College footballs strangest 1-year coaching stops: Howard Schnellenberger at Oklahoma, Bill Parce -

Editor’s note: This story is part of the Secrets of the Coaching Carousel series exploring unique aspects of college football coaching changes and more.

College football coaches are constantly on the move. It seems coaches spending a long time at one school is getting rarer and rarer, but it’s always been a transient profession, leading to some odd pieces of trivia: Did you know that Bum Phillips coached UTEP for a year? Or that Bill Parcells passed through Air Force for a 3-8 campaign? How about Nick Saban’s brief stay at Toledo?

To help close The Athletic’s Secrets of the Coaching Carousel week, let’s take a look back at 25 or so of the strangest one-year coaching tenures in college football since 1950, whether it’s big names in weird spots, legendarily disastrous stints or other brief engagements. This list mostly steers away from interim coaches, especially those promoted from within, with a few particularly noteworthy exceptions. It also starts in 1950, given how much coaching turnover there was during the World War II years — though Bear Bryant at Maryland in 1945 would be a notable inclusion, too.

NFL coaches

Steve Mariucci

Team: Cal
Year: 1996
Record: 6-6

Mariucci seemed like the perfect fit when the Golden Bears tabbed him to replace Keith Gilbertson in 1996. He had been an assistant at Cal from 1987 through 1991 (the final two as the offensive coordinator) and had three years of experience in the NFL as the quarterbacks coach in Green Bay. And his tenure got off to a great start; the Bears won their first five games, including the program’s first win at USC since 1970, and climbed to No. 19 in the AP poll. The good times didn’t last long. Cal lost six of its final seven games to finish at 6-6, and then Mariucci moved across the bay to become the head coach of the San Francisco 49ers.

Bill Parcells

Team: Air Force
Year: 1978
Record: 3-8

Before Parcells emerged as one of the most respected coaches in NFL history, he bounced around the college game with stints as an assistant at Wichita State (his alma mater), Army, Florida State, Vanderbilt and Texas Tech before being named head coach at Air Force in 1978. The Falcons got off to a promising start, with wins at UTEP and Boston College, but managed only one more victory the rest of the way, against Kent State. The biggest issue? A defense that gave up an average of 35.8 points in the eight losses. Parcells bolted Colorado Springs after one season to become the linebackers coach with the New York Giants and never coached in college again.

Bum Phillips

Team: UTEP
Year: 1962
Record: 4-5

One of the true characters of the sport, Phillips spent one uneventful season as the head coach at Texas Western, now known as UTEP. Phillips was highly regarded as a defensive innovator — he would later be credited for bringing the 3-4 front to prominence in the NFL — so it’s fitting that his one team in the collegiate ranks allowed 14 points or fewer in six of its nine games. Offense was the problem for the Miners; they failed to score more than 21 points in any game and averaged only 9.3 for the season. Phillips returned to coaching high school football — he told the “El Paso Herald-Post” that jobs at UTEP and Port Neches-Groves High were “equal in opportunity and money” — for two seasons before taking over as the defensive coordinator at the University of Houston. He later was the head coach with the Houston Oilers and New Orleans Saints.

Sam Wyche

Team: Indiana
Year: 1983
Record: 3-8

After firing Lee Corso following a 5-6 record in 1982 — his seventh losing season in 10 years at the school — Indiana turned to Wyche, a 38-year old who had only four years of coaching experience, all with the San Francisco 49ers. The Hoosiers went 3-8 overall and 2-7 in the Big Ten and gave up 45 points or more in four of their final five games. Evidently, the Cincinnati Bengals were impressed; they named Wyche head coach in December 1983, the beginning of a 12-year run as an NFL head coach (eight in Cincinnati and four in Tampa Bay) that featured one Super Bowl appearance and one epic dig at the city of Cleveland.

Before they became famous elsewhere

Frank Broyles

Team: Missouri
Year: 1957
Record: 5-4-1

Broyles is synonymous with Arkansas football, but he actually began his head coaching career at nearby Missouri decades before the two schools became SEC rivals. The Tigers went 5-4-1 overall and 3-3 in the Big 7 in Broyles’ only season in Columbia. His decision to leave for Arkansas turned out well for both schools — Missouri hired Arizona State’s Dan Devine, who went 92-38-7 in 13 seasons, and Broyles won seven Southwest Conference titles and one national championships in 19 seasons at Arkansas before spending another three decades as athletic director.

Pat Dye

Team: Wyoming
Year: 1980
Record: 6-5

Wyoming has served as a pitstop for several prominent coaches, with Dye (1980) and Dennis Erickson (1986) staying for only one season and Fred Akers spending two years (1975, ’76) in Laramie before moving on to Texas. Wyoming lured Dye away from East Carolina, where he compiled a 48-18-1 record in six seasons. In his lone season in Laramie, Dye guided the Cowboys to a 6-5 mark, snapping a streak of three consecutive losing seasons. A Georgia grad, Dye returned to the SEC in 1981 to become the head coach at Auburn, where he won four SEC titles and coached Heisman winner Bo Jackson.

Darrell Royal

Team: Washington
Year: 1956
Record: 5-5

A former Oklahoma quarterback, Royal became most known for his long, successful coaching career at Texas. But before he got to Texas, he went through a series of short coaching stints most probably don’t know about: In 1953, he coached the CFL’s Edmonton Eskimos. The next two years, he coached Mississippi State to back-to-back 6-4 records. Then? One forgettable year at Washington, where he went 5-5 before bolting after 10 months to coach his alma mater’s archrival, Texas, where he stayed 20 years and won three national titles.

Nick Saban

Team: Toledo
Year: 1990
Record: 9-2

It’s too bad #MACtion wasn’t a thing in the early 1990s. Wouldn’t it have been fun to watch Saban take his Toledo Rockets into Kalamazoo to battle Western Michigan on a frigid Tuesday night in November? Instead, Saban’s one season as the head coach at Toledo was spent mostly in anonymity — but also spent winning a lot of games. The Rockets went 9-2, with the two losses by a combined five points, and shared the MAC title with Central Michigan. Saban left Toledo to become the defensive coordinator for the Cleveland Browns under new head coach Bill Belichick. Toledo hired Gary Pinkel, Saban’s former teammate at Kent State, who had been the offensive coordinator at Washington.

One thing Lane Kiffin and Nick Saban have in common: a one-year coaching tenure. (Butch Dill / USA Today)

One year at one school, one year at another

Dennis Erickson

Teams: Wyoming, Idaho
Years: 1986, 2006
Records: 6-6, 4-8

Short stints were the norm for Erickson, who was the head coach at five colleges (including two stops at Idaho) and two NFL teams and remained at only one job longer than five years (Miami). The biggest highlight from his one season at Wyoming was a win at Wisconsin — though that wasn’t too notable in the pre-Barry Alvarez era. Two decades later, he returned to Idaho, where he began his head-coaching career by going 32-15 in four years when the Vandals were in the Division I-AA ranks from 1982 to ’85. This time around, Idaho was in the WAC and the competition was much more difficult. The result was a 4-8 record in what turned out to be another short stay. He jumped at the opportunity for another chance at a power-conference school, taking over for Dirk Koetter at Arizona State.

Todd Graham

Teams: Rice, Pitt
Years: 2006, 2011
Records: 7-6, 6-7

Graham worked a minor miracle in Year 1 at Rice, guiding the Owls to a 7-6 record and the school’s first bowl game in 45 years. Then, just days after signing a long-term contract to remain at Rice, he left to become the head coach at Tulsa. After a successful four-year run with the Golden Hurricane, he took over Pitt, where he guided the Panthers to a 6-6 record and the second of three consecutive BBVA Compass Bowl appearances for the program. Graham, however, never had the pleasure of coaching in the bowl game; he was the pick to replace Erickson as the head coach at Arizona State.

Lou Saban

Teams: Northwestern, Maryland, Army
Years: 1955, 1966, 1979
Records: 0-8-1, 4-6, 2-8-1

Meet the undisputed king of short college coaching tenures, who earned the nickname “Much Traveled Lou.” Saban had college head coaching tenures of three years or less at Case Tech (three years), Northwestern (one), Western Illinois (three), Maryland (one), Miami (two), Army (one), UCF (two), Peru State (one) and Chowan (two). He was also the head coach of the Buffalo Bills from 1962-65 and again from 1972-76, with a five-year stint with the Denver Broncos in between. He never coached in a college bowl game. He even spent two years as president of the New York Yankees under close friend George Steinbrenner.

Back to where they came from

Jeff Horton

Team: Nevada
Year: 1993
Record: 7-4

It is known in the state of Nevada as the “Red Defection.” Horton, a Nevada alum, did the unthinkable — he left his job as the head coach after one season with the Wolf Pack to take over as the boss at hated rival UNLV, where he had previously been an assistant … after he had previously been at Nevada. And this came after UNLV had attempted to hire Horton’s boss at Nevada, athletic director Chris Ault — a former head coach of the Pack who came out of retirement to replace Horton the next season. (Ault came out of retirement a second time 10 years later for a third stint as the head coach at Nevada. Confused?) Horton went 7-4 in his one year at Nevada and lasted five years at UNLV, where he was fired after a 0-11 season in 1998. He is now a running backs coach at San Diego State.

David McWilliams

Team: Texas Tech
Year: 1986
Record: 7-4

It probably didn’t sit well with many Texas Tech fans when McWilliams was the pick to replace Jerry Moore. Sure, McWilliams’ resume was solid — he was a three-year starter in the Southwest Conference and later served as an assistant for 16 years at that same program. The problem? That school was hated rival Texas. The only thing worse than hiring a Texas Ex to coach at Texas Tech? Watching that coach leave for Texas after only one season. After going 7-4 in the regular season — securing the Red Raiders’ first winning mark since 1978 — McWilliams returned to his alma mater to replace Akers. Texas Tech handed the job to Spike Dykes, McWilliams’ defensive coordinator, who stuck around for 13 years.

Jackie Sherrill

Team: Washington State
Year: 1976
Record: 3-8

Sherrill spent one year on the West Coast in his entire coaching career: his first season as a head coach at age 32, a forgettable 3-8 campaign at Washington State. He had been an assistant coach at Pitt for three years under Johnny Majors. When he left for Pullman, Pitt went undefeated and won the national title, after which Majors left for Tennessee, his alma mater. Sherrill returned to Pitt as his replacement and went on to successful runs at Texas A&M and Mississippi State. Washington State’s replacement for Sherrill? Nebraska assistant Warren Powers, who coached the Cougars to a 7-4 record … and left for Missouri after one season.

Two one-year tenures at one school

Hugh Devore

Team: Notre Dame
Years: 1945, 1963
Records: 7-2-1, 2-7

Devore served two one-year tenures at Notre Dame nearly 20 years apart. A beloved figure in South Bend, Devore played for the Irish in the early 1930s and had multiple assistant coaching stints there. In 1944, coach Frank Leahy left for military service. He was replaced on an interim basis by Edward McKeever, who left for Cornell after one season. In stepped Devore, who led a 7-2-1 campaign in 1945 before Leahy — and a deep pool of talented players — returned from war service. Devore went on to head coaching jobs with St. Bonaventure, NYU, Dayton and the Philadelphia Eagles before returning to Notre Dame as freshman coach. When Joe Kuharich resigned in spring 1963 after a tumultuous tenure, Devore again stepped in on an interim basis and went 2-7. Ara Parseghian then arrived and led the Irish back to national prominence.

Cleaning up messes with an acting coach

Bud Davis

Team: Colorado
Year: 1962
Record: 2-8

You probably have not heard of Davis’ coaching career, because he spent a total of one season as a head coach or assistant coach above the high school level before a long career in academia. A former Colorado player, he coached high school football for five seasons before landing the Colorado job after Sonny Grandelius was fired because of recruiting violations. Many members of the Colorado team protested Davis’ hiring, and he lasted just one 2-8 season. He never coached again, instead becoming a university president/chancellor at Idaho State, New Mexico, Oregon and LSU. He died last month at age 92.

John L. Smith/Jim Grobe

Teams: Arkansas/Baylor
Years: 2012/2016
Records: 4-8/7-6

This list largely steers clear of interim coaches, but the Smith and Grobe situations stand out as particularly odd: Both were veteran head coaches brought in for one season only to provide stabilizing hands after successful coaches were fired amid scandals. Smith, the former Louisville and Michigan State coach, had been the special teams coordinator under Bobby Petrino. He left to be the head coach at Weber State, a job he then left after only a few months to replace the fired Petrino with only a 10-month contract. The Razorbacks went from the Cotton Bowl to 4-8, and they hired Bret Bielema. Grobe, the former Wake Forest coach who had not been on a sideline in three years, replaced Art Briles. The Bears started 6-0, then lost their next six games before winning the Cactus Bowl. Baylor hired Matt Rhule for the permanent job.

Lee Coro’s last college coaching stop was one year at NIU. (Matthew Emmons / USA Today)

Just passing through

Lee Corso

Team: Northern Illinois
Year: 1984
Record: 4-6-1

Northern Illinois hired Corso, who had been fired two years earlier by Indiana, to replace Bill Mallory, who left NIU for Indiana. Got it? It was the third and final job in the collegiate ranks for Corso, who went 28-11-3 in four seasons at Louisville, 41-68-2 in 10 seasons at Indiana and 4-6-1 in his one year at Northern Illinois. He abruptly left the Huskies to become the head coach of the USFL’s Orlando Renegades for a reported three-year, $450,000 contract. It’s safe to say he makes quite a bit more in his current gig.

Hugh Freeze, Gus Malzahn, Bryan Harsin

Team: Arkansas State
Years: 2011, 2012, 2013
Records: 10-3, 10-3, 8-5

Perhaps never again will a school have to do what Arkansas State did: Hire four head coaches in four years, as Andy Staples detailed Thursday. Steve Roberts spent nine years as head coach before resigning after the 2010 season. The Red Wolves promoted Freeze, who had been on staff for one year as offensive coordinator. He departed for Ole Miss after winning 10 games, leading Arkansas State to hire Auburn offensive coordinator Gus Malzahn … who promptly took the head coaching job back at Auburn after winning 10 games. In stepped Texas offensive coordinator Bryan Harsin, who went 8-5 and got the call to return to Boise State, his alma mater. After three consecutive one-year tenures, Arkansas State finally landed on Blake Anderson, who had a successful seven-year run before taking the job at Utah State after last season.

Houston Nutt

Team: Boise State
Year: 1997
Record: 4-7

Boise State has not had a losing season since 1997, its second year at the FBS level and the only year it was coached by Nutt. Nutt had led Murray State to back-to-back FCS playoff bids the previous two seasons. “Things are unlimited as to what can happen in regards to the Boise State program and coaching at the I-A level,” Nutt said after being hired. He was right — except he didn’t stick around Boise to see all that it could do. After one 4-7 season, Nutt went back home to Arkansas, where he began his college playing career and served as an assistant.

Willie Taggart

Team: Oregon
Year: 2017
Record: 7-6

When Oregon lured Taggart away from South Florida, it was the first time the school hired a coach without any ties to the program since Len Casanova arrived from a one-year tenure of his own at Pitt in 1951. Taggart had an underwhelming 40-45 career record but had earned a reputation as a program builder after stops at Western Kentucky and USF. He didn’t stay in the Pacific Northwest long enough to build anything, bolting for his “dream job” at Florida State to replace Texas A&M-bound Jimbo Fisher. Things turned out better for Oregon than Taggart. The Ducks promoted offensive coordinator Mario Cristobal, who has the program ascending in the Pac-12. Taggart, meanwhile, didn’t make it through two full seasons in Tallahassee. He is now in his second year at FAU.

Mel Tucker

Team: Colorado
Year: 2019
Record: 5-7

The former Alabama and Georgia assistant took the Colorado job in 2019. The Buffaloes had fallen to 5-7 each of the previous two years under Mike MacIntyre after a breakthrough 2016 season, and Tucker did exactly the same: one 5-7 season. After Mark Dantonio stepped down at Michigan State, the Spartans missed on Luke Fickell and their search ended with Tucker moving on from the Buffaloes in February 2020, in a late carousel move after both recruiting signing dates — and on a night when Tucker met with Colorado boosters.

Unglamorous exits

Lane Kiffin

Team: Tennessee
Year: 2009
Record: 7-6

“All hell broke loose” upon Kiffin’s abrupt departure from Tennessee to USC, as Bruce Feldman chronicled on Thursday. After a dramatic firing by Al Davis and the Oakland Raiders, Kiffin arrived at Tennessee eager to make both headlines and enemies within the SEC. The Vols showed promise in a 7-6 season, but Kiffin left for USC, where he had been offensive coordinator under Pete Carroll, and sparked a riot in Knoxville that set off a decade-long identity crisis filled with many more bizarre moments.

Ellis Johnson

Team: Southern Miss
Year: 2012
Record: 0-12

You could make a case that Johnson’s one year at Southern Miss was the worst coaching job in the last 50 years — or more. A highly respected assistant with previous stops as the defensive coordinator at Clemson and three SEC schools (and a three-year run as the head coach at The Citadel), Johnson inherited a proud Southern Miss program that had enjoyed 18 consecutive winning seasons and had won 12 games the year prior to his arrival. What happened next was stunning: The Golden Eagles stumbled through an 0-12 season that featured six losses by 25 points or more. For context: USM lost only 10 games by 25-plus points in the previous 18 years combined. Johnson was fired after one season and returned to the friendly confines of the SEC as the defensive coordinator at Auburn.

Howard Schnellenberger

Team: Oklahoma
Year: 1995
Record: 5-5-1

Oklahoma has been one of college football’s most consistently great programs for decades upon decades — except for the 1990s. The strangest part of the Sooners ’90s malaise? The one year Schnellenberger spent in Norman. Famous for building Miami into a national power, turning around Louisville and starting FAU’s program from scratch, Schnellenberger spent one forgettable 5-5-1 year at Oklahoma in which he arrived with brashness and clashed with players and alumni, proving to be the wrong fit at the wrong time despite his track record. “In recent months a climate has developed toward the program, understandably in some cases and perhaps unfairly in others, that has changed my outlook on the situation,” Schnellenberger said upon stepping down. “A change could help improve that climate.”

Larry Siemering

Team: Arizona State
Year: 1951
Record: 6-3-1

Siemering coached Pacific to a record of 35-5-3 in three seasons and got the call at Arizona State to replace Ed Doherty, who resigned despite going 9-2 in his fourth season because of concerns about there being “no security in my present position.” There was no security for Siemering, either: He went 6-3-1, but the Sun Devils played the season with an ineligible player, Joe Matesic, a former Indiana player who lied about his identity and played under his brother’s name. Siemering resigned.

(Illustration: John Bradford / The Athletic)

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