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Grading every college football coaching hire in 2021 carousel: Texas, Tennessee get high marks

By Cody Williams

Josh Heupel, Tennessee Volunteers. (Caitie McLekin/Knoxville News Sentinel via AP, Pool)
Josh Heupel, Tennessee Volunteers. (Caitie McLekin/Knoxville News Sentinel via AP, Pool) /
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College football coaching hire grades
Charles Huff, Marshall Thundering Herd. Mandatory Credit: USA Today Sports/Syndication: Montgomery /

Marshall Thundering Herd: Charles Huff

You could make the argument that Charles Huff has one of the toughest jobs of any of the new college football head coaches. Doc Holliday’s contract at Marshall was not renewed after four straight winning seasons, including going 7-3 this past year. Huff will certainly be expected to, at minimum, maintain that level, which is not an easy task.

Having said that, this was a solid hire for the Thundering Herd program. Huff may only be 37 years old with zero experience as a head coach but he’s been one of the elite recruiters in the sport while at Alabama. If he can bring even an inkling of that to Marshall, the program should be able to keep tallying up wins, perhaps more so than before. – Grade: B+

South Alabama Jaguars: Kane Wommack

Projecting the future for Kane Wommack at South Alabama should be done with some trepidation. After all, we’re talking about a 33-year-old — which makes Wommack the youngest FBS head coach in the country — with no previous head coaching experience. That would give anyone a bit of pause.

Yet, it’s hard to not at least be somewhat optimistic. Wommack succeeded as a recruiter at Indiana and was the defensive coordinator for the Hoosiers amid their recent upswing. Bringing those two things and a strong identity to the Jaguars in the Group of 5 has a clear path to paying off in a palpable manner. – Grade: B

South Carolina Gamecocks: Shane Beamer

If nothing else, the Gamecocks got their guy. Once Will Muschamp was handed his walking orders, the rumblings that Shane Beamer would be the replacement started and that came to fruition. And there’s no questioning his bloodlines as the son of Virginia Tech legend Frank Beamer.

While that all sounds good, there’s a ton of risk with Beamer. He’s never held a head coaching job previously and, though he knows the South Carolina program well and is one of the most respected recruiters in the country, jumping into the SEC could be a baptism by fire. And frankly, that doesn’t always go so well, especially with a program currently trending down. – Grade: C+

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