The Tom Herman Sweepstakes: Part Deux?
Ohio State faced a number of staff changes since Urban Meyer took over back in late 2011. Everett Withers – instrumental in the recruitment of former five-star safety Vonn Bell – left Ohio State following the 2013 season. The former co-defensive coordinator served as head coach at James Madison before taking over at Texas State this season. Mike Vrabel, Stan Drayton, Tom Herman, and most recently Chris Ash all followed suit in exiting the program.
However, continuity at the head coaching spot is something that allowed schools like Ohio State and Alabama to maintain their reign over college football and the highly unpredictable world of college football recruiting.
Assistant coaches moving on to (usually) bigger and better opportunities is often indicative of a successful program. It also gives the head coach another feather in the old coaching tree cap.
Urban Meyer and his protégé both got the best of Bob Stoops this month. Via Thomas B. Shea-USA TODAY Sports
The head coaching carousel is a completely different animal. Turmoil atop a program can devastate recruiting classes and oftentimes take years to recover from. This is something Urban Meyer and Ohio State often took advantage of in recent cycles.
The Buckeyes poached several top prospects from Penn State back when the school fired Joe Paterno and nabbed Dontre Wilson from Oregon when Chip Kelly left for the Philadelphia Eagles. Staff shakeups in College Park also assisted with Tim Beck's pursuit and ultimate signing of freshman quarterback Dwayne Haskins.
Is it a little early to speculate on what a school may or may not do a few months down the road? Perhaps. After all, around this time in 2014, there were some clamoring for Tom Herman to put his house up for sale and get out of Dodge. Things got turned around in a hurry for Ohio State, and the same could happen for some teams that struggled through the first few games of the 2016 season.
Round 1 of the hot seat bowl goes to Auburn's Malzahn. Who wins round 2 between Gus & Miles? #AuburnFootball pic.twitter.com/2Fh9qqbXmk
— Evan C. Miller (@evcmiller) September 18, 2016
This weekend, the No. 18 LSU Tigers (2-1) travel to Jordan-Hare Stadium to take on Gus Malzahn's Auburn squad (1-2). The game is already being dubbed as "The Hot Seat Bowl," which should tell you all you need to know about how things are going at the two traditional SEC powers.
Miles barely made it through 2015, a season the Tigers went 9-3. Auburn still has to host Arkansas and then travels to Mississippi State, Ole Miss, Georgia, and Alabama before season's end. A loss this week could have Malzahn facing a 6-6 season which won't sit well with the Auburn faithful.
Clay Helton and the Trojans of Southern Cal have also seen better days. USC is 1-2 on the season and is set to square of against No. 24 Utah Friday night. It's been a bizarre week for the program as Helton named redshirt freshman Sam Darnold as the new starting quarterback shortly after proclaiming Max Browne didn't need to be looking over his shoulder.
Things got even more strange on Tuesday when rumors surfaced that offensive lineman E.J. Price punched Helton in the face and the program was looking at a number of potential transfers.
LMAO Clay Helton held a team meeting and said "anyone who wants to transfer, I'll grant you a release" and like 10 dudes got up and left.
— Garrett (@GJMcClintock) September 20, 2016
Helton denied the rumors, but something certainly seems amiss when it comes to the current state of USC football.
Charlie Strong and the Longhorns appeared to have things going in the right direction after the season-opening win over Notre Dame, but last weekend's loss to California once again has the natives growing a tad restless. Texas is off this week and then travels to Oklahoma State. The Longhorns also still have to deal with Oklahoma, Baylor, West Virginia, and TCU.
James Franklin is in his third season at Penn State and now has multiple recruiting classes under his belt. Recruiting hasn't been a concern. The problems, rather, are on the field as the Nittany Lions are 16-13 during his tenure and just 6-10 in Big Ten play. The Sept. 10 loss to the Pittsburgh Panthers didn't exactly help his cause.
So what sort of ramifications might there be as it pertains to the Buckeyes' top-ranked 2017 recruiting class and beyond?
LSU looks to be one of the top choice for five-star tailback Cam Akers. Ohio State, Ole Miss, Tennessee, and Florida State are also in the running. The Akers situation is interesting not only because of the uncertainty surrounding Les Miles' future, but also the NCAA investigation and potential sanctions at Ole Miss. Recent drumbeats have him leaning in Florida State's direction but the Buckeyes are still the crystal ball favorite.
The Tigers are also serious contenders for a pair of five-stars in defensive tackle Marvin Wilson and linebacker Dylan Moses. Ohio State is certainly recruiting them, but both look to be longshots at the moment.
The Buckeyes and Trojans haven't butted heads too much for the 2017 class, but one of the nation's top defensive backs may be one to watch for the next cycle. Jaiden Woodbey's father played for the Trojans, but he hasn't been shy about his feelings toward Ohio State. The five-star – who is a teammate of 2017 commit Wyatt Davis – has been trying to make a trip to Columbus since the summer.
Urban Meyer and Charlie Strong are doing battle for a number of prospects from the Lonestar State. J.K. Dobbins committed to the Buckeyes in March but the Longhorns are definitely still a concern. Linebackers Baron Browning and Anthony Hines are both seriously considering Ohio State and Texas. The former is looking to enroll early which means he may need to get a pulse on the coaching situation a little sooner than most. Both staffs also have their eyes on the aforementioned Marvin Wilson, whom many have pegged to Texas right now.
Lamont Wade is the biggest remaining target that Meyer and Franklin are fighting for, but Pittsburgh and Tennessee are both in prime position to swipe the country's No. 5 corner. The Buckeyes already have the nation's best group of 2017 defensive backs and with Jeffrey Okudah still looming, it remains to be seen if a push will be made for Wade. He is scheduled to make his announcement on Dec. 17.
