Fall Sundays are known as the NFL’s day. That won’t change, but it is increasingly becoming known as a succession of Black Sundays for college football coaches on the hot seat. It used to be relatively rare that a coach would be fired this early in a season. Before, there may have been one, two at most, coaches dismissed before the calendar flipped to November. Now, schools who believe it’s time for a change don’t hesitate to pull the ripcord. There is a certain pragmatism to it. If you know you need to make a change, why wait? Who does it benefit? If you keep the guy in place, the speculation will only intensify, making it difficult for everyone involved to play through the season. Might as well do it now and get a jump on your homework for potential replacements.
Which brings me to this season. By the time this article is published, Geoff Collins will have been fired as head coach at Georgia Tech. Collins will be the third head coach fired so far this season, each coming in three successive weeks. That Collins would be dismissed comes as no surprise. He was 9-25 in his first three seasons at Tech, and obviously coaching for his job in 2022. Fate, via the schedule makers, dealt him a bad hand to try and make chicken salad, with their first four games against Clemson, Western Carolina, Ole Miss and UCF. To no one’s surprise I’m sure, they stood at 1-3 after Saturday, with none of the losses even close.
Georgia Tech is a challenging program to coach. The school’s academic standards are high, both in terms of admission and the lack of “easy” majors. Teams at those schools are seldom able to enjoy sustained periods of success. Collins’ predecessor, Paul Johnson, did about as good as probably could be expected. In 11 seasons, Johnson was 82-61 and took the Jackets to 9 bowl games, including the Orange Bowl in 2009 when they won the ACC title. Johnson ran the triple-option offense, as he had in his prior job at Navy, to help mitigate the recruiting disadvantage. While the results were good, there was growing sentiment that Tech could do better in recruiting, as they sat in the middle of one of the nation’s biggest hotbeds for football talent; Atlanta. Geoff Collins came in with exactly that plan, along with running a more modern-day college offense. As time went by, it felt like instead of building a brand, Collins was simply trying to slap one on the program like a bumper sticker. After a solid recruiting class in his first full year (27th in 2020) they fell off (47th and 55th in ’21 and ’22, respectively).
So how attractive is the job, and who can they reasonably expect to be able to hire next? Being in the heart of Atlanta certainly has its advantages for recruiting. But while Tech is the only FBS school physically located there, every SEC and ACC school is raiding the metro area for talent. The competition is fierce, and most of the college football hearts and minds in Atlanta already belong to UGA. Playing in the ACC is a double-edged sword. The path to a conference title and CFP berth is not as tough as the SEC, but SEC members also have a lot more money to throw at resources that the ACC will never be able to match.
The splashy name I keep seeing that Tech should go after is Deion Sanders. This feels like a pipe dream. I don’t think the fit is a good one, and even if it was, I think when Coach Prime is ready to make the leap to the Power 5, he’ll have bigger name offers. The other name I’ve heard is Georgia offensive coordinator Todd Monken. This actually sounds like a great fit. Monken obviously knows Atlanta and has recruited there. He has prior head coaching experience, winning a Conference USA West Division title at Southern Mississippi prior to a stint in the NFL. Georgia’s offense, while often playing in the shadow of the defense, is very creative and versatile.
Whatever the result will be, the first thing Tech must do is replace Todd Stansbury, their athletics director, who was fired with Collins on Monday. And with Nebraska and Arizona State already having openings, they may find they aren’t first in line for the best available names when the time comes. Clearly, the program is capable of much better than the 10-28 they were under Geoff Collins.
Here are some random thoughts on Week 4:
I’m coming around on Florida State. They made their first appearance in the AP Top 25 (#23), as well as my own rankings (#24). Mind you, beating Boston College, as they did Saturday, isn’t what bumped them up. But they did what you are supposed to do against a lesser opponent by thoroughly dominating nearly every facet of the game. Even better for them is QB Jordan Travis was able to play after suffering an injury in Week 3 at Louisville. Also, I don’t think I gave them enough credit for their win against LSU, uneven a performance as it was. The Tigers are a pretty decent team, and were practically playing a home game (in New Orleans). That said, we will learn a lot more about how good the Seminoles are over the next three weeks. Starting this Saturday they host Wake Forest, then travel to NC State, then return home to play Clemson. That’s a gauntlet.
USC isn’t getting many accolades for their 17-14 win at Oregon State. I think that misses the mark. Yes, their high-octane offense sputtered for the first 55 minutes, their only touchdown over that span coming on a short field set up by a turnover. But when the game was on the line, down 4 points with under 5 minutes to play, they drove 84 yards for the game-winning touchdown. More importantly, their defense really stepped up. They held a very good Beaver offense to just 320 yards, 180 yards below their season average coming into the game. The Trojan D was also very opportunistic, as they have been for much of the season, in forcing 4 OSU turnovers. That’s not to say there aren’t still concerns about their defense holding up, as relying on turnovers is typically not sustainable. But their offense isn’t likely to struggle the way it did in Corvallis very often. Saturday showed the Trojans can find a way to win when they don’t have their A-game, and that is something every Playoff contender has to be able to do at some point in the season.
Adrian Martinez might be the best redemption story of the 2022 season. After 3 seasons of drama and criticism at Nebraska, Martinez led his Kansas State team into Oklahoma and came away with a 41-34 victory. In that game he threw for 234 yards, ran for 128 and produced 5 touchdowns (4 running, one via pass). The one moment that most encapsulated his night wasn’t a scoring play. With 2:39 left and clinging to a 34-27 lead the Wildcats faced a 3rd-and-16 from their own 41 yard line. The Sooners seemed to have some momentum on their side, having scored on their previous possession and a very raucous crowd behind them as they looked to get the ball back to tie it up. Moments like this were when Martinez often made the mistake that would be the difference in a close Nebraska loss. Not this time. Martinez, on a play that almost appeared to be a designed QB-draw, took off and ran for 55 yards to make it 1st-and-Goal. Two plays later he waltzed into the end zone untouched to seal the KSU victory. It was a well-deserved moment for a guy who handled difficult times at Nebraska with class and dignity.
One more word on K-State: This is their third win over Oklahoma in four years. Head coach Chris Kleiman is likely to be high on some short lists for other jobs, most notably Nebraska. While he has earned the opportunity, I find myself hoping he can be the next Bill Snyder at Kansas State. Same goes for Lance Leipold, head coach of the now 4-0 Kansas Jayhawks. What a season it has been so far for the Sunflower State.
Between Kansas State’s win and Texas Tech pulling out an overtime victory against Texas, it feels like the Big 12 is wide open this season. Kudos to Red Raiders head coach Joey McGuire, my winner of the Biggest Stones of the Week for Week 4. McGuire went for it on 4th Down eight (8!) times in that game, converting six of them. In what might be the last time the Longhorns ever visit Lubbock, that’s how you make sure to own bragging rights as you send them back to Austin.
DJ Uiagalelei had a great day for Clemson in their double-overtime victory over Wake Forest Saturday, going 26-for-41 for 371 yards and five touchdowns against a Top 25 opponent. The Tigers needed every bit of that performance to hold off a determined Demon Deacons squad led by QB Sam Hartman’s 20-of-29 for 337 yards and six touchdowns. There might be some concern that Clemson’s defense was shredded they way they were, but it should be mentioned that the Tigers were missing three regulars from their secondary; cornerbacks Sheridan Jones and Malcolm Greene, and safety Andrew Mukuba. With #10 NC State and QB Devin Leary up next, they’ll need to hope those guys are back and get the ship righted quickly.
As any Auburn fan will tell you, it’s a wild roller-coaster when you ride with Bo Nix at quarterback. Oregon fans know it now as well. The Ducks seemed destined for a letdown loss against Washington State in a game they trailed for over 56 minutes. It felt like the biggest play of the day would be Nix throwing a 95-yard Pick-Six just before halftime to put the Cougars up 17-6. Instead, the story was Nix ending the day by throwing 33-for-44, 428 yards and 3 touchdowns, as the Ducks scored 22 points in the 4th Qtr (with help from a Pick-Six of their own) to pull away in Pullman. It was a tough loss for a plucky Cougar team, but they have the feeling of a squad that will be heard from again this season.
WTF, Miami? I’m at a loss for words to summarize how the Hurricanes managed to get their doors blown off by Middle Tennessee State, who came in a 25.5 point underdog. The U is back? More like The U is backsliding. This will be no quick fix for Mario Cristobal.
Speaking of uh-oh, what has happened to Michigan State? One can excuse Sparty’s blowout loss at Washington in Week 3. The Huskies look very good, and these things can happen, even to good teams when they go on long road trips to hostile venues. But to follow that up by coming home and getting shellacked 34-7 by Minnesota? Yikes.
Take nothing away from the Golden Gophers, they look like the clear favorite in the Big Ten West. They had been largely overlooked due to a soft opening schedule. To go into East Lansing and boat-race an already humiliated Spartan team is something. Perhaps most encouraging was the performance of QB Tanner Morgan who completed 23-of-26 for 268 yards and three TDs. This just one season after he completed fewer than 60% of his attempts. Having offensive coordinator Kirk Ciarrocca back after two seasons apart clearly seems to make a difference for Morgan, who looks very comfortable and efficient running Ciarrocca’s RPO offense.
How bad are things for college football in the State of Colorado? Colorado and Colorado State are currently a combined 0-8, and have been outscored a combined 90-337. It's getting so bad, the US Department of Defense may have to consider moving the Air Force Academy (3-1) to another state.
Let’s not get too carried away punishing Arkansas for losing a game in which the difference was a field goal attempt that bounced off the top of the upright (yes, and you had to see it to believe it). Texas A&M was a two-point favorite, and that’s exactly what they won by. This one could have gone either way. The Hogs will host Alabama next Saturday, so no time to feel sorry for themselves. As for A&M, the lucky bounce of the ball might turn out to be more fortuitous than just the outcome of one game. There were serious questions about the direction Jimbo Fisher had the program headed. A win against a ranked opponent sure can soothe those feelings – at least for a little while. But they aren’t out of the woods by any means. They have a sneaky tough matchup next week at Mississippi State, and they’ll be without their leading WR, Ainais Smith, who is done for the season after suffering a leg fracture Saturday.
Finally, what more can be said about the Tennessee-Florida game? It lived up to its billing. Congratulations to the Vols in finally knocking off their longtime nemesis and demonstrating to any doubters who remain that they are an ascending team. Congratulations to the Gators as well on a hard-fought game against a very talented and motivated opponent in a hostile atmosphere. Special mention to Gators QB Anthony Richardson (24/44, 453 yards, 2 TDs passing, 2 TDs rushing), who followed up two terrible performances by almost single-handedly keeping his team in it and nearly leading an improbable comeback that fell just short on the game’s final play.
It was good news-bad news for me picking this week.
This week: 4-0 straight up, 1-2-1 ATS (Overall: 12-4 straight up, 7-8-1 ATS)
My post-Week 4 Top 25