Ohio State offensive coordinator Tom Herman will be the new head coach at Houston, the school announced on Tuesday.
Herman has deep Texas ties, having served as an assistant coach at Rice, Texas State, Sam Houston State and Texas (the last as a graduate assistant). So right off the bat Houston is getting a coach that understands the recruiting game in the Lone Star State. He is also the reigning Broyles Award winner, given to the nation’s top assistant coach.
Herman’s offenses at Ohio State have been prolific, especially in 2014 as the Buckeyes rebounded from the loss of Braxton Miller, saw T.J. Barrett turn into a superstar and then managed to get a great game out of Cardale Jones in the Big Ten title game when Barrett fell to injury.
Of all of the coaches hired for jobs in 2015, Herman might be getting some of the best raw materials to work with, too. Houston is coming off a winning season and has a tremendous two-way threat at quarterback in Greg Ward Jr. who has two years of eligibility left. The Cougars could be competing for the American Athletic title as early as next year.
As for the other three jobs:
Michigan. Everyone in Ann Arbor is waiting for the end of the NFL season to see if they can lure Jim Harbaugh away. The 49ers are now out of playoff race so the speculation is sure to ramp up considerably.
Colorado State. The Rams don’t appear to be in a rush to replace Jim McElwain. The Reporter-Herald in Fort Collins posted a story Tuesday saying there was speculation that the job might be filled next week, but there is no indication where the Rams are in their search.
Wisconsin. Paul Chryst is the leading candidate. A couple of times it’s been reported that his hiring was coming shortly. But so far nothing official.
2015 FBS COACHING CAROUSEL
SCHOOL | OUT | IN |
Buffalo | Jeff Quinn | Lance Leipold |
Colorado State | Jim McElwain | TBD |
Florida | Will Muschamp | Jim McElwain |
Houston | Tony Levine | Tom Herman |
Kansas | Charlie Weis | David Beaty |
Michigan | Brady Hoke | TBD |
Nebraska | Bo Pelini | Mike Riley |
Oregon State | Mike Riley | Gary Andersen |
SMU | June Jones | Chad Morris |
Troy | Larry Blakeney | Neal Brown |
Tulsa | Bill Blankenship | Philip Montgomery |
UNLV | Bobby Hauck | Tony Sanchez |
Wisconsin | Gary Andersen | TBA |