The 2023 season isn't even over, but the coaching cycle is already firing on full cylinders as teams look for their new head coaches for next season. Some of the biggest names in the industry have vacated their positions in the past few weeks, and many have already been filled, so let's take a look at some of the best head coaching hires in this year's cycle.
5. Jeff Lebby to Mississippi State
Mississippi State was dealt a truly horrible hand last season when Mike Leach, a legend of the game, passed away late last season. Leach had instituted his iconic air raid offense at State, to great effect; KJ Costello set the SEC record for single-game passing yardage, and Will Rogers was one of the most productive passers in the country from 2021-22. This year, without Leach, Rogers was just never able to recapture that level of play, leaving the Bulldogs looking for a new leader.
Enter Jeff Lebby, who got the most out of transfer quarterback Dillon Gabriel at Oklahoma, and will likely be asked to do the same in Starkville as Rogers is hitting the portal itself. Lebby has some experience with this particular corner of college football, as he was the offensive coordinator at rivals Ole Miss for a couple of seasons, so he will immediately bring an edge to State's side of the Egg Bowl. His offensive system is just what the Bulldogs need to move on to their next era after the last was so abruptly and cruelly cut short.
4. Mike Elko to Texas A&M
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In a vacuum, this is an incredible move and would rank higher if not for certain dubious circumstances surrounding the hire. After finally moving on from Jimbo Fisher, Texas A&M decided to hire Elko, Fisher's right hand man for four seasons in College Station. There's something to be said for someone with familiarity with the program, but it's a bit of an odd move to bring in someone so closely tied to the previous, failed regime.
That being said, Elko has done a fantastic job at Duke over the past couple of seasons. After inheriting a team that had lost nine games in consecutive seasons, Elko immediately steered the Blue Devils to a 9-4 record with a bowl win last season, and was on the way to a similar, if not better result this year had quarterback Riley Leonard not suffered multiple injuries. If he can mitigate losses to the transfer portal, Elko's defensive acumen paired with A&M's talent on that side of the football will be a dangerous combo in the new SEC next season.
3. Jonathan Smith to Michigan State
This is the power of the Big Ten on display- pulling a head coach from a highly-ranked team- his alma mater, no less- to work the same position at a program in total disarray. Of course, were it not for the realignment fiasco leaving Oregon State homeless, Smith might be staying in Corvallis, but this is still a tremendous pull for a Michigan State program that was not able to make an incredibly appealing pitch outside of financials and conference alignment.
Smith inherited a Beavs team that was on a 3-24 run in Pac-12 play, and it took a few years for the rebuild to gain momentum. He first put up a winning record in 2021, before winning 10 games in 2022 with a win over Oregon, and the wins slipped a bit this year in a tremendously loaded conference, but you could argue very easily that this was his best team yet. He'll have another daunting task ahead of him in East Lansing, but we've seen that he's up to the task.
2. Sean Lewis to San Diego State
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The writing was on the wall for Lewis in Colorado after coach Deion Sanders took away his play calling duties several weeks ago, and now he's back in his comfort zone; the head coach for a Group of Five team. Of course, San Diego State is a much more prominent program than Kent State, where Lewis made his name, as he won a bowl with a program that never previously done so, achieved three consecutive non-losing seasons, and even played for a MAC championship, an unthinkable feat for a Kent team that routinely won two or three games a year before his arrival, and went 1-11 this season after he left.
Lewis's pace-pushing "flash fast" offense made headlines back in Kent, and it certainly did in Boulder as he helped Shedeur Sanders to a record-breaking start to the season. Lewis was seemingly scapegoated by the always-confident Sanders, as it's not apparent to anyone that his scheme was the issue with Colorado as they spiraled to a 4-8 record. We'll see if he's able to bounce back with more control over the program- with the resources of SDSU and the ability to build his own roster, it's a safe bet that he'll have the Aztecs running wild as one of the most fun offenses in the country next season.
1. Curt Cignetti to Indiana
Was there any doubt who would be at #1? After inheriting a solid James Madison team in 2019, after Mike Houston took almost the entire staff with him to coach East Carolina, Cignetti rebuilt the program overnight and ran the Dukes all the way to the FCS Championship Game, where they came just a touchdown short against the juggernaut that was Trey Lance's 16-0 North Dakota State squad. Cignetti led the Dukes to deep runs again in 2020 and '21, before helping the program make the leap to the FBS's Sun Belt Conference.
From there, the rest, as they say, is history. The Dukes were an immediate success in the tougher subdivision, going 8-3 with some very solid wins and even an appearance in the AP poll- an unheard of accomplishment for a brand new FBS program. They were denied a waiver to play in a bowl, but this season, after going a remarkable 11-1, they have been given the chance to play a bowl against a solid Air Force team due to a lack of eligible teams. Cignetti led his team from the FCS to the top of the Group of Five in just two seasons; it will be fascinating to see what he's able to accomplish with the resources of a Big Ten school.
