NC State & Baylor should make high-profile coaching hires

Over the last decade, thanks to the transfer portal and NIL money, college football has become a sport with its own economy. Money drives everything in college football. The goal is to spend as much money as possible on the roster so it has the most talent.

This shift has also changed how head coaches are viewed, because would you rather spend money on a good head coach or on players? It becomes a bit of a “chicken or the egg” situation. If you pay a good head coach, he may be able to bring in better players and get the most out of them.

Or, you can cut out the middleman and just pay for good players. This also changes the economy around firing head coaches.

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Massive contract buyouts

We’ve seen some head coaches with massive contract buyouts (Brian Kelly and Jimbo Fisher, to name a few), but we’ve also seen schools hesitate to fire head coaches because of them. Because if you have to pay $20 million to buy out a head coach, you would get more return on your money to just invest that $20 million on the roster.

Well, in the last week, NC State and Baylor got tired of waiting. NC State fired head coach Dave Doeren in his 14th season on the job, and owes him in the neighborhood of $10 million in a buyout. Dave Aranda won a Big 12 Championship at Baylor, but that goodwill ran out as he was just fired and is reportedly owed $12 million. Both schools now have a job opening for head coach, and both are rumored to have interesting plans to fill them.

NC State could make a bold move

NC State is reportedly seriously considering hiring Philip Rivers as their next head coach. Yes, that Philip Rivers, the NC State legend who recently returned from retirement to play for the Indianapolis Colts last season.

Baylor’s Athletic Director has met with Robert Griffin III, aka RG3, about the position. Yes, the RG3 that won the Heisman, and our hearts, back in 2011, before flaming out in the NFL and becoming a broadcaster. Neither of these men has coached a snap of college football before. Only Rivers has experience at the high school level, as a head coach at St. Michael Catholic. Why would either of these established programs take a chance on such inexperienced and under-qualified candidates?

The answer is money. First, these two men are already financially well-off. They shouldn’t command a large salary as a head coach, especially when you consider their lack of qualifications. That money could go elsewhere. Secondly, these two quarterbacks are the best of all time at their respective schools and have a very high approval rating among the fanbases.

This would theoretically cause more people to donate to NIL collectives, as a person that they already know and love is now in the job. If hiring an under-qualified head coach will get more NIL money into your roster, it’s entirely worth it.

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The roster may matter more than the coach

The fact of the matter is that very few college head coaches actively elevate their team well beyond their spending level. Jake Dickert and Will Stein are arguably the best examples of this, and that’s a short list. So, the easiest way to get better in college football isn’t to hire a reputable head coach; it’s to simply pump more money into the roster. NC State is estimated to have a roster that’s worth around $25 million, which ranks 6th in the ACC.

Would Philip Rivers be able to do better with a roster of around $35 million, which would be top-5 in the ACC? Probably. The same would apply to Baylor’s $20 million roster, which ranks 10th in the Big 12. Would RG3 finish higher in the Big 12 if he had $30 million? It’s definitely within the realm of possibility.

Baylor could take a similar approach

So, if they end up happening, will these “splashy” “celebrity” hires work? It will all depend on how much money each program is able to put in their roster. That will matter more than the actual quality of the head coach.

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