The college football coaching carousel is often the most chaotic time of the year as one coach can start a massive domino effect that impacts the entire sport. Every season everyone has a list of head coaches on the hot seat and the coaches who are going to become top candidates for a promotion or bigger job.
Looking into the future with all the moving parts is almost impossible as college football has changed drastically the past several years. The Athletic's Ralph Russo took on the impossible task of predicting the head coach at every Power 4 program in 2030 with some major twists and turns.
Kalen DeBoer replacing Lincoln Riley would send shockwaves through the sport
Among the many twists and turns in Russo's prediction of the coaching landscape in 2030, the future of USC and Alabama are the most interesting. USC head coach Lincoln Riley hasn't lived up to the expectations in Los Angeles, and many have speculated if the two may split up. Russo predicts that the Lubbock product would return home to coach his alma mater.
Riley's departure from USC would create a massive void for the Trojans and one that the program would likely look to fill with a big name head coach. The succession plan Russo has in mind is USC hiring Alabama head coach Kalen DeBoer.
There is a tie for USC with Kalen DeBoer as the Trojans AD Jen Cohen hit a home run when she hired the Alabama head coach during her time at Washington. The move would make a ton of sense for the Trojans as DeBoer had success coaching on the West Coast with Washington, and could replicate it at USC.
Texas Tech landing Lincoln Riley would be a home run, regardless of how his USC Trojans tenure finishes. Riley was at his best coaching in the Big 12, and a return would bring him back to an easier league where he could vault back up the ranks. The Red Raiders have a ton of resources which would pair well with Riley's track record as a recruiter.
Both head coaches are facing a ton of pressure heading into 2026 as both fanbases are starving for a deep College Football Playoff run. It would take massive failures for either to get fired this offseason, but it's also realistic to think that both head coaches could be leading new programs.