Mike Farrell Sports

College Football Recruiting, Opinion, and Analysis

G5 Head Coach Rankings: American Athletic Conference

Ranking All 14 AAC head coaches entering the 2025 college football season

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Nov 16
Nov 16

By Mike Huesmann

This is article two in a series of six where I go through every Group of 5 conference and rank head coaches, then for the finale I’ll do an overall G5 head coach ranking. We started out West with the Mountain West Conference.

Today for the second conference we move to the AAC. This is another conference chalked full of coaches I think very highly of, and it was tough to rank some guys so low. We also have new head coaches at six of the 14 schools, which makes the backgrounds extremely tough to compare. Here is my ranking list for the AAC.

14. Trent Dilfer, UAB

Record: 7-17, 3rd season

Dilfer had zero college coaching experience before getting this FBS head coaching job. That’s a massive disadvantage for anyone. He also took over after an underrated legend in Bill Clark. Clark was outstanding for the Blazers. Dilfer won four games in season one and three games in year two. In 2025 if he repeats this, and I suspect he will, he may not see year four in 2026.

13. Blake Harrell, East Carolina

Record: 5-1 (Interim), 1st season

Harrell did well in his half-season in charge of ECU. I simply need to see more. He was interim for the easy part of the schedule, and I believe Mike Houston would’ve won those games, too. No knock-on Harrell and his team did play inspired ball, I just need a bigger sample size.

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12. Tre Lamb, Tulsa

Record: 27-25, 1st season

Lamb has gotten rave reviews as a wunderkind and fast riser in the game. Only 35, he is at his third Division I head coaching job. All signs have pointed to him getting to this level rapidly and he did not disappoint. With a lack of FBS games I can’t rank him higher than many of these coaches who have proven success. That being said, plenty of people think he’s top notch.

11. Scott Abell, Rice

Record: 47-28, 1st season

Like Lamb, his lack of FBS coaching limits how high he can go up this list. Rice is a unique job, and he is a unique coach. He had much FCS success at Davidson and at the Division III level before that. His offenses will break the mold and be different, which I love to see at schools who have traditionally not won. This is a team who will be fun to watch, if nothing else.

10. Zach Kittley, Florida Atlantic

Record: 0-0, 1st season

I hate to throw out the rule book and deviate from the plan but for Kittley I’ll make an exception. I loved this hire, and I think it will pay dividends. This is a place you can win, and I believe he will until a Power Four school hires him away. He has been fantastic at developing QBs and calling offenses. His lack of head coaching experience doesn’t let him get any higher on the list, but I feel comfortable in putting him ahead of those lower.

9. Alex Golesh, USF

Record: 14-12, 3rd season

For me, separating Nos. 8 and 9 was incredibly hard. I put Golesh here because his team regressed in season two unlike the coach, we will see next. In 2023, Golesh was fantastic. His first season—where the Bulls finished 7-6—doesn’t tell the story of how much they improved. They were an absolutely terrible team under Jeff Scott—4-26 in three seasons. They went to a bowl game in year one with Golesh, but couldn’t keep that momentum going into year two. All that being said, the future is still quite promising.

8. Brian Newberry, Navy

Record: 15-10, 3rd season

Newberry gets the nod one spot ahead of Golesh because his team ascended in 2024, going 10-3. I still don’t know if I’d pick him ahead of Golesh but he deserves this spot. Newberry came into a situation where Ken Niumatalolo had struggled in recent years and has turned it around. The Midshipmen are playing good football on both sides of the line, not making mistakes, and they beat Army and Oklahoma to end the year. There isn’t much more to ask of Newberry than he achieved in 2024.

7. Eric Morris, North Texas

Record: 35-32 (11-14 at UNT), 3rd season 

I have been a huge fan of Morris since he was lighting up scoreboards at Incarnate Word. He was Cam Ward’s head coach and then Ward followed him to Washington State, then Morris got the UNT job. He won five in year one and six this past season, where Chandler Morris finally figured it out and was a massive success. I expect Reese Poffenbarger to be outstanding in this offense in 2025. Morris is another guy who will be on Power Four school radars before too long.

6. Ryan Silverfield, Memphis

Record: 42-21, 6th season

I can’t believe I’m putting a coach at No. 6 who has won two-thirds of his games, but here we are. That’s the level of the AAC. Silverfield took over a great G5 situation from Mike Norvell and has kept it rolling. He has won double-digit games the last two seasons, though the two-year regression in 2021 and 2022 are what prevent him from being higher. Seth Henigan is gone after 50 career starts, finding his replacement will be critical and seeing how Silverfield does at that could move him up the list.

5. Tim Albin, Charlotte

Record: 33-19, 1st season

One of my favorite hires of the off-season, Albin was a good coach at Ohio and Charlotte could be a sleeping giant in the G5. It is a growing school in a major city where they should be able to recruit. I was skeptical anyone could take over for Frank Solich and continue the success, but he did just that. He instantly ranks among the best in this conference.

4. Jeff Monken, Army

Record: 120-73 (82-57 at Army), 12th season

Monken is another guy that many will argue I should have higher on the list and they might have a point. Number wise he doesn’t quite match up to those above him, but he’s close. He has done a heck of a job at both schools he’s been boss at. Army, like many schools in the AAC, is no easy place to win at and he’s done it admirably. How he replaces Bryson Daily will be critical for the Knights in 2025. Winning 12 last year was one of the best coaching jobs in America. Consecutive six-win seasons in 2022 and 2023 put him just below the next coach on the list.

https://twitter.com/BrendanInJersey/status/1733645740109447649

3. Jeff Traylor, UTSA

Record: 46-20, 7th season

Traylor has been consistent and tough in his six years with the Roadrunners. He is only the third head coach in program history—2011 was their first season playing football—and Frank Wilson before him only had a single winning season, and never won more than six games. Traylor has done better than that every season in charge. He has taken UTSA from also ran in Conference USA to an AAC staple. His teams are fundamental, run the ball and get after it on defense. He is another guy who has frequently been mentioned for a Power Four job.

https://twitter.com/SSN_UTSA/status/1919928694845448298

2. KC Keeler, Temple

Record: 183-91, 1st season 

Keeler is the all-time winningest FCS coach in history and the only man to win a national title at two different schools at that level. His FBS experience is limited, but impressive. In only year two at the FBS level his team won nine games. Temple was wise to hire a veteran with a track record away from a fellow G5 school. This is a school that has seen success in the last two decades with Al Golden, Geoff Collins, Steve Addazio and Matt Rhule. I think Keeler continues that trend.

https://twitter.com/TempleOwlsDaily/status/1911167965468180513

1. Jon Sumrall, Tulane

Record: 32-9, 2nd season

One of the easiest top choices I’ll make in ranking G5 coaches. I have praised Sumrall for many years and expect him to be a Power Four head coach soon. His track record at Troy and Tulane is as impressive as they come. He has played for the conference championship in each of his seasons as a head coach, across two conferences. There was no one else here to challenge him, and that’s saying something with the solid coaches on this list.

https://twitter.com/PeteNakos_/status/1932141932987494653

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