We haven't reached November yet, and there are nine coaching vacancies in the Power 4 for the 2026 college football season.
Four major jobs opened up in the last two weeks. Auburn fired Hugh Freeze on Nov. 2. LSU fired Brian Kelly on Oct. 26. Penn State fired James Franklin on Oct. 12. Florida fired Billy Napier a week later. Those are four major programs, and it's debatable which one presents the better opportunity for the next coach.
Would you rather run through the SEC grinder every year with the advantage of the Sunshine State recruiting base? Or would you look to refurbish a program that has been in the upper-tier of the Big Ten for the last decade? There is an argument to be made for both jobs.
Arkansas, Oklahoma State, Stanford, UCLA and Virginia Tech also have openings. How would you rank those seven schools in terms of who has the best (and worst) job?
AllSportsPeople graded each of those jobs using three factors. What is their record in the CFP era? We looked at the average rank of their last five recruiting classes, according to 247Sports.com and how many NFL Draft picks each school has produced in the last five years. That helped us gauge which job would be the best.
1. LSU
Record in CFP era: 104-45,.698
NFL Draft picks since 2021: 25
Avg. Recruiting rank: 6.2
Expectations are unreasonable, but that comes with the territory at a job when three of the last four coaches (Nick Saban, Les Miles, Ed Orgeron) won national championships. The Tigers have the best winning percentage of any team on this list – though it is nearly identical to Penn State. LSU has pulled in top-10 recruiting classes each of the last five years, and the next coach will be expected to build with that toward immediate contention in the SEC. Brian Kelly had a 19-10 record in SEC play. That's not the standard in Baton Rouge.
MORE: What's next for Brian Kelly: College, NFL or retire?
2. Penn State
Record in CFP era: 104-47,.689
NFL Draft picks since 2021: 33
Avg. Recruiting rank: 15.2
Franklin's replacement will be held up to a high standard. The Nittany Lions reached the College Football Playoff semifinals last season, and Franklin had a.697 winning percentage since taking over in 2014. Penn State has produced seven first-round picks in the last five drafts, including Micah Parsons and Abdul Carter. Franklin's successor will have to push those recruiting classes into the top 10 more often – and the ever-present challenge of catching Ohio State in the Big Ten exists. Will Penn State take that extra step toward its first national championship since 1986?
MORE: Names to watch in the Penn State coaching search
3. Florida
Record in CFP era: 87-60,.592
NFL Draft picks since 2021: 25
Avg. Recruiting rank: 10.2
Florida will be on its fifth coach since Urban Meyer left after the 2010 season, and none of the last four coaches have lasted more than four seasons. The allure of the SEC is there, and the in-state recruiting base is among the best in the country. Can the new coach compete in the SEC? That is the question. Florida has finished above.500 one time in conference play since 2020. Billy Napier could not quite get there. Yes, Meyer and Steve Spurrier have combined for three national championships since 1996 – but the Gators have not been that kind of player on the national stage in a while. The next coach must take advantage of the talent Florida brings in every year.
MORE: Names to watch in the Florida coaching search
4. Auburn
Stew Milne/Getty Images
Record in CFP era: 82-67,.550
NFL Draft picks since 2021: 17
Avg. Recruiting rank: 14.4
Auburn had top-10 recruiting classes each of the last two seasons under Hugh Freeze, and the next coach should benefit from that. Auburn, however, was just 1-12 against ranked SEC teams under Freeze. The Tigers will likely be coming off five consecutive losing seasons and are trying to work back up in a SEC that is flush with College Football Playoff contenders. Auburn has been one of the more unpredictable programs on a year-to-year basis in the CFP era – but the recruiting base is strong and there is no reason they can't compete for CFP berths.
MORE: Names to watch in the Auburn coaching search
5. Arkansas
Record in CFP era: 62-83,.428
NFL Draft picks since 2021: 10
Avg. Recruiting rank: 27.4
Is this too high? Arkansas is one of the toughest places to win in the SEC – but it's still doable. Bret Bielema and Sam Pittman each had three winning seasons, and the program routinely brings in top-30 recruiting classes. Can you turn the program into a College Football Playoff contender? Vanderbilt and Missouri are in the mix this season. The right coach could put together a double-digit win season at Arkansas. In fact, the last coach to do it – Bobby Petrino in 2010 – is the interim coach now.
MORE: Names to watch in the Arkansas coaching search
6. UCLA
© Gary A. Vasquez-Imagn Images
Record in CFP era: 71-69,.507
NFL Draft picks since 2021: 19
Avg. Recruiting rank: 27.8
It's a Big Ten job – and the program produced more than enough NFL talent under Chip Kelly and attracted a five-star quarterback in Nico Iamaleava via the transfer portal this offseason. UCLA put together two top-25 recruiting classes in the last five years – and that should continue in the future. DeShaun Foster was put in a tough spot when Kelly left, and the next coach needs to generate more enthusiasm around the program. There have been more than enough empty shots of the Rose Bowl in recent years. Interim coach Tim Skipper has led the Bruins to three straight victories, and Jerry Neuheisel is a high-rising offensive coordinator. Will they get a chance at the full-time job?
MORE: Tracking all the FBS coaching changes for 2025
7. Virginia Tech
Record in CFP era: 77-72,.517
NFL Draft picks since 2021: 14
Avg. Recruiting rank: 45.8
Virginia Tech has a devout fan-base, and the Hokies did put five players in the 2025 NFL Draft. The program has struggled to maintain its identity since Frank Beamer retired under Justin Fuente and Brent Pry – but they did make seven bowl appearances. Virginia Tech has fallen down the pecking order in the ACC the last few seasons, however, and the next coach will be expected to elevate the Hokies into the upper tier of the conference.
MORE: Week 11 College Football Playoff picture
8. Stanford
Record in CFP era: 71-71,.500
NFL Draft picks since 2021: 13
Avg. Recruiting rank: 47.4
There is an allure to this job with general manager Andrew Luck, but the program has to catch up on the NIL front to generate top-25 recruiting classes. Stanford's victory against Florida State showed progress in the right direction, and the relationship with the ACC should continue to mature over the next several seasons. Jim Harbaugh and David Shaw combined for six seasons with 10 wins or more in seven years from 2010-16.
MORE: Notre Dame a potential parting shot in classic win over USC
9. Oklahoma State
Record in CFP era: 93-58,.616
NFL Draft picks since 2021: 13
Avg. Recruiting rank: 46.4
This is a risky proposition. Oklahoma State does have the second-best record in the CFP era among the seven programs here, but look at the program track record before Mike Gundy. It wasn't great. Gundy was up front about the challenges of NIL, and the Cowboys haven't had a first-round draft pick since Justin Gilbert in 2014. Gundy was better at talent development, and that is only part of the equation now. Could the right coach push Oklahoma State into contention in the wide-open Big 12? Whoever takes this job has to perform a major restoration given where the program is now.
MORE: Nick Saban comes to James Franklin's defense on GameDay