Fansided

3 college football programs that need to hire Matt Campbell

By Nathaniel Reeves

AMES, IA - SEPTEMBER 3: Head coach Matt Campbell of the Iowa State Cyclones coaches from the sidelines in the first half of play against the Northern Iowa Panthers at Jack Trice Stadium on September 3, 2016 in Ames, Iowa. Northern Iowa Panthers won 25-20 over the Iowa State Cyclones (Photo by David K Purdy/Getty Images)
AMES, IA - SEPTEMBER 3: Head coach Matt Campbell of the Iowa State Cyclones coaches from the sidelines in the first half of play against the Northern Iowa Panthers at Jack Trice Stadium on September 3, 2016 in Ames, Iowa. Northern Iowa Panthers won 25-20 over the Iowa State Cyclones (Photo by David K Purdy/Getty Images) /
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Matt Campbell is quickly turning around the Iowa State Cyclones, and could soon be poached by one of these big programs.

With all the chaos around college football this season, a few unhearlded teams are quietly flying under the radar despite turning in terrific seasons. One such team that isn’t getting nearly enough attention is the Iowa State Cyclones, as second-year head coach Matt Campbell has the program quickly heading in the right direction.

A former Pittsburgh defensive lineman, Campbell began his coaching career as a grad assistant at Bowling Green before rising up the ranks to take Toledo’s offensive coordinator job in 2010. The Rockets hired Campbell two years later following Tim Beckman’s departure to Illinois, and he led Toledo to a 35-15 record with two MAC West titles over four years.

Iowa State poached Campbell in November of 2015 to replace the fired Paul Rhoads, who won a combined seven games over his final three years in Ames. Campbell took over a team devoid of talent and predictably struggled to a 3-9 record in his debut campaign.

The Cyclones carried similarly low expectations heading into this season, but have shocked the Big 12 en route to a 5-2 record following Saturday’s 31-13 victory at Texas Tech. Iowa State has played well on both sides of the ball at times this year, owns perhaps the most impressive win of any team this season at Oklahoma on Oct. 7, and would likely be ranked if it weren’t for a collapse against rival Iowa in week two.

While there are several intriguing coaching candidates available, Campbell has proven enough in his career and should be near the top of every team’s list. These three programs in need of a new head coach could get headed in the right direction by hiring Campbell.

Arkansas Razorbacks

Arkansas fans will remember Campbell well from his time at Toledo, and he could bring some nice energy to a program that is quickly stagnating under Bret Bielema.

One of the best wins of Campbell’s career came on Sep. 12, 2015 with Toledo, when the Rockets took down No. 18 Arkansas 16-12 in Little Rock. Toledo went on to finish the season at 10-2 while peaking at No. 20 in the AP Poll, leading to Campbell’s departure to Iowa State.

Following three straight Rose Bowl appearances, Bielema shockingly left Wisconsin prior to the 2013 season and has guided Arkansas to a 27-30 record since. Arkansas has peaked at eight wins under Bielema, and the pressure is increasing on him following last year’s Belk Bowl collapse against Virginia Tech and a poor start to the 2017 season.

While that record isn’t necessarily awful in a stacked SEC West, Arkansas is clearly heading in the wrong direction this year at 2-4, including an 0-3 start in conference play. Campbell’s defenses at Toledo and Iowa State have generally been strong, which would be a welcome development in Fayetteville with Arkansas surrendering 33 points per game to rank 103rd in the nation.

Arkansas could very well beat wildly inconsistent Auburn to cool down Bielema’s seat, and his $15 million buyout is a massive factor. Still, if the Razorbacks go in a different direction, Campbell would be an excellent hire.

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