By Mark Pszonak
It never takes very long for coaching seats to get hot once the season starts. And with that, fans are already looking for possible replacements. Here are five G5 coaches who deserve a shot at the P4 level:
Ryan Silverfield, Memphis
The previous two Memphis head coaches, Justin Fuente and Mike Norvell, made the jump to P5, so why not Silverfield? He has the Tigers in position to make a run to the playoffs at 3-0, just picked up a signature victory at Florida State, is 3-0 in bowl games and is young (44). With how Fuente did at Virginia Tech and Norvell’s tumultuous tenure at Florida State he may not want to be affiliated with the two, but he has done enough for himself to justify the jump.
Alex Golesh, USF
There is plenty to like about Golesh. Only in his second season with the Bulls, the 40-year old has revitalized a dormant program that hadn’t had a winning season since 2018. It also helps that he is linked with Josh Heupel, who he worked with at both UCF and Tennessee. If you haven’t noticed, Heupel’s offense is soaring in Knoxville and Golesh has brought that same fast paced, exciting style to Tampa.
Jason Candle, Toledo
Honestly, I’m not sure how or why Candle is still at Toledo. Taking over after Matt Campbell left for Iowa State, he is now in his ninth season with the Rockets, he has had eight winning seasons, has a 68-30 record and is already off to a 3-0 start after demolishing Mississippi State on the road. I guess the perfect opportunity hasn’t presented itself yet, but I hope it soon does because I’m curious to see how he would do at the P4 level.
GJ Kinne, Texas State
After making Incarnate Word relevant at the FCS-level, Kinne took over a Texas State program that hadn’t had a winning season since 2014. He went 8-5 in his first season with the Bobcats and is now 2-1 in 2024 after narrowly missing an upset of Arizona State. Known for his high-flying offense, the Bobcats averaged 36.7 points during his first season, after averaging 21.1 the year prior. The young (35) offensive guru’s time is coming.
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Barry Odom, UNLV
Odom deserves another opportunity at the P4 level. After going 25-25 in four seasons at Missouri from 2016 to 2019, and a stop at Arkansas as DC, he took over a UNLV program that amazingly had only one winning season since 2000. The Rebels finished 9-5 in his first season and now he has them at 3-0, with wins over Houston and Kansas, and ranked for the first time EVER. This is some special type of sorcery that deserves more attention.
