College football coaching carousel: Tracker for every FBS coaching change in 2025

College 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.

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How do you think it will go now that the regular season is over? Lane Kiffin left Ole Miss to be the next coach on Sunday. Michigan State’s Jonathan Smith also was fired. That trend continued on Monday when Kentucky’s Mark Stoops was fired after 13 seasons, and Chris Kleiman retired from Kansas State on Wednesday.

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 15 coaching changes in the FBS in this cycle, including 13 changes in the Power 4.

It 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.

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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.

DeShaun 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.

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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?

Mike 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.

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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.

MORE: 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.

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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.

MORE: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.

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Billy Napier, Florida

Fired (Oct. 19): Napier was fired one day after a 23-21 win over Mississippi State. He finished his Florida tenure with a 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.

MORE: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.

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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.

MORE: 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.

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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.

Eric 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.

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Jim Mora, Jr., UConn

Resigned (Nov. 26): After leading UConn to three bowls in four years, Jim Mora, Jr., was hired by Colorado State to replace Jay Norvell. Mora won nine games in back-to-back seasons, a first for the Huskies. He was 27-23 in four years and will take over a Colorado State program that is 2-9 and has had just one winning season in eight years.

Alex Golesh, South Florida

Resigned (Nov. 30): Auburn hired Golesh as its next coach. Golesh reportedly was in the mix for the Arkansas job, but the Tigers hired him to replace Hugh Freeze. Golesh, a former offensive coordinator at Tennessee, had a 23-15 record with the Bulls. It’s a solid hire for Auburn.

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Ryan Silverfield, Memphis

Resigned (Nov. 30): Arkansas reportedly hired Silverfield on Sunday, according to On3.com’s Brett McMurphy. Silverfield compiled a 50-24 record at Memphis since taking over in 2020. He led the Tigers to a pair of 10-win seasons and a 4-0 record in bowl games.

Jon Sumrall, Tulane

Resigned (Nov. 30):According to multiple reports, Sumrall will be the next coach at Florida. Sumrall compiled a 42-11 record between Troy and Tulane, and the Green Wave made the American Conference championship game. He was one of the most sought-after coaches in the SEC this cycle.

Jonathan Smith, Michigan State

Fired (Nov. 30): According to Pete Thamel, Michigan State is parting ways with Smith. The Spartans will still owe him $33 million. Smith led Michigan State to a 1-8 conference record this season and tallied a combined 9-15 record in his two seasons at the helm of the program.

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Lane Kiffin, Ole Miss

Resigned (Nov. 30): Kiffin left Ole Miss to become the next coach at LSU. Kiffin had a 55-19 record with the Rebels, including four seasons with 10 wins more. Kiffin led Ole Miss to an 11-1 record this season. This will be the fifth different school Kiffin — who is 116-53 overall — has coached at the FBS level.

Tim Beck, Coastal Carolina

Resigned (Nov. 30): Beck was fired by Coastal Carolina on Nov. 30. Beck spent three seasons with the Chanticleers and compiled a 20-18 record.

Mark Stoops, Kentucky

Fired (Dec. 1): Stoops was fired on Monday, according to ESPN’s Adam Rittenberg. Stoops had a 72-80 record in 13 seasons with the Wildcats. That included a run of eight straight bowl appearances from 2016-23, but Kentucky failed to make a bowl game in each of the last two seasons.

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Bob Chesney, James Madison

Resigned (Dec. 1): UCLA is set to hire Chesney away from James Madison. Chesney replaced Curt Cignetti in 2024. He’s led James Madison to a 20-5 record the past two seasons. The Dukes are 11-1 and in the Sun Belt championship game.

Chris Klieman, Kansas State

Retired (Dec. 3):Klieman announced his retirement on Wednesday. Klieman had a 54-37 record in seven seasons with the program. The Wildcats finished 6-6 this season. Klieman will be replaced by former Kansas State quarterback Collin Klein.

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.