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College Football Recruiting, Opinion, and Analysis

Ken Niumatololo, Jason Garrett, and More: Possible Head Coach Candidates for Stanford

Stanford’s head coaching vacancy shakes up college football. Who will take the reins?

Avatar photoMike Huesmann
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By Mike Huesmann

The unexpected dismissal of Troy Taylor gives us a FBS head coaching opening, and a Power Four one at that. This could be a tough blow for Stanford who were awful at the end of the David Shaw era and hadn’t been consistent under Taylor. Will this cause a chain reaction of other openings? Initially I didn’t think so, but it might. It’s an awkward time of the year for a current head coach to leave. Their current school would be understandably irate. For this reason, I think currently unemployed coaches or NFL guys may have the lead, but I think there are current FBS head coaches who are in play. 

Another wrinkle here is that current athletic director, Bernard Muir, is retiring in a matter of weeks. How much of this decision comes down to Andrew Luck?

Ken Niumatololo

San Jose State, Head Coach

In 15 seasons as Navy’s head coach he won 109 games. That’s more than seven wins per year at a service academy. He won 11 games twice in that span. He personifies the upright, no nonsense, academic-focused profile that Stanford wants to see themselves as. He also did a heck of a job in year one at San Jose State, inheriting a grim-looking situation and then winning seven games and going to a bowl game. If he would leave the Spartans during Spring practice, he’d be the first guy I’d call.

Dave Clawson

Former Bowling Green, Wake Forest Head Coach

Clawson took over at Wake Forest in 2014 and went 3-9 in each of his first two seasons. He then made seven bowl games in a row. The turnaround he and his staff did at what was one of the worst Power Five programs has been remarkable. The slow mesh, or “Clawfense,” is a difficult offense to game plan for and makes up for the talent discrepancy. His time with Bowling Green before that was remarkable. He won 18 games in his last two seasons, which is outstanding considering the nonconference schedule. He’s currently available and has raised programs who are down. He also knows the ACC. Clawson wouldn’t be the flashy hire or one who everybody would love, but he could be the man to right the ship.

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Bobby April

Stanford, Defensive Coordinator

April has been the DC here for two years. Prior to that he was at Wisconsin. From 2011 to 2016 he was in the NFL with multiple teams. He definitely has the resume and pedigree to be the interim coach, especially if Stanford doesn’t want to make a permanent hire until after the 2025 season. If they want an inside man, he’ll almost certainly be the guy. He feels like a safe bet at this point if they’ll consider someone on the staff, which can be tricky after a scandal.

Troy Walters

Cincinnati Bengals, Wide Receivers Coach

Stanford legend and Biletnikoff Award winner in 1999, Walters has coached at top-notch schools and in the NFL for a while. He has a reputation as a solid recruiter. His stops include Texas A&M, UCF, NC State, Colorado and Nebraska. If his dream is to return to Palo Alto or be a head coach, this is a golden opportunity. If Stanford wants to hire someone they potentially could have for a long time, this might be the ticket.

Jason Garrett

Former Dallas Cowboys Head Coach

Many will forget that Garrett was a finalist for this job when Taylor was hired in 2022. He chose to stay in the TV booth. Will the call to be a head coach make him interested? He has the NFL background, national recognition and Ivy League (Princeton) background. He’s also available and not tied to another team right now. He may be a dark horse, but he has a lot of things going for him and clearly impressed them at one point. 

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