5 college coaches ready for NFL head coaching positions

The history of college coaches making the transition to the NFL isn’t great, but that doesn’t stop NFL franchises from looking to the college ranks

In the aftermath of Chip Kelly’s firing there’s bound to be some hesitancy on behalf of NFL teams to look to the college ranks for new talent. That doesn’t mean that there aren’t plenty of college head coaches that are ready to make the leap to the world’s biggest stage.

The truth is the history of college guys making the jump to the pro ranks isn’t all that good. Some of the NCAA’s biggest names like Kelly and Steve Spurrier before him, have fallen flat on their faces when they make the transition to professional football. Even Nick Saban, who most consider one of the best college coaches in history, failed to hack it at the next level.

Still, NFL owners are going to continue to look at college head coaches for their openings. They like the fact that these candidates have head coaching experience, even if it’s under vastly different circumstances than they will face in the NFL.

Owners also want to pull coaches from the college ranks because they believe that’s where the game’s innovation really comes from. Guys like Kelly and Spurrier have gotten their shot because owners believe they had offenses ahead of the NFL curve. In some ways they might have been right, but NFL games aren’t just won on the offensive side of the football.

There are some college coaches who have what it takes to make successful transitions to the NFL though. It just takes matching the right coach with the right team at the right time. Here are five guys who have what it takes to be good NFL coaches if they’re able to maneuver themselves into the right situation.

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