This came out of nowhere. Then again, it may have been a long time coming for former Stanford head coach Troy Taylor. After back-to-back 3-9 seasons and a myriad of scandals and allegations over the last two years, new general manager Andrew Luck felt there was no choice in the matter. Stanford athletics is in a rough place with Taylor out and former athletic director Bernard Muir stepping down.
With spring practice underway, Stanford needs to find the right person to lead them into the Cardinal's second season in the ACC. They not only need to hire the right guy who cares and understands the academic importance at a place like Stanford, but one who could be a unifier of sorts for the program that desperately needs it. Luck made the tough call, but the right call in this.
Here are a few candidates Grant Hughes of 247Sports listed as possible candidates to replace Taylor.
- Stanford Cardinal defensive coordinator Bobby April III
- Air Force Falcons head coach Troy Calhoun
- Former Dallas Cowboys head coach Jason Garrett
- Washington Commanders offensive coordinator Kliff Kingsbury
- Middle Tennessee Blue Raiders head coach Derek Mason
- Former Washington Huskies head coach Chris Petersen
- Washington Commanders quarterbacks coach Tavita Pritchard
- Cincinnati Bengals wide receivers coach Troy Walters
For a job that is as difficult as Stanford is, and probably always will be, this is quite an impressive candidate pool, to be totally honest. It is chock full of head coaches or former head coaches who command a lot of respect in the industry, as well as a few other solid candidates with Stanford ties. This job is not for everyone, but there has to be a better fit to lead them than whatever Taylor was.
I will now assess a grade on how I would feel about Stanford hiring any of these eight candidates.
- Bobby April III
- Troy Calhoun
- Jason Garrett
- Kliff Kingsbury
- Derek Mason
- Chris Petersen
- Tavita Pritchard
- Troy Walters
Bobby April III
Stanford promoting defensive coordinator Bobby April III from within would be an acceptable hire for the Cardinal to make, given the circumstances. April been a part of the Wisconsin Badgers' defensive staff for several years prior to coming over to Stanford in 2023. While not much went right for the Cardinal a year ago, the defense was opportunistic and did its part to steal possessions for the team.
However, this promotion from within would only be because Taylor was fired amid scandal. Does Stanford want to still associate itself with its least successful head coach in the better part of two decades? Again, I understand that Luck may be trying to make a hire with his hand tied behind his back, but I am of the belief that his cachet should allow for the Cardinal to land a better candidate.
That being said, this is the worst hire that I would accept and be okay with Stanford making here.
Grade: C
Troy Calhoun
On the other side of the coin, I love the possibility of Stanford potentially poaching long time Air Force head coach Troy Calhoun away from his alma mater. He has been leading the Falcons for nearly two decades now. While he has to run the triple-option out of necessity at Air Force, he was an NFL offensive coordinator before back in the day. This former quarterback knows about the pass, too.
Calhoun has long been a Group of Five head coach I would love to see get a real shot at a Power Four job. It would have to take the right post to open up for him to get it. Calhoun would only be a candidate for schools in the region like Colorado or academic powers like Wake Forest. In a way, Stanford kind of checks both of those boxes. This would be a new and exciting challenge for him.
Of the eight candidates Hughes listed out, Calhoun would be my top choice if I were doing the hiring.
Grade: A
Jason Garrett
Right now, I would say Jason Garrett is the frontrunner to get the job of the seven outside candidates. He may not have the Stanford connection as some, but he was a finalist for the job that ultimately went to Taylor two years ago. Garrett may have been a pedestrianly mediocre head coach of the Dallas Cowboys, but the man had staying power! He also was a finalist for the Duke previously, too.
To me, if Garrett is going to get back into coaching, it would be at a Power Four academic. He is a former NFL backup quarterback and has dealt with the insurmountable pressure of coaching America's Team for Jerry Jones. Garrett has followed the college game closely in his new role as a broadcaster. He also played his college football at an academic power in Princeton in the Ivy League.
Stanford hiring Garrett would win the press conference, but do the Cardinal want to be the Cowboys?
Grade: B+
Kliff Kingsbury
I like the coach, but I am not super crazy about the fit. If I were Kliff Kingsbury, I would stay with the Washington Commanders for as long as possible until the ideal NFL head-coaching job opens up. Dan Quinn did that in between leading the Atlanta Falcons and Commanders by serving as Mike McCarthy's defensive coordinator in Dallas much longer than he probably should have anyway.
What I like about Kingsbury is good offenses follow him everywhere he goes. He has coached a ton of marquee names under center before. From Johnny Manziel, to Patrick Mahomes, to Kyler Murray to currently Jayden Daniels, Kingsbury could be the one to make Stanford a marquee landing spot for elite college quarterbacks. My concerns are he knows nothing about defense, and the academics...
There is a ton of upside with making this hire, but it could prove to be quite a disaster for Stanford.
Grade: B
Derek Mason
I am just going to go ahead and say this. Derek Mason would be the one hire I would not be excited about leading Stanford football going forward. Not only would he be leaving his Group of Five team in Middle Tennessee for another shot at the Power Four, but have we not been there, done that with him at the helm of one? He has his moments leading Vanderbilt, but he was given far too long of a runway.
Mason is a candidate for this position because he was David Shaw's trusted defensive coordinator before he went on to take over at Vanderbilt. While Mason could be one of the coaches to help reignite what made Stanford special back in the day, I am afraid he was not the Cardinal's secret sauce. That would have been Mike Bloomgren, who later left for Rice. Honestly, go hire him instead.
Mason is no longer seen as the same coach he once was after leaving Stanford for Vanderbilt.
Grade: C-
Chris Petersen
Could you imagine what this would say about Andrew Luck's power if he could get Chris Petersen to leave the FOX Sports studio desk for another shot at coaching major college football? Petersen is an icon stemming from his days at Washington and Boise State before that. He led the Huskies to their first College Football Playoff with Jake Browning as their starting quarterback nearly a decade ago.
In a way, I feel that Petersen would fit the ethos of what makes Stanford football special better than most. The fit would be tremendous. My only real concern about Petersen is would he want to do this again? College football has changed so many times over since the dawn of NIL. Petersen likes to coach in relative anonymity. He is the better and West Coast version of what we saw in Dave Clawson.
It would be a home-run hire to land Petersen, but Luck would have to take the biggest swing of his life.
Grade: A-
Tavita Pritchard
For whatever reason, I think Luck's quarterback predecessor at Stanford in Tavita Pritchard could be exactly what the Cardinal need to get out of their slump. Pritchard saw Stanford get out of the basement of the then-Pac-10 under Jim Harbaugh. Though nowhere near as talented as Luck, there is a reason why he is the quarterbacks coach of the Washington Commanders. He has real potential.
Culturally, Pritchard would be a great fit. Schematically, I think he would be able to get Stanford to play at a high level under center for the foreseeable future. However, I think sentimental reasons could get the best of Stanford with this hire. Remember how excited we were to see Timmy Chang get his opportunity to lead the Hawaii Rainbow Warriors? This would be a somewhat of a similar opportunity.
As it is with Chang at Hawaii, Stanford would have to allow Pritchard to grow into this bigger role.
Grade: B-
Troy Walters
Troy Walters is the ultimate wild card. The former legendary receiver at Stanford has become quite the position coach for the Cincinnati Bengals. With him leading essentially the best wide receiver corps in the country for a living, Walters strikes me as the next version of David Shaw potentially coming back from the college ranks. He would take it seriously and I think that he would succeed.
However, I would have a hard time leaving the Bengals at this current juncture to come back to alma mater. The timing is not right for him. If Taylor were to have been fired after the 2025 college football season, then I could see a way in which Walters would be coming back to Palo Alto. I will say though that it is much easier for NFL position coaches to become head coaches faster in the college ranks.
I am only down on this potential hire just because I do not think Walters is ready to leave Cincinnati.