Fansided

22 head coaching candidates you need to start getting familiar with

By Staff

FORT WORTH, TX - OCTOBER 20: Head coach Lincoln Riley of the Oklahoma Sooners celebrates after the Oklahoma Sooners scored against the TCU Horned Frogs in the fourth quarter at Amon G. Carter Stadium on October 20, 2018 in Fort Worth, Texas. (Photo by Tom Pennington/Getty Images)
FORT WORTH, TX - OCTOBER 20: Head coach Lincoln Riley of the Oklahoma Sooners celebrates after the Oklahoma Sooners scored against the TCU Horned Frogs in the fourth quarter at Amon G. Carter Stadium on October 20, 2018 in Fort Worth, Texas. (Photo by Tom Pennington/Getty Images) /
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AMES, IA – NOVEMBER 10: Head coach Matt Campbell of the Iowa State Cyclones coaches from the sidelines in the first half of play at Jack Trice Stadium on November 10, 2018 in Ames, Iowa. The Iowa State Cyclones won 28-14 over the Baylor Bears. (Photo by David K Purdy/Getty Images)
AMES, IA – NOVEMBER 10: Head coach Matt Campbell of the Iowa State Cyclones coaches from the sidelines in the first half of play at Jack Trice Stadium on November 10, 2018 in Ames, Iowa. The Iowa State Cyclones won 28-14 over the Baylor Bears. (Photo by David K Purdy/Getty Images) /

Matt Campbell, Iowa State head coach

  • Strengths: Offense
  • Weaknesses: Can he recruit at an elite level?
  • Best Fits: Big Ten/Big 12

Campbell, 38, is in his third year at Iowa State where he’s elevated that program from consistently above Kansas in the Big 12 basement to a ranked team who has some big skins on their wall. Campbell upset Mayfield and Oklahoma in 2017 and nearly did it again in 2018. He also won 35 of 50 games at Toledo prior to taking the Iowa State gig.

He signed a six-year extension last year after winning the Big 12 Coach of the Year, but there’s a glass ceiling at Iowa State and Campbell could be persuaded to leave for a program with more football history and tradition and more resources at a place that may have a stronger recruiting footprint than Ames, Iowa.

Campbell would be a great fit at a Big Ten program because of his commitment to the run game and his Midwest ties to Ohio where he could raid the state for top recruits and try to steal a few away from Ohio State. But he’s also shown the ability to win no matter who his quarterback is, and an ability to develop them as shown by Brock Purdy being the top freshman quarterback in the nation.

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