Let’s Speculate! Potential Louisville head football coach candidates

Welcome to Let’s Speculate! on Coaches Database, where we go through programs that are or may soon be looking for a new head coach and speculate who they may hire next.

Today’s program is Louisville, coached for the past 4 seasons by Scott Satterfield (left for Cincinnati).

• Jeff Brohm – Purdue head coach
  • The Louisville-native and former Cards QB should be the first call for AD Josh Heird, just as he was four years ago. At that time, Brohm nearly took the job but ultimately decided to stay at Purdue. He’s been candid about that decision more recently, stating that he felt it too early to leave Purdue having only been there for two seasons but now in year six it seems much more realistic that Brohm would be interested in a homecoming. He’s coming off a Big Ten West title and will soon take the Boilers to the Citrus Bowl against LSU.
• Tyson Helton – Western Kentucky head coach
  • Louisville did well the last time they hired their head coach away from Western Kentucky (Charlie Strong, 2010-13) and they may look to the Toppers again in 2022. Helton has gotten WKU back into form in his 3+ years at the helm, winning 9 games twice and going to three bowl games (2 wins). The former Houston QB has a long coaching resume, with stints at Tennessee, USC, Cincinnati, UAB, Memphis and Hawaii in addition to his time at WKU.
• Shawn Clark – Appalachian State head coach
  • Cards fans may not be all that interested in hiring another App State head coach, as it clearly didn’t work out with Satterfield, but Clark is someone that you have to consider. He kept things rolling in Boone, winning 9 and 10 games in the last two years, respectively, before a bit of a regression this year, despite beating then-#6 Texas A&M at Kyle Field. Clark actually has a connection to Louisville, having started his career there as a grad assistant under John L. Smith.
• Kane Wommack – South Alabama head coach
  • Another Sun Belt head coach worth a look is Wommack, a Missouri-native who has South Alabama on pace for its best ever record at the FBS level. Prior to taking over, Wommack held a variety of positions including three years at Indiana (two as DC) and two at Ole Miss. He’s a young guy who made need a couple more years of head coaching experience before a bigger program gives him a shot, but the job he’s done already certainly warrants consideration.
• Matt House – LSU DC
  • House arrived in Baton Rouge a year ago after spending two seasons coaching linebackers with the Kansas City Chiefs, during which time he won a Super Bowl ring. Before that, the Michigan State grad spent three seasons (including two as DC) at Kentucky. House’s extensive background and reputation on defense make him an interesting candidate for anyone, but might especially make sense for Louisville given his recent ties to the area.
• Charlie Strong – Miami (FL) DC/LB
  • We’ve already mentioned Strong, architect of the 2012-13 Cardinals’ teams that went 11-2 and 12-1, respectively, but he also needs to be noted as a legitimate candidate in his own right. He left Louisville after the 2013 season, during which the Cards were ranked as high as #7 in the country, to take the Texas job. That didn’t work out and after three years he found himself at South Florida, leading the Bulls to a 10-2 (6-2) record in his first year there. For the last three years, he has worked at Alabama (2020), for the Jacksonville Jaguars (2021) and now as Co-DC and LBs coach for the Hurricanes. Strong was the last Louisville coach to have success and might be someone they turn to in order to get things back on track.
• Sherrone Moore – Michigan OC
  • Moore is the least familiar name on this list, as he has yet to be a head coach and is still relatively young. Moore has been Co-OC for the Wolverines for the past two years and before that spent three years as TE’s coach. He came to Ann Arbor in 2018 after four seasons at Central Michigan and five at Louisville, where he was on staff for the 2012 and 2013 teams mentioned above. An up-and-comer with Louisville connections makes for an interesting candidate if none of the above work out.
• Dan Mullen – former Florida, Mississippi State head coach
  • Mullen is working in television this year after spending the previous 13 seasons as a head coach at Florida (2018-21) and Mississippi State (2009-17). Things didn’t work out as planned in Gainesville, as Mullen regressed in years three and four after taking the Gators to back-to-back NY6 bowl games to start. Before taking the UF job, he turned MSU into a consistent winner and went to eight-straight bowl games (6-2 record). The 50-year old is likely not done coaching and the Louisville job provides a great opportunity to get back to winning ways. How many coaches are out there with a .628 winning percentage and more than a decade of (SEC) experience?