickname "Sun Belt Billy." After a tumultuous 22-23 record at the University of Florida over the last four years, he was fired midseason. Napier now returns to the Sun Belt as JMU's new head coach. 

UAB: Alex Mortensen

Former UAB head coach Trent Dilfer was fired after a 2-4 start to the 2025 season. Rather than looking to hire externally, UAB is promoting Alex Mortensen, who served as Dilfer's offensive coordinator and was the interim head coach when Dilfer was fired. Mortensen was 2-4 after taking over for Dilfer. 

Which college football coaching jobs are still open?

There are a few jobs still open for 2026.

Michigan

After the Wolverines fired Sherrone Moore for cause recently, they own one of the most high-profile jobs opened in recent years. 

Missouri State

Ryan Beard's departure for Coastal Carolina left Missouri State with an open position, which has yet to be filled.

Washington State 

With Jimmy Rogers leaving for Iowa State, Washington State is another available position, for the time being.