The end of the college football season is rapidly approaching as most teams have just two games remaining. While plenty of programs are still in the mix for the College Football Playoff, plenty of programs are already looking to the offseason. Given how easy it is to rebuild with the Transfer Portal and all the chaos in the coaching carousel, this is shaping up to be an incredible offseason.
Among the programs looking for the off-season to begin, no one is more excited than the programs who are going to start fresh at head coach. In the Power 4, there are plenty of openings that will only grow as the season nears its close with how invested teams are in their rosters.
While every fanbase has their clear top choice at head coach, every program won’t get lucky reeling in their top candidate. Each of the Power 4 jobs has an ugly flaw that could keep it from reeling in the coach that will change their program.
Why each Power 4 team won't land its top head coaching choice
Arkansas Razorbacks - Being the 4th best SEC job this cycle
Sam Pittman was a candidate to be fired last season, and the Razorbacks waiting an extra year to fire him may cost them a top candidate. Most of the candidates Arkansas would like to hire will be in play for the jobs at LSU, Auburn, and Florida as well as some other schools. The Razorbacks may love several candidates, but they may be forced to play the waiting game.
Auburn Tigers - Sharing a state with Alabama
The Auburn Tigers are one of the most attractive jobs to open up this cycle, but their next coach faces an uphill battle. The biggest issue with taking the Auburn job is having to compete with Alabama for the top talent in the state, while other schools will try to poach the talent as well. Hugh Freeze did a great job in Kalen DeBoer's first season at Alabama, but this season, Alabama was dominating In-State recruiting.
Florida Gators - The churn of coaches
Every time the Florida job opens up, everyone declares that it's one of the best jobs, yet they haven't found the success they expect since Urban Meyer. The Gators have hired all the hot names. Will Muschamp was the coach in waiting at Texas, Jim McElwain was a top name in the Group of 5, Dan Mullen just had success in the SEC, and Billy Napier was seen as the best up-and-coming name. While Florida is seen as a great job, the results have shown that it isn't that easy to win there.
LSU Tigers- Everything outside of football
The LSU Tigers have arguably the most attractive opening in the country when it comes to football, but everything else is seemingly a mess. The Tigers are currently being sued by Brian Kelly as they're trying anything they can to not pay his buyout. After seeing the way the Tigers handled firing Brian Kelly and the immediate aftermath, it may be a sign to coaches to stay away from this job.
Penn State Nittany Lions - Thinking the program is better than it is
We've already seen several coaches Penn State would've been interested in accepting extensions at their current school in Matt Rhule, Curt Cignetti, and Mike Elko. James Franklin constantly kept this program in the Big Ten race, but they haven't won a National Championship since 1986 and a Big Ten Championship since 2016, proving they aren't quite the power they think they are.
Oklahoma State Cowboys - Catching up in the NIL game
The biggest reason that Mike Gundy's Oklahoma State program fell apart so quickly is the fact that the Cowboys were so late to NIL. Mike Gundy would openly express how much other teams spent on their roster compared to his team, which highlights the fact that this program wasn't fully invested. The next head coach is going to need to rally booster support and embrace this new era, especially as Texas Tech is all in across the Big 12.
Stanford Cardinal - Academic Standards
The academic standards at Stanford are great for many reasons, but most schools with higher standards struggle recruiting, especially in the Transfer Portal. In the ACC, while schools like Miami and Florida State can load up on talent every year, Stanford is picking from a much smaller pool, which will always make building a winning group difficult.
UCLA Bruins - Investment in football
The level of candidates that UCLA hires will tell you a lot about how invested they are in building a winning program. With every other program in the Big Ten pouring resources into its roster, the Bruins need to prove that they're willing to spend at a similar level or at least to the point where the next coach has a chance.
Virginia Tech Hokies - Other jobs are more attractive
The Virginia Tech Hokies have already identified their top candidate in James Franklin, but he's still not hired. Considering that Virginia Tech's top candidate is still looking elsewhere, the Hokies may not get their top pick of candidates. The sooner a deal is announced, the better for the Hokies, as this recruitment dragging out may mean that they to turn to Plan B.