Dillingham and his coaching future at Arizona State…

Let’s cut to the chase…

Ten college football head coaching jobs are currently open, with many more to follow. This is the time of year when agents float their clients’ names, big cigars want to go after big name/big game, and athletic directors must hold their breath in the middle of the night that their guy isn’t going to have wandering eyes. The best sports owner I’ve ever covered, Jerry Colangelo, once said that when he would hire a head coach for the Suns, he’d immediately put five names down on a card and slip it into his desk drawer. Those names would be the first ones he’d contact if a coaching change happened. I have to believe that Kenny Dillingham’s name is on some search firm’s list for a college client today.

Sitting here today, there are a few jobs open that would be better long-term situations for Dillingham than the current setup at Arizona State. Has the university’s president ever been in a major bidding war to keep a head football coach? Can Graham Rossini walk into Dr. Crow’s office and say, “Kenny has been offered X more by another program; we need to step up again,” after just doing so last January before the Peach Bowl? Florida and Penn State are open and in conferences with greater TV contract dollars. Two stops on Dillingham’s rise through the ranks will likely open during this hiring cycle. Do Florida State and Auburn have the ability to put together a better package than what Dillingham has to work with in Tempe? He deserves to be in a space with little to no pushback from central campus on anything he wants. Would he have better community financial support in a small college town like Tallahassee or Auburn? Texas Tech just came to town with a reported $28 million roster. Do you think that number will go down next year? Really? 

I see Dillingham’s situation as much as Matt Campbell’s at Iowa State. Every year, the pros and colleges call, but Campbell says “no thanks” and stays at Ames, Iowa. As a fan, you should want your head coach to be pursued every year. It falls on the school president’s office desk to ensure they don’t mess this up. Dillinghams’ agent, third parties, and search firms should all make or take the calls that undoubtedly have come in or will happen in the next month. When you have a head football coach doing all the right things, keeping him is a 24/7 deal…