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Don’t play “The Polar Express” in Sam Pittman’s locker room.
Here’s what’s happening in college football Until Saturday …
First-year coach Zach Arnett fired
Mississippi State fired Arnett yesterday. He was in his first season leading the Bulldogs after being promoted to head coach three days following former coach Mike Leach’s death in December. Arnett coached the Bulldogs to a win in the ReliaQuest Bowl against Illinois last season and a 4-6 record this season.
Arnett’s firing is the next spin in the coaching carousel, but it has a weird coincidence connected to it. Mississippi State lost to Texas A&M 51-10 on Saturday. With Texas A&M firing Jimbo Fisher on Sunday, both teams have made a dramatic change.
It made me think, when was the last time two coaches in one FBS game immediately were fired?
- In 2021, Miami beat Duke 47-10, and the schools parted ways with Manny Diaz and David Cutcliffe, respectively, in the following two weeks. That, however, came after the regular-season finale when the Canes poached Mario Cristobal and the Blue Devils went winless in ACC play.
In other coaching news, San Diego State’s Brady Hoke announced yesterday that he will retire at the end of this season.
With six jobs officially on the market, I brought in Chris Vannini to grade each opening.
Until Saturday Job Market
How good are the six openings?
A key factor in every coaching search is who the competition is. That can drive up the price or take away the availability of certain candidates. With six open jobs and more to come, here’s how I rank and grade the quality of jobs that are open.
1. Texas A&M, A-: Texas A&M has all the resources and talent in the world, but it’s not an A job because the Aggies haven’t won a conference championship since 1998. For numerous reasons, things haven’t worked there.
2. Michigan State, B+: Michigan State is a grade below, but it has a Playoff appearance and three other BCS/NY6 appearances in the past decade. The program is down right now and limited in resources compared to some conference peers, but the potential is clear, and it has proven it will pay big for a coach.
3. Mississippi State, B: Mississippi State is an SEC job, and that’s always worth something. But it’s arguably the second-toughest job in the conference ahead of only Vanderbilt, and Texas/Oklahoma are coming soon.
4. Boise State, B-/5. San Diego State, B-: Boise State and San Diego State are two of the best Group of 5 jobs and will draw a lot of interest.
6. Northwestern, C+: Northwestern is a Big Ten job, and Pat Fitzgerald showed that some winning is possible. But it’s one of the toughest jobs in the league, and USC, UCLA, Oregon and Washington are all coming in to make it even tougher as the Big Ten West dissolves. — Vannini
Overheard From the Podium
Odd Harbaugh rants are back
Michigan coach Jim Harbaugh called his Wolverines “America’s team” yesterday in his first news conference since being suspended for the final three games of the regular season.
Harbaugh said that he was “five inches from the TV” to watch Sherrone Moore’s emotional postgame interview after Michigan beat Penn State on Saturday.
Of course, there were other quotes (tangents), which we will emoji rank from off the wall 👀 to please look away 👀 👀 👀.
- Harbaugh said he will attend Friday’s hearing, which could allow him back on the sidelines, but he isn’t sure if he will testify: “That’s not my dance floor. … I’ve watched a lot of shows. I’ve watched ‘Judge Judy’ a lot.” Cue Harbaugh’s “Judge Judy” cameo. Rank: 👀 👀
- Harbaugh’s voice sounded raspy, but he maintained he wasn’t sick: “I’m the iron wall that viruses bash against and shatter. … Something’s going on there, but I’ll get it worked out, work it out of my system. Do some more pushups, eat an apple.” Rank: 👀
- On handling his emotions, Harbaugh said he uses work and his flock of chickens as an outlet: “These chickens are low maintenance and high production. They lay an egg every 26, 27 hours. They need water, they need food. I play with them, too. I let them out in the yard to run around. They’re happy to see me.” Rank: 👀 👀 👀
Heisman Race Shrinks
Tight race at the top
The Athletic’s Heisman straw poll shrunk to five candidates this week, led by a top three of Michael Penix Jr., Jayden Daniels and Marvin Harrison Jr. The race for No. 1 is tight, with just three points separating No. 1 from No. 3.
- Harrison is the only non-QB on the list. Ohio State writer Cameron Teague Robinson made the wide receiver’s case after Harrison became the first player in Buckeyes history to have two 1,000-yard receiving seasons.
- Daniels received eight first-place votes after he passed for 372 yards and three TDs and ran for 234 yards and two scores vs. Florida.
Because our candidate pool shrunk this week, no player jumped out as the outcast of the week. Instead, I brought in Catherine Briley, our Athletic freelancer and resident LSU expert, to outline Daniels’ case for No. 1:
“The Heisman Trophy goes to the most outstanding player in college football, and that is Daniels. He leads the nation in total yards and is a top 30 rusher (far and away the QB with the most rushing yards). If Daniels continues on his current trajectory, he will approach 5,000 combined yards.
“He raises the play of those around him: His wideouts lead the nation in receiving yards (Malik Nabers) and receiving touchdowns (Brian Thomas Jr.). He plays fearless, joyful football at the highest possible level, and he is the most outstanding player in college football.”
Quick Snaps
On the Until Saturday podcast, Max Olson and Sam Khan Jr. share their thoughts on the coaching moves and untangle the complicated Big 12 race.
Northwestern State’s players are dealing with loss of their slain teammate and a season cut short. Chris Kamrani, David Ubben and Justin Williams share their story.
Stewart Mandel and Scott Dochterman update their bowl projections: The Playoff four (Georgia, Michigan, Florida State and Oregon) remain the same.
Chris Vannini ranks every college football team from 1-133 after Week 11 with Georgia returning to No. 1.
Could Washington OC Ryan Grubb take over at San Diego State? What about Lance Leipold to Mississippi State? Bruce Feldman reports on the coaching candidates for SDSU and Mississippi State.
Arizona State athletic director Ray Anderson resigned yesterday. Anderson had been AD since January 2014.
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(Top photo of Zach Arnett: Michael Chang / Getty Images)
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