Big 12 Football: Are Long-Tenured College Football Coaches Going Extinct?

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Originally published at: https://pistolsfiringblog.com/big-12-football-are-long-tenured-college-football-coaches-going-extinct/

Coaching turnover seems to be the new norm. What does that mean for a program like OSU?

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Whittingham won his conference three times from 2005-2025. After a disappointing 2024 season going 5-7 he returned about half his starters and squeezed a 10-2 record out of that group. Michigan was quick to hire him because he was still proving his worth even in his 60’s.

Gundy won his conference one time from 2005-2025. After a 10-win season in 2023, and 19 returning starters. Gundy found a way to go 3-9 and dead last in the conference in 2024. He later followed that up with a team that couldn’t even beat 3-9 Tulsa in Stillwater, and another winless conference record.

I don’t know if it’s really a trend of the older coaches fading away. Cignetti is in his 60’s and just won a national title with the worst program in NCAA history. Michigan obviously wouldn’t call Willingham if they didn’t think he was worth it. Guess who isn’t getting a call and isn’t 60 yet?

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Having a HC stay at a school for a long time will become rarer in the future. You’ll only see at schools that can afford it and the HC is still performing up to expectations

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“Youll only see at schools that can afford it and the HC are still performing up to expectations”. Thats nothing new. Thats always been the case. The Hometown program always got a little bit of a discount, but thats not changing. The structure of how you formulate your roster is/has changed, which is driving the old-guard out of the game. But, with the front office formulation, Id argue that it is going to be less of a headache than it used to be. The structure of the front office is now to where the HC doesnt have to take on as much of the load as he once did.

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Could you possibly give some examples? Serious question.

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“Preternaturally” … well done!

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That’s easy Bill, the GMs are taking in more responsibility with the roster and what these kids are paid. It’s a number game. Texas Tech is doing it. They look at certain positions and have skated them as to payroll range. Of course QBs command the most money. Then OTs and edge rushers. Guards & Centers will probably be much lower.

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I’d say you might want to invest a little more money into the guys protecting your $7 mil QB. Sure would be nice to see a consistently competent OL for the first time in probably 13 years.

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I think there are fair and honest discussions about where (what positions) the NIL dollars get paid too, but Chris’s and Ketch’s points are still accurate. One of the biggest ‘modernizations’ of college football is the expansion of the football program’s support staff. Scouting used to be done by coaches directly, or via 3rd party service, but now every team has a multitude of GAs (aka future coaches) scouring game footage, youtube, as well as the 3rd party services in order to identify recruiting candidates. The AD office has people doing the money side of the business now. Now coaches just have to be recruiting closers and coach the game.

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In Norman is one perfect example. All negotiations are done by the GM and his staff. No money/contract stuff is handled by the coach. Portal targets are compiled by the front office staff, with Venables and Co signing off on them. Much, much easier way to go about it. There are more following suit