Coaching carousel: Tracking the hirings and firings in the Power Four

College football could be on the verge of one of the busiest coaching carousels in recent history. Eight Power Four coaches have been fired this season, and more are sure to follow in an era that features unprecedented parity, revenue-sharing and access to the expanded College Football Playoff.

Florida State and Wisconsin appear to be considering moves, and no one would be shocked to see coaching changes at Clemson, Kentucky, Maryland, Michigan State, North Carolina and South Carolina.

The Power Four programs already searching for replacements (in alphabetical order):

Arkansas

Fired: Sam Pittman, 63, on Sept. 28, 2025.

Record: 32-34 over six seasons, including 14-29 in the SEC.

Buyout: Nearly $9.8 million.

Interim: Offensive coordinator Bobby Petrino.

Noteworthy: Petrino is auditioning for a second stint as the program’s head coach. He guided the Razorbacks between 2008 and 2011, showing improvement every year. His tenure ended after a motorcycle crash led to the admission of an affair with a former Arkansas volleyball player.

Auburn

Fired: Hugh Freeze, 56, on Nov. 2, 2025

Record: 15-19 over three seasons, including 6-16 in the SEC.

Buyout: $15.8 million.

Interim: Defensive coordinator DJ Durkin.

Noteworthy: The 56-year-old Freeze failed to fix Auburn’s offensive issues in his three years on the Plains. The Tigers scored 24 or fewer points in 17 of his 22 league games.

Florida

Fired: Billy Napier, 46, on Oct. 19, 2025.

Record: 22-23 over four seasons, including 12-16 in the SEC.

Buyout: About $21 million.

Interim: Receivers coach Billy Gonzales.

Noteworthy: Napier was almost always in the crosshairs, in part because he declined to give up play-calling duties as the Gators’ offense failed to make progress.

LSU

Fired: Brian Kelly, 64, on Oct. 26, 2025.

Record: 34-14 over four seasons, including 19-10 in the SEC.

Buyout: About $54 million, although the school said it is being negotiated.

Interim: Associate head coach/running backs coach Frank Wilson.

Noteworthy: Kelly’s buyout, if it remains intact, would be the second largest in the history of college athletics. It was the first time Kelly had been fired in his coaching career.

Oklahoma State

Fired: Mike Gundy, 58, on Sept. 23, 2025.

Record: 170-90 over 21 seasons, including 102-72 in the Big 12.

Buyout: $15 million.

Interim: Offensive coordinator Doug Meacham.

Noteworthy: Gundy went viral in 2007 for shouting “Come after me! I’m a man! I’m 40!” while defending one of his players.

Penn State

Fired: James Franklin, 53, on Oct. 12, 2025.

Record: 104-45 over 12 seasons, including 64-36 in the Big Ten.

Buyout: More than $49 million.

Interim: Associate head coach Terry Smith.

Noteworthy: Mockingly nicknamed “Big Game James” because of his 4-21 record against top-10 opponents, Franklin became the first coach since 1978 to lose consecutive games (UCLA, Northwestern) while being favored by 20 or more points.

Stanford

Fired: Troy Taylor, 56, on March 25, 2025.

Record: 6-18 over two seasons, including 4-13 in conference play (2-7 in the Pac-12, 2-6 in the ACC).

Buyout: Unknown.

Interim: Longtime NFL coach Frank Reich.

Noteworthy: General manager Andrew Luck fired Taylor in March following reports that the coach allegedly mistreated staffers and then asked Reich to fill in for a season.

UCLA

Fired: DeShaun Foster, 45, on Sept. 14, 2025.

Record: 5-10 over two seasons, including 3-6 in the Big Ten.

Buyout: $6.43 million.

Interim: Special assistant Tim Skipper.

Noteworthy: Foster was fired three games into his second season, with athletic director Martin Jarmond acknowledging he made a mistake by giving the inexperienced Foster the job.

Virginia Tech

Fired: Brent Pry, 55, on Sept. 14, 2025.

Record: 16-24 over four seasons, including 10-13 in the ACC.

Buyout: About $6 million.

Interim: Offensive coordinator Philip Montgomery.

Noteworthy: Since Pry’s dismissal, the university voted to increase the athletics department budget by $229.2 million over the next four years. The bump for 2026 ups Tech’s athletic budget to $190.1 million, placing it among the top third in the ACC.

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