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Grade: A
Butch Davis, Florida International: Though the amount of talent in South Florida should help any coach be competitive here, it’s still a tough job. And Davis, at 65, is knocking it out of the park with the Panthers at 5-2. His predecessor, Ron Turner, won just 10 games total in 3 1/2 seasons.
Lane Kiffin, Florida Atlantic: Freed from Nick Saban’s shackles, Kiffin has found time not only to up his Twitter trolling game but also turn around a program that finished 3-9 in each of the last three seasons. After a shaky start, FAU is 4-0 in C-USA and has averaged 52 points in the league, beating the league’s traditional powers in Middle Tennessee and Western Kentucky.
Grade: A-Lincoln Riley, Oklahoma: He has looked poised and totally prepared as Stoops’ successor, snagging a big early win at Ohio State. The only knock is a somewhat shaky defense, which was a problem before he became head coach.
Jeff Tedford, Fresno State: Though a home loss to UNLV last weekend knocked him down from an A, the 5-3 Bulldogs had allowed 34 points in their previous four Mountain West games combined. Last season, Fresno State went 1-11 and gave up more than 34 points six times. Five years removed from his Cal tenure, Tedford looks rejuvenated.
Grade: B+
P.J. Fleck, Minnesota: This is not a talented Gophers team, but at 4-4 they still have a chance for the postseason and were competitive in losses to Michigan State and Iowa. Fleck has dialed down his “Row the Boat” schtick a notch and been solid in resetting the culture at Minnesota.
Willie Taggart, Oregon: Though the Ducks are probably headed for 6-6, the product looks much better and more physical than it did last season, particularly on defense. Despite losing quarterback Justin Herbert to injury, they haven’t fallen off a cliff.
Jeff Brohm, Purdue: Though the shine has worn off a little bit with close losses in a row to Wisconsin, Rutgers and Nebraska to fall to 3-5, Brohm has made Purdue fun and somewhat relevant. There’s still plenty of work to be done, but Brohm has the Boilermakers on a trajectory to compete in the Big Ten West in the next few years.
Shawn Elliott, Georgia State: After an embarrassing debut loss to Tennessee State, the Panthers have pieced together a solid season at 4-3 and project to be a bowl team for the second time in history with winnable games down the stretch.
Grade: B
Justin Wilcox, California: Though the defense has slipped the last few weeks, the 37-3 upset of Washington State still resonates.
Matt Rhule, Baylor: Despite the 0-8 record, Baylor is still playing hard and has been competitive against good teams. It’s a massive rebuilding job.
Randy Edsall, Connecticut: Though the Huskies aren’t good at 3-5, they’re at least watchable and somewhat of a threat on offense, which wasn’t the case last season under Bob Diaco.
Grade: B-Tom Herman, Texas: It would be disingenuous to say anything other than the Longhorns have been underwhelming at 4-4, given the expectation that Herman’s offense would be the key to a talented roster competing in the Big 12. Instead, Todd Orlando’s defense has been far more impressive.
Ed Orgeron, LSU: Though you have to give him credit for stabilizing things midseason, the loss to Troy still resonates. The Tigers have a shot to go 9-3, which would be a moderately successful first season.
Charlie Strong, South Florida: Though they’re 7-1, the Bulls have far too often been sloppy and unimpressive and haven’t exactly overwhelmed a soft schedule. Their +14 turnover margin has kept them from a very disappointing season.
Mike Sanford, Western Kentucky: Brohm’s offense is gone, and the Hill-toppers have really struggled to light up the scoreboard under Sanford.
Tim Lester, Western Michigan: Fleck is a tough act to follow, but the 5-4 Broncos did pull out one of the season’s most exciting games, beating Buffalo 71-68 in seven overtimes.
Geoff Collins, Temple: There wasn’t a whole lot of offensive talent left over from the Rhule era, but the 3-5 Owls could be in much better shape, having lost three one-possession games in the AAC.
Major Applewhite, Houston: Beating South Florida on a late touchdown last weekend helped tremendously, but the Cougars have been pretty ordinary at 5-3. Unless they win out, Applewhite will have fallen short of expectations in Year 1.
Grade: C/C-Tom Allen, Indiana: The Hoosiers are 0-5 in the Big Ten and haven’t cashed in numerous opportunities to pull an upset.
Jay Norvell, Nevada: They’re scoring points, but 1-7 is still 1-7.
Luke Fickell, Cincinnati: There was a lot to clean up from Tommy Tuber-ville’s final years, but improvement hasn’t really been evident yet at 2-6.
Brent Brennan, San Jose State: The Spartans are probably the worst team in FBS at 1-8, having beaten only Cal Poly.
Grade: A
Butch Davis, Florida International: Though the amount of talent in South Florida should help any coach be competitive here, it’s still a tough job. And Davis, at 65, is knocking it out of the park with the Panthers at 5-2. His predecessor, Ron Turner, won just 10 games total in 3 1/2 seasons.
Lane Kiffin, Florida Atlantic: Freed from Nick Saban’s shackles, Kiffin has found time not only to up his Twitter trolling game but also turn around a program that finished 3-9 in each of the last three seasons. After a shaky start, FAU is 4-0 in C-USA and has averaged 52 points in the league, beating the league’s traditional powers in Middle Tennessee and Western Kentucky.
Grade: A-Lincoln Riley, Oklahoma: He has looked poised and totally prepared as Stoops’ successor, snagging a big early win at Ohio State. The only knock is a somewhat shaky defense, which was a problem before he became head coach.
Jeff Tedford, Fresno State: Though a home loss to UNLV last weekend knocked him down from an A, the 5-3 Bulldogs had allowed 34 points in their previous four Mountain West games combined. Last season, Fresno State went 1-11 and gave up more than 34 points six times. Five years removed from his Cal tenure, Tedford looks rejuvenated.
Grade: B+
P.J. Fleck, Minnesota: This is not a talented Gophers team, but at 4-4 they still have a chance for the postseason and were competitive in losses to Michigan State and Iowa. Fleck has dialed down his “Row the Boat” schtick a notch and been solid in resetting the culture at Minnesota.
Willie Taggart, Oregon: Though the Ducks are probably headed for 6-6, the product looks much better and more physical than it did last season, particularly on defense. Despite losing quarterback Justin Herbert to injury, they haven’t fallen off a cliff.
Jeff Brohm, Purdue: Though the shine has worn off a little bit with close losses in a row to Wisconsin, Rutgers and Nebraska to fall to 3-5, Brohm has made Purdue fun and somewhat relevant. There’s still plenty of work to be done, but Brohm has the Boilermakers on a trajectory to compete in the Big Ten West in the next few years.
Shawn Elliott, Georgia State: After an embarrassing debut loss to Tennessee State, the Panthers have pieced together a solid season at 4-3 and project to be a bowl team for the second time in history with winnable games down the stretch.
Grade: B
Justin Wilcox, California: Though the defense has slipped the last few weeks, the 37-3 upset of Washington State still resonates.
Matt Rhule, Baylor: Despite the 0-8 record, Baylor is still playing hard and has been competitive against good teams. It’s a massive rebuilding job.
Randy Edsall, Connecticut: Though the Huskies aren’t good at 3-5, they’re at least watchable and somewhat of a threat on offense, which wasn’t the case last season under Bob Diaco.
Grade: B-Tom Herman, Texas: It would be disingenuous to say anything other than the Longhorns have been underwhelming at 4-4, given the expectation that Herman’s offense would be the key to a talented roster competing in the Big 12. Instead, Todd Orlando’s defense has been far more impressive.
Ed Orgeron, LSU: Though you have to give him credit for stabilizing things midseason, the loss to Troy still resonates. The Tigers have a shot to go 9-3, which would be a moderately successful first season.
Charlie Strong, South Florida: Though they’re 7-1, the Bulls have far too often been sloppy and unimpressive and haven’t exactly overwhelmed a soft schedule. Their +14 turnover margin has kept them from a very disappointing season.
Mike Sanford, Western Kentucky: Brohm’s offense is gone, and the Hill-toppers have really struggled to light up the scoreboard under Sanford.
Tim Lester, Western Michigan: Fleck is a tough act to follow, but the 5-4 Broncos did pull out one of the season’s most exciting games, beating Buffalo 71-68 in seven overtimes.
Geoff Collins, Temple: There wasn’t a whole lot of offensive talent left over from the Rhule era, but the 3-5 Owls could be in much better shape, having lost three one-possession games in the AAC.
Major Applewhite, Houston: Beating South Florida on a late touchdown last weekend helped tremendously, but the Cougars have been pretty ordinary at 5-3. Unless they win out, Applewhite will have fallen short of expectations in Year 1.
Grade: C/C-Tom Allen, Indiana: The Hoosiers are 0-5 in the Big Ten and haven’t cashed in numerous opportunities to pull an upset.
Jay Norvell, Nevada: They’re scoring points, but 1-7 is still 1-7.
Luke Fickell, Cincinnati: There was a lot to clean up from Tommy Tuber-ville’s final years, but improvement hasn’t really been evident yet at 2-6.
Brent Brennan, San Jose State: The Spartans are probably the worst team in FBS at 1-8, having beaten only Cal Poly.
