Mack Brown out at North Carolina: Where do Tar Heels turn to replace their iconic HC?

Termination, forced retirement, whatever. Mack Brown is officially the first Power Four head coach to be relieved of his duties this season. The iconic head coach at North Carolina will lead the Tar Heels in Saturday's regular-season finale vs. North Carolina State. While it remains to be seen if he will coach the Tar Heels in their bowl game, he will be out after that at the latest. What a complete botch job!

Brown needed to go, and maybe he did not want to. The College Football Hall of Fame head coach built his incredible career upon his first UNC tenure, as well as his tremendous run at Texas shortly thereafter. He then went into broadcasting before returning to North Carolina in 2019. Brown helped re-establish competency on the gridiron at North Carolina during his second run with the program.

This may not have been an easy decision for North Carolina athletic director Bubba Cunningham to make, but it had to be done. Brown was starting to tear away at the very fabric he helped create in Chapel Hill. Brown did a ton of good in helping North Carolina become a credible football program once again. He was getting up there in age, but now UNC will need to go in a different direction here.

Here are the best candidates out there to replace Brown as the next head coach at North Carolina.

5. South Florida Bulls head coach Alex Golesh

It may be a year too soon, but now may be the time for Alex Golesh to jump ship at South Florida for a job he is arguably qualified for. Golesh is doing something that was previously impossible under his USF predecessor. Not only is he winning games down in Tampa, but he is taking the Bulls to bowl games! Even more impressive, he is doing it without having the most reliable offense to work with.

Golesh is one of the few head-coaching candidates in this cycle who could conceivably work anywhere. He hails from Ohio and went to school in Columbus. He has worked at places like UCF and Tennessee before taking over at South Florida. North Carolina may not be the best Power Four job that comes available, but it is the best job that is available right now. Golesh could be up for this gig.

Ultimately, I think he is better served waiting for one of two Big 12 jobs to open up. That would be Cincinnati or UCF. The UCF job could open up as soon as Gus Malzahn is asked to leave. He may be the top choice for that job, in all honesty. Cincinnati may wait another year before getting out of the Scott Satterfield business. North Carolina has better resources but plays in a much tougher league.

Golesh could get an interview for the job, but I think other candidates could be easier sells for UNC.

4. Oregon Ducks offensive coordinator Will Stein

Keep an eye on Oregon Ducks offensive coordinator Will Stein potentially going across the country for his next job. He replaced Kenny Dillingham in Eugune once his predecessor left to go take over his alma mater at Arizona State. Stein has been instrumental in Dillon Gabriel's continued growth as a college passer. He played a huge part in Bo Nix going from a good college player to a top-12 pick.

I initially had Stein tabbed to potentially replace Tony Elliott at Virginia, but I would not move on from the Cavaliers head coach after this season, no matter what happens in Commonwealth vs. Virginia Tech. Stein would be a candidate to take over in Louisville at some point, but his alma mater's post is not opening up anytime soon. Jeff Brohm is already doing extraordinary things leading the Cardinals.

Frankly, I feel that North Carolina is the best job that Stein could get right now. I am not sure that any Big Ten or SEC opening that should come available would be as enticing as the North Carolina post. He would have to seriously consider the opportunity to be had in Chapel Hill. Unfortunately, I think he is still one year away from being the hotshot coaching candidate that many of us in the know ... know.

I would not be shocked if Stein emerges as the favorite for this job, but I think UNC could do better.

3. Liberty Flames head coach Jamey Chadwell

Entering the season, Jamey Chadwell was the presumptive favorite to potentially replace Brown at North Carolina should he retire or be fired. Unfortunately, it was the latter, and here we are. Chadwell has made a name for himself at the Group of Five level. He had a great run at Coastal Carolina before parlaying that into a slightly bigger job at Liberty. The Flames have been good, but not great this year.

Chadwell is a smart, offensive-minded coach, but I wonder if his ground-centric scheme is what North Carolina needs to sustain excellence. Moreover, the biggest concern you and I and everyone else seem to have with Chadwell is the fact he has no Power Four coaching experience whatsoever. At some point, some team is going to overlook that major resume gap, but will it be North Carolina?

Right now, I would venture to guess that Chadwell would be a finalist for the job. However, I fully believe that he will use the North Carolina opening as leverage to get even more money out of Liberty. In time, he will eventually leave for a Power Four job. North Carolina seems like an ideal fit for him to me, but I wonder is his once-impenetrable candidacy has taken a hit or two over this season.

Chadwell might end up being their guy, but I do have my concerns about the level of competition.

2. Penn State Nittany Lions offensive coordinator Andy Kotelnicki

The best thing Andy Kotelnicki did was leave Kansas and Lance Leipold behind for a bigger offensive coordinator role at Penn State. Working alongside Tom Allen to round out James Franklin's rockstar coaching staff has put Kotelnicki in a position to where if the right head-coaching opportunity comes available, he could pounce on it. He is not the guy to lead a blue-blood, but North Carolina does work.

While I feel that his side of the ball failed to show up in Penn State's biggest game of the year to date vs. Ohio State, this really is not the best year to be looking for a new head coach. It has taken until the end of November for even one Power Four job to become available. Regardless, I think Kotelnicki is an ideal candidate to take over at places like North Carolina, Purdue and UCF should they all open up.

Until this morning, Kotelnicki was my top pick to be the next head coach at North Carolina. However, I tend to remember that the school typically favors hiring coaches with previous head-coaching experience. In short, the Tar Heels would be foolish to not at least interview with the guy. I just wonder if he is the right head coach for what this team needs right now. It might result in a slow turnaround.

Kotelnicki is probably one-and-done at Penn State, but it is not a guarantee he will be going to UNC.

1. UNLV Rebels head coach Barry Odom

And finally, we have arrived at my pick to be the next head coach at North Carolina. Give me Barry Odom, baby! The head coach at UNLV has the Rebels fighting for a potential College Football Playoff berth this season. If they get to the Mountain West title bout and beat Boise State in a rematch from the regular season, the Rebels may find themselves in at a No. 12 seed. He is ready for his next shot.

After failing as the head coach at his alma mater of Missouri once the legendary Gary Pinkel abruptly retired, Odom resurfaced as the hotshot defensive coordinator on Sam Pittman's Arkansas Razorbacks staff. The team has not been the same since he left for the UNLV job two years ago. Frankly, UNLV football has never been better than under Odom's guidance. Should he stay or go now?

To me, Odom has to pick the right Power Four job to leave UNLV for. He can continue to build his legacy by doing great things in the Group of Five over at UNLV. Like Alex Golesh, Odom is the rare head coach in this cycle who could work in a multitude of conferences. In a way, I feel like he is overqualified for the UNC post. He was overqualified for the UNLV job, and look how well that is going.

The more you think about it, the better of a Power Four head-coaching candidate Odom really is.