Here is my rankings of coaches I would, realistically speaking, like to see brought to Purdue:
1: Ed Oregron, Defensive Line Coach LSU
Although Oregron has a less than stellar overall record as a head coach (specifically Ole Miss), he is known as the best recruiter in the college football landscape today. He had a successful stint as the interim head coach at USC (which I'm sure are now kicking themselves for not naming him the coach) and was recently hired as the defensive line coach at LSU. He would bring something that is desperately needed to West Lafayette, and that is an effectiveness on the recruiting trail while also being a name recognizable throughout the country.
2: Mark Hudspeth,
UL Lafayette
Record at UL Lafayette: 36-16 (4 years)
Career Record: 102-37 (11 years)
Hudspeth has been a home-run hire for UL Lafayette, and it won’t be long before Power 5 programs inquire if he’s interested in moving to a bigger job. In each of Hudspeth’s four seasons, the Ragin’ Cajuns have won nine games and claimed a bowl victory. Prior to the last four years at UL Lafayette, Hudspeth went 66-21 at North Alabama from 2002-08 and also worked as an assistant at Mississippi State. Hudspeth is one of college football’s top rising stars in the coaching ranks.
3: Dino Babers,
Bowling Green
Record at Bowling Green: 8-6 (1 year)
Career Record: 27-13 (3 years)
Babers turned in a solid 8-6 record in his debut at Bowling Green last season. The Falcons managed to overcome the loss of starting quarterback Matt Johnson in the season opener to claim the MAC East title. Babers came to Bowling Green after a 19-7 record in two years at Eastern Illinois. With Johnson back under center, along with a standout core of offensive talent, Babers’ “Falcon Fast” offense should take flight in 2015.
4: Chad Morris,
SMU
Record at SMU: First Year
Career Record: First Year
Morris is regarded as one of the top offensive minds in college football. After a one-year stint as Tulsa’s play-caller in 2010, Morris was hired to coordinate Clemson’s offense and was a key piece of the Tigers’ recent success over the last four years. The Tigers averaged at least 30 points in each of Morris’ four seasons, including back-to-back years of at least 40 points (2012-13). This is Morris’ first opportunity to be a head coach on the collegiate level, but he was a successful high school coach from 1994-2009. As a Texas native and with connections to the high school level, Morris should have no trouble recruiting to SMU. This should be a great hire for the Mustangs.
5: Matt Campbell,
Toledo
Record at Toledo: 26-13 (3+ years)
Career Record: 26-13 (3+ years)
Campbell is one of college football’s youngest head coaches at 35 years old, and through three full seasons, the former Mount Union defensive lineman has guided Toledo to 26 wins. The Rockets tied for the MAC West title in 2014 but lost the head-to-head tiebreaker with Northern Illinois. Campbell is a rising star in the coaching ranks, and with running back Kareem Hunt returning for 2015, Toledo should be among the favorites to win the conference this year.
6: Bob Stitt, Montana
Stitt reminds me a lot of what Tiller was prior to coming to West Lafayette. A coach, out in west, playing an odd sort of football nobody has really seen before. Stitt is still considered one of the sharpest minds offensively in the country and many colleges and professional teams have sought him out for advice on scheming their offenses. He has had some success with his system at Montana after defeating 3 time defending FCS National Champion NDSU on the opening weekend. It should be noted that his previous school, Colorado School of Mines (which he built from the ground up), is currently 5-0 and ranked in the top 10 for D2 schools.
Others worth mentioning and would be considered my 2nd tier of coaches to bring in to interview:
These coaches either have some red flags with failures in the past or I believe may need more time to prove themselves as a HC (ala Hazell's one successful year).
These are in no particular order:
Skip Holtz,
Louisiana Tech
Record at Louisiana Tech: 13-13 (2 years)
Career Record: 101-84 (15 years)
Holtz is coaching at his fourth FBS program and eclipsed 100 wins in his career in 2014. After a 16-21 three-year stint at USF, Holtz landed at Louisiana Tech and guided the Bulldogs to a Conference USA West Division title last season. Holtz also has successful stops on his resume from UConn (34 wins) and East Carolina (38 victories).
Tom Herman,
Houston
Record at Houston: First Year
Career Record: First Year
After a successful run as Ohio State’s offensive coordinator (2012-14), Herman is ready for his opportunity to run a program. The Ohio native lands at a solid program too, as Houston as the resources to be one of the top contenders in the American Athletic Conference on an annual basis. Prior to the last three years with the Buckeyes, Herman spent time as an offensive coordinator at Iowa State (2009-11), Rice (2007-08) and Texas State (2005-06).
Willie Fritz, Georgia Southern
Record at Georgia Southern: 9-3 (1 year)
Career Record: 185-70-1 (21 years)
Fritz was one of the top coaching hires from 2014, as he guided Georgia Southern to a 9-3 record and a perfect 8-0 mark in Sun Belt play. Adding to the impressive 2014 season was the fact it was Georgia Southern’s debut on the FBS level. Fritz’s success isn’t just limited to Georgia Southern either, as he went 40-14 in four years at Sam Houston State and 97-47 at Central Missouri.
Matt Wells,
Utah State
Record at Utah State: 19-9 (2 years)
Career Record: 19-9 (2 years)
Despite a few major injuries to key players over the last two seasons, Wells has navigated Utah State to a 19-9 record and a 13-3 mark in conference play in that span. The Aggies played for the 2013 Mountain West title and have back-to-back bowl victories under Wells’ direction. Even though Wells inherited plenty of talent from former coach Gary Andersen, his coaching ability has been on full display with the key injuries this team has been forced to overcome over the last two years.
Justin Fuente,
Memphis
Record at Memphis: 17-20 (3 years)
Career Record: 17-20 (3 years)
Fuente is one of the nation’s top rising stars in the head coach ranks. The Oklahoma native worked as an assistant at Illinois State and TCU before replacing Larry Porter at Memphis in 2012. Fuente inherited a program that went 3-21 from 2010-11 and the Tigers showed immediate progress in Year One, finishing with a 4-8 mark in 2012. Memphis finished 3-9 in its debut in the American Athletic Conference but went 10-3 and finished No. 25 in the final Associated Press poll in 2014. With Memphis among the contenders to win the AAC in 2015, Fuente could be pursued by bigger programs this offseason.
