College football could be on the verge of one of the busiest coaching carousels in recent history. Six Power Four coaches were fired in the first two months of the season, and more are sure to follow in an era that features unprecedented parity, revenue-sharing and access to the expanded College Football Playoff.
Auburn, Florida State and Wisconsin appear to be considering moves, and no one would be shocked to see coaching changes at Clemson, Kentucky, LSU, Maryland, North Carolina and South Carolina.
The Power Four schools already searching for replacements (in alphabetical order):
Fired: Sam Pittman, 63, on Sept. 28, 2025.
Record: 32-34 over six seasons, including 14-29 in the SEC.
Buyout: Nearly $9.8 million.
Interim: Offensive coordinator Bobby Petrino.
Noteworthy: Petrino is auditioning for a second stint as the program’s head coach. He guided the Razorbacks between 2008 and 2011, showing improvement every year. His tenure ended after a motorcycle crash led to the admission of an affair with a former Arkansas volleyball player.
Fired: Billy Napier, 46, on Oct. 19, 2025.
Record: 22-23 over four seasons, including 12-16 in the SEC.
Buyout: About $21 million.
Interim: Receivers coach Billy Gonzales.
Noteworthy: Napier was almost always in the crosshairs, in part because he declined to give up play-calling duties as the Gators’ offense failed to make progress.
Fired: Mike Gundy, 58, on Sept. 23, 2025.
Record: 170-90 over 21 seasons, including 102-72 in the Big 12.
Buyout: $15 million.
Interim: Offensive coordinator Doug Meacham.
Noteworthy: Gundy went viral in 2007 for shouting “Come after me! I’m a man! I’m 40!” while defending one of his players.
Fired: James Franklin, 53, on Oct. 12, 2025.
Record: 104-45 over 12 seasons, including 64-36 in the Big Ten.
Buyout: More than $49 million.
Interim: Associate head coach Terry Smith.
Noteworthy: Mockingly nicknamed “Big Game James” because of his 4-21 record against top-10 opponents, Franklin became the first coach since 1978 to lose consecutive games (UCLA, Northwestern) while being favored by 20 or more points.
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Fired: Troy Taylor, 56, on March, 25, 2025.
Record: 6-18 over two seasons, including 4-13 in conference play (2-7 in the Pac-12, 2-6 in the ACC).
Buyout: Unknown.
Interim: Longtime NFL coach Frank Reich.
Noteworthy: General manager Andrew Luck fired Taylor in March following reports that the coach allegedly mistreated staffers and then asked Reich to fill in for a season.
UCLA
Fired: DeShaun Foster, 45, on Sept. 14, 2025.
Record: 5-10 over two seasons, including 3-6 in the Big Ten.
Buyout: $6.43 million.
Interim: Special assistant Tim Skipper.
Noteworthy: Foster was fired three games into his second season, with athletic director Martin Jarmond acknowledging he made a mistake by giving the inexperienced Foster the job.
Fired: Brent Pry, 55, on Sept. 14, 2025.
Record: 16-24 over four seasons, including 10-13 in the ACC.
Buyout: About $6 million.
Interim: Offensive coordinator Philip Montgomery.
Noteworthy: Since Pry’s dismissal, the university voted to increase the athletics department budget by $229.2 million over the next four years. The bump for 2026 ups Tech’s athletic budget to $190.1 million, placing it among the top third in the ACC.
Reporting by The Associated Press.
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