Per TheAthletic -- Chris Kiffin, Manny Diaz, Charlie Weis Jr., Ja'Juan Seider and George Helow are among those with expect will get consideration for the FAU coaching vacancy.
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With Willie Taggart getting
fired by Florida Atlantic on Saturday,
one of the more attractive Group of 5 coaching jobs has come open. Taggart never won more than five games in any of his three seasons with the
Owls, but the coach he followed, Lane Kiffin, won 26 games in three years, including two seasons with double-digit wins. There is a ton of local talent in the area, and it’s a place a lot of coaches would like to live.
There are several former FAU staffers and coaches with South Florida ties we think will go after this job.
Chris Kiffin, Browns defensive line coach
Let’s start with the former Owls coaches. Lane’s younger brother should get a lot of consideration for this one. The 40-year-old son of Monte Kiffin earned Broyles Award consideration for how much he improved the FAU defense in 2017 as co-DC and linebackers coach, taking the Owls from No. 124 to No. 37 in yards per play during his one season there. His personality is much more understated than his brother’s, but he has always had an ability to connect with players.
Charlie Weis Jr., Ole Miss offensive coordinator
Weis was Lane Kiffin’s offensive coordinator in Boca Raton and is also well-regarded among his former colleagues. The son of former
Notre Dame coach Charlie Weis, who lives a half-hour from Boca, is still very young — he won’t turn 30 until April — but he’s always been mature beyond his years.
Kendal Briles, Arkansas offensive coordinator
Briles spent one season at FAU with Kiffin in 2017 and another year in the state on
Florida State’s 2019 staff. He has done a nice job helping Sam Pittman get Arkansas football back on its feet. Briles is making a lot of money with the Hogs, but he might be tempted by the chance to run his own program.
Manny Diaz, Penn State defensive coordinator
Now on to the guys with strong ties around the state. Diaz went 21-15 in three seasons as
Miami’s head coach, leading the Hurricanes to a No. 22 finish in 2020. The 48-year-old Miami native has done a very good job as Penn State’s DC and is one of the brighter people in football. He got shoved out the door at Miami for Mario Cristobal, but FAU might be a better fit.
Willie Simmons, Florida A&M head coach
Simmons, 42, has done an outstanding job as a head coach at the FCS level, with a 51-23 record over seven years at Prairie View A&M and Florida A&M. He is 18-5 the past two years; the Rattlers had endured six consecutive losing seasons before Simmons took over. He’s also in play for the
USF vacancy.
Ja’Juan Seider, Penn State co-offensive coordinator
The 45-year-old Belle Glade, Fla., product was a star quarterback at Florida A&M and has deep recruiting ties around South Florida. Players really respond to him. He has also been a key assistant in Happy Valley, at Marshall and at West Virginia.
Alex Atkins, Florida State offensive coordinator
Atkins is another hot name this year and has gotten some consideration for a few vacancies. The 38-year-old has been a vital piece in Florida State’s rise from three wins to five wins and then to nine wins this season, an encouraging build after the program fell apart late in the Jimbo Fisher era. Atkins was integral in rebuilding what was a dreadful O-line when he arrived.
George Helow, Michigan linebackers coach
Helow, 35, has been a key cog in the Wolverines’ defensive resurgence the past two years, during which time
Michigan has gone 24-2. Helow was the right-hand man to former defensive coordinator Mike Macdonald and stayed in Ann Arbor to help new DC Jesse Minter help Michigan keep building. Helow, a former
Ole Miss defensive back, worked and learned under Nick Saban and Kirby Smart before his time with Jim Harbaugh. He’s a Jacksonville native and another rising star we expect to be in the mix for some defensive coordinator jobs in addition to vying for this vacancy.