The 2019 college football season provided another reminder that coaching stocks are more volatile than ever.
Florida State's Willie Taggart and Arkansas' Chad Morris both lost their jobs after 21 and 22 games, respectively. Appalachian State's Eliah Drinkwitz, meanwhile, needed only 13 games as an FBS head coach to land an SEC job, increasing his salary from $750,000 to $4 million practically overnight by moving to Missouri.
In January, Jeff Hafley came to Ohio State as the team's "other" defensive coordinator, a fairly unknown NFL assistant. A week ago, he was introduced as Boston College's head coach.
Things change quickly in the coaching world, so before they change again, here's a look at the coaches who raised their stock the most this season. I limited the group to coaches and coordinators who aren't yet leading Tier 1 programs, so while Ohio State's Ryan Day and LSU's Ed Orgeron undoubtedly boosted their stocks -- as did new Florida State coach Mike Norvell -- they're already in destination jobs.
Power 5 head coaches
Matt Rhule, Baylor: There's a reason NFL teams interviewed Rhule for vacancies the past two winters, even though he went 1-11 two years ago at Baylor and entered this season with a 36-40 overall record as an FBS coach. Rhule is well-regarded in the industry but validated those beliefs this season by guiding Baylor, barely three years removed from a major scandal, to 11 wins and the Big 12 championship game. Rhule, 44, now has reached 10 wins or more three times in the past five years (two at Temple, one at Baylor). In September, he received a contract extension through the 2027 season. He likely will have NFL opportunities again, and will be on the short list for major college openings in what should be a more active 2020 cycle.
