Re-Grading the 2020 College Football Coaching Hires
Last week, I went over first-year players that were primed for a breakout sophomore season. Now, in another segment looking at first-years in college football, we look at first-year head coaches. I’ll assign them a letter grade on their first-season performance. How did they recruit? How did the product on the field look? Is the trajectory going up? Let’s take a look.
*NOTE* I’m going to rank them in three tiers (Good, Bad, and Ugly) to make it a little easier to read through
THE GOOD
Washington - Jimmy Lake: A
Jimmy Lake had the advantage of being an internal hire when he was hired as HC after Chris Petersen stepped down following the 2019 season, nonetheless, he earned a good grade for his first season as head coach. The Huskies won the Pac-12 North behind Lake and his defense, which led the conference in total defense (346.2) with excellent play from Elijah Molden and Zion Tupuola-Fetui. The offense was a little bland, but have blue-chip QB prospect Sam Huard arriving on campus next year and should compete with incumbent starter Dylan Morris.
Ole Miss - Lane Kiffin: A
Kiffin inherited a barren roster, especially on the defensive side, when he took over the Ole Miss football program. One year later, despite the middling record (5-5), the trajectory of the program is shooting sky-high. Kiffin himself will bring media and attention to the team (pictured: clipboard flip), but breakouts of Elijah Moore and Matt Corral brought some too. Remember, it was Kiffin’s Rebels that gave eventual National Champion Alabama its toughest test of the year.
Boston College - Jeff Hafley: A-
Jeff Hafley had a super-impressive opening campaign in Chestnut Hill. Four of the five Eagles losses were to ranked teams, including giving No. 1 Clemson all they had for four quarters on Halloween. All that for a team that was projected to finish 13th in the ACC in the preseason. The biggest success of Hafley’s first season though? The program didn’t have a single positive COVID-19 test for any of its players or staff (over 8,000 tests administered). Hats off to that.
Colorado - Karl Dorrell: A-
Dorrell was dealt a tough hand when Mel Tucker left Boulder for Michigan State. He wasn’t hired until late February, well into the recruiting process, and still managed to turn that into a 4-2 record and a PAC-12 Coach of the Year Award.
THE BAD
Arkansas - Sam Pittman: B
Despite their 3-7 record, there is a lot to like with the Hogs. Sam Pittman worked some magic in his first season in Fayetteville. The program had lost 19 straight conference games entering the season, yet Pittman won three of them (Tennessee, Ole Miss, and Mississippi State) and should’ve won another (Auburn). Florida Transfer Felipe Franks had a career rejoice, averaging 8.9 YPA and completing 68 percent of his passes thanks to weapons like Trelon Smith (5.3 YPC, five TD) and Treylon Burks (820 receiving yards and seven touchdowns). There is a lot to like here.
Florida State - Mike Norvell: C
I think Norvell is a really good coach, so I trust him to turn FSU around in the near future. His first season in Tallahassee, however, was not great. Outside of an upset of North Carolina, the Seminoles didn’t look any better. Five of their six losses were by multiple scores. The QBs, whether it was Jordan Travis or James Blackman, were terrible. Norvell better hope incoming transfer McKenzie Milton will be fully healthy again. Let’s revisit this after a year.
Rutgers - Greg Schiano: C
It….. could’ve been worse? After a disastrous four-year run under Chris Ash, Rutgers football showed some life in the shortened 2020 season to start Schiano’s second stint with the Scarlet Knights. The programs won three conference games for the first time since 2017. Three of the six losses were by one score. After watching the previous four years, I’m sure Rutgers fans will gladly take that.
Michigan State - Mel Tucker: C-
Michigan State, and Mel Tucker, were a little hard to judge. Tucker arrived in the offseason after a middling 2019 season at Colorado. The COVID-19 pandemic slammed the world in March and threw off the transition process for the new coach. The Spartans only went 2-5, beating rival Michigan and Big Ten West Champion Northwestern, but also getting blasted by Ohio State (52-12), Iowa (49-7), and Penn State (39-24). I’m still unsure on Tucker as a coach, but I’ll hold off for another season to put anything in ink.
The Ugly
Mississippi State - Mike Leach: F
I think Mike Leach and the Bulldogs get their own tier in this list. Everything was looking so good for Mississippi State after upsetting LSU in Week 1….. and then they collapsed. The offense fell apart when defenses adjusted to the Air Raid, and it seemed like there was no adjustment from Leach and co. KJ Costello went from preseason Heisman hype to getting benched. I’m not getting fooled by that 4-7 record, which is better than some of the teams mentioned above, it was a messy season. Oh, and it all ended with an ugly brawl in the Armed Forces vs Tulsa. Not a good look.