Bill BenderTue, November 25, 2025 at 11:20 PM UTC·7 min readCollege football coaching carousel: Tracker for every FBS coaching change in 2025 originally appeared on The Sporting News. Add The Sporting News as a Preferred Source by clicking here.
The college football coaching carousel spun out of control during the 2025 college football season.
AdvertisementAdvertisementAdvertisementHow do you think it will go after the regular season ends? Cal fired Justin Wilcox on Sunday. North Texas coach Eric Morris took the Oklahoma State job on Tuesday.
Those moves increased the number of coaching changes to 15 in the 2025-26 cycle.
That includes several high-profile Power 4 jobs, a run that started on Oct. 12 when Penn State fired James Franklin. Florida's Billy Napier, LSU's Brian Kelly and Auburn's Hugh Freeze also were fired during the regular season.
In 2024, there were five Power 4 coaching changes. If you count Stanford's Troy Taylor, who was fired on March 25, 2025 and replaced by Frank Reich on a one-year interim basis, then there have been 10 Power 4 coaching changes through eight weeks of the college football season.
AdvertisementAdvertisementAdvertisementIt continues to be a wild year in the coaching ranks. Sporting News takes a closer look at all the coaching changes in 2025:
College football coaching changes 2025
Troy Taylor, Stanford
Fired (March 25): Taylor was fired on March 25 after a report detailed allegations of mistreatment of multiple staff members, according to the Associated Press. Stanford general manager Andrew Luck made the decision – and he hired Frank Reich on a one-year interim basis. Taylor had a 6-18 record in two seasons with Stanford.
Kenni Burns, Kent State
Fired (April 24): Burns was fired from Kent State after the school found multiple violations of his contract, including how he used his personal credit card. Burns had a 1-23 record from 2023-24 with the Golden Flashes. The Golden Flashes hired interim coach Mark Carney for the full-time job on Oct. 31.
AdvertisementAdvertisementAdvertisementDeShaun Foster, UCLA
Fired (Sept. 17): UCLA fired Foster after a disastrous 0-3 start that included losses to UNLV and New Mexico. Foster – who played running back for the Bruins from 1998-2001 – finished 5-7 in his first season after taking over for Chip Kelly. Foster has seven losses to unranked opponents in those 15 games. Tim Skipper is the interim coach with the Bruins.
MORE:DeShaun Foster replacements at UCLA
Brent Pry, Virginia Tech
Fired (Sept. 17): Pry was fired one day after the Hokies lost 45-26 to Old Dominion, which dropped Virginia Tech to 0-3 on the season. The former Penn State defensive coordinator could never get on track with the Hokies. He finished 16-24 with a 10-13 record in ACC play and was 1-1 in bowl games. Philip Montgomery is the interim coach for the Hokies. Will Norfolk State coach Michael Vick – a program legend – be a consideration in 2026?
AdvertisementAdvertisementAdvertisementMike Gundy, Oklahoma State
Fired (Sept. 23):Gundy was fired after a 19-12 loss to Tulsa, which came two weeks after a 69-3 loss at Oregon. Gundy – who also played quarterback for the Cowboys from 1986-89 – is a program legend. He compiled a 170-90 record after taking over in 2005 – a .654 winning percentage that included eight seasons with 10 wins or more. Oklahoma State won the Big 12 championship in 2011. Offensive coordinator Doug Meacham is the interim coach.
MORE:Mike Gundy replacements at Oklahoma State
Sam Pittman, Arkansas
Fired (Sept. 28):Pittman was fired after a 56-13 home loss to Notre Dame. That was the third straight loss for Arkansas, which has allowed 30 points per game through a 2-3 start. Pittman took over in 2020 and gained popularity after a nine-win season in 2021, but the Razorbacks were just 32-34 during his tenure. Offensive coordinator Bobby Petrino – who compiled a 34-17 record at Arkansas from 2008-11 — is the interim coach. That will attract attention for the rest of the season.
AdvertisementAdvertisementAdvertisementMORE: Sam Pittman replacements at Arkansas
Trent Bray, Oregon State
Fired (Oct. 12): Oregon State fired Trent Bray after the Beavers fell to 0-7 on the season on Oct. 11. Bray was hired in 2024. He had a 5-14 record with the program, which remains in the Pac-12. The Beavers had two losses to Group of 5 schools this season.
James Franklin, Penn State
Fired (Oct. 12):Penn State fired Franklin after a three-game losing streak dropped the Nittany Lions out of College Football Playoff contention. Penn State will pay a $49 buyout. Franklin had a 104-45 record with the Nittany Lions, including a Big Ten championship in 2016 and a run to the College Football Playoff semifinals last season. The Nittany Lions, however, lost to Oregon, UCLA and Northwestern in a skid that led to Franklin's firing.
AdvertisementAdvertisementAdvertisementMORE:James Franklin replacements
Trent Dilfer, UAB
Fired (Oct. 12): Dilfer was fired one day after a 53-33 loss to FAU. Dilfer, who played in the NFL for 14 seasons, took over in 2023 and had a 9-21 record for the Blazers.
Billy Napier, Florida
Fired (Oct. 19): Napier was fired one day after a 23-21 win over Mississippi State. He finished his Florida tenure at 22-23 record, but that included a 12-16 in SEC play. Napier did lead the Gators to an 8-5 record last season under similar circumstances. Florida battled a tough schedule the last two seasons, but an early-season loss to South Florida helped expedite this move.
AdvertisementAdvertisementAdvertisementMORE:Billy Napier replacements
Jay Norvell, Colorado State
Fired (Oct. 19): Norvell was fired one day after a 31-19 loss on Oct. 18. Norvell was in his fourth season at Colorado State. Norvell led the Rams to an 8-5 record in 2024, but Colorado State slipped to 2-5 this season.
Brian Kelly, LSU
Fired (Oct. 26): LSU fired Kelly after three-plus seasons. Kelly was fired one day after a 49-25 loss to Texas A&M, which gave the Tigers three losses this season. Kelly finished with a 34-14 record at LSU after leaving Notre Dame following the 2021 season. Kelly, 64, is negotiating a $53 million buyout with the school.
AdvertisementAdvertisementAdvertisementMORE: Brian Kelly replacements
Hugh Freeze, Auburn
Fired (Nov. 2): Freeze did not make it through three seasons before being the fourth SEC coach to be fired in the first 10 weeks of 2025. Freeze was 15-19 overall and 6-16 in the SEC and was under .500 all three seasons. Freeze's last team was ranked No. 104 in scoring at the time of his dismissal.
MORE: Hugh Freeze replacements
Justin Wilcox, Cal
Fired (Nov. 23): Wilcox was fired one day after a 31-10 loss to Stanford. That dropped the Golden Bears to 6-5. Wilcox compiled a 48-55 record with Cal after taking over in 2017, and the record dropped to a 12-12 with a 5-10 record in conference play since joining the ACC.
AdvertisementAdvertisementAdvertisementEric Morris, North Texas
Resigned (Nov. 25): North Texas announced Morris has been hired as the next coach at Oklahoma State. Morris will stay with the Mean Green through a potential American Conference championship game and potential College Football Playoff appearance, according to ESPN.com. North Texas is 21-15 under Morris, which includes a 10-1 record this season.
FBS coaching changes by school 2025
Here is a look at every head coaching change in the FBS in 2025, including the fired coach, the interim coach and their replacement for the 2026 season.
SCHOOL
CONFERENCE
FIRED
INTERIM
HIRED
Stanford
ACC
Troy Taylor
Frank Reich
Kent State
MAC
Kenni Burns
Mark Carney
Mark Carney
UCLA
Big Ten
DeShaun Foster
Tim Skipper
Virginia Tech
ACC
Brent Pry
Philip Montgomery
James Franklin
Oklahoma State
Big 12
Mike Gundy
Doug Meacham
Eric Morris
Arkansas
SEC
Sam Pittman
Bobby Petrino
Oregon State
Pac-12
Trent Bray
Robb Akey
Penn State
Big Ten
James Franklin
Terry Smith
UAB
American
Trent Dilfer
Alex Mortensen
Florida
SEC
Billy Napier
Billy Gonzales
Colorado State
Mountain West
Jay Norvell
Tyson Summers
LSU
SEC
Brian Kelly
Frank Wilson
Auburn
SEC
Hugh Freeze
D.J. Durkin
Cal
ACC
Justin Wilcox
Nick Rolovich
North Texas
American
Eric Morris
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