Taking over a college football program in the first year is never easy because the entire reason for a new head coach being hired is that things weren't working with the predecessor. But with a new head coach comes new optimism under new leadership. And no one brought more optimism to a program than Deion Sanders did for Colorado in 2023 in his first season.
Sanders, or Coach Prime, as he's aptly known, wasn't alone this season as a first-year head coach for a new team at a Power Five program. Besides Sanders, there were 11 new head coaches that took residence in new locations in 2023 that had similar successes and challenges in Year 1. With that said, let's give each new head coach a grade in their first season.
Deion Sanders, Colorado
It all starts with Deion Sanders, who was the most interesting hire coming into the 2023 season. Coming out of HBCU school Jackson State, Sanders had tons of question marks surrounding him. Most wondered if he could have the type of success he had in Mississippi at a Power Five level program like Colorado. Sanders was walking into a mess in Boulder. The team had only won one game the year prior and was far and away one of the worst in the country.
Most weren't giving Sanders a chance, no matter how much he completely overhauled the Buffaloes' roster through the transfer portal, much to the chagrin of rival coaches. Finishing at 4-8 was still by no means considered a great season, but going from one win to four in a single season is still fairly impressive considering the circumstances. Not to mention that the 2023 season was the Pac-12's most competitive, albeit in its last. Things will continue to change for Sanders and Colorado football in 2024, with the program returning to the Big 12.
Grade: B-
Jeff Brohm, Louisville
Perhaps not many of the new coaching hires for the 2023 season worked out better than Jeff Brohm did for the Cardinals. The former Louisville alum and quarterback for the school came back to lead the Cardinals to a 10-3 season and an ACC Championship Game berth.
Grade: A-
Luke Fickell, Wisconsin
It came as almost a surprise that of all places Fickell finally decided to land, it was with Wisconsin this season. His first season in Madison was quite underwhelming, however. In what was a fairly wide-open Big Ten West, Wisconsin football couldn't deliver, falling to 6-4 in conference play and 7-6 overall. But Fickell is in the midst of transitioning Wisconsin into his own image, namely from an offensive perspective. That could take some time.
Grade: C-
Brent Key, Georgia Tech
Georgia Tech has been looking for its new footing since Paul Johnson and his triple option retired. Whoever was set to take over after him was set for a major transition phase, going from talent to culture. The best that Geoff Collins could do, Johnson's successor, was get the Yellow Jackets to two three-win seasons before Key took over midway through the 2022 season and helped his alma mater win four of their five games.
Key helped Georgia Tech improve by two games this season, causing some upsets along the way to get them to 7-6, which included a bowl berth—their first since 2018—and a win—their first since 2016.
Grade: B-
David Braun, Northwestern
Braun had just arrived at Northwestern in January to become the Wildcats' defensive coordinator, and by July, he was the new head coach. It was an absolute mess that he walked into after having to take over for longtime head coach Pat Fitzgerald and the hazing scandal that sent him packing. There was no reason this team was supposed to be any good at all, especially after finishing 1-11 the season prior. But somehow Northwestern finished second in the Big Ten West, going 8-5 overall with a bowl victory. Rightfully so, Braun won Big Ten Coach of the Year honors. I'd say that's a pretty successful season considering the circumstances.
Grade: A+
Matt Rhule, Nebraska
If not for Deion Sanders stealing his thunder, Matt Rhule would have possibly been the big splash hire of college football coaches in 2023. Rhule, who actually was a part of the Sanders and Colorado early love fest after losing to the Buffaloes in their second game of the season, had many of the same issues in his Year 1.
The Cornhuskers actually did one game better than Sanders' Buffaloes, going 5-7, which equaled former head coach Scott Frost's best year back in 2019. Rhule and Nebraska just missed making it to a bowl game, which would have been their first since 2016. Rhule is known for his ability to turn programs around. So, in the context of everything that has halted Nebraska football from a resurgence within college football, Rhule's first year in Lincoln should be considered a minor success.
Grade: C+
Troy Taylor, Stanford
Replacing the mostly positive tenure David Shaw had wasn't going to be easy for Troy Taylor, 55, who took on his first FBS head coaching gig this season. Stanford isn't exactly the easiest place to win games, especially in a season where the Pac-12 was highly competitive. The Cardinal finished 3-9 in 2023, matching their past two seasons. Taylor's moment this season was the Cardinal's massive 29-point second-half comeback to beat Deion Sanders and Colorado. It's off to the ACC next season for Stanford and Taylor.
Grade: D+
Hugh Freeze, Auburn
In most years, Hugh Freeze being hired at Auburn, making his return to the SEC would have been the biggest hire of the offseason. But, as we all know, Deion Sanders took most of that shine away. Nonetheless, Freeze took over an Auburn football program needing a new identity after Bryan Harsin more or less left it in shambles. And in just Year 1, you could see remnants of what Freeze is doing on the plains.
Freeze helped improve the Tigers by just one game this season while earning a bowl berth. His and the Tigers' notable moments in 2023 were competing with the top two teams in the SEC in Georgia and Alabama. They had a one-point lead going into the fourth quarter over the Bulldogs, and were just seconds away from upsetting the Crimson Tide in the Iron Bowl.
Grade: B-
Kenny Dillingham, Arizona State
Taking over a program is never easy, and that especially wasn't the case for Kenny Dillingham in Year 1 with Arizona State. He had to walk into a program that was littered with scandal that had more or less pushed talent and a fanbase away. That obviously played into the results in Year 1, where the Sun Devils finished 3-9 in a highly competitive Pac-12, a conference that will no longer be around in 2024. It will continue to be an uphill battle for Dillingham, who, at 33, has a massive challenge ahead of him.
Grade: D
Ryan Walters, Purdue
Ryan Walters had the distinct pleasure of replacing Jeff Brohm who left for Louisville and got Purdue to 8-5 in 2022. Walters couldn't get close to that in 2023, going 4-8, and was one of the worst offensive teams in the country. Maybe that was to be expected from a defensive guy like Walters, but that side of the ball wasn't much better either. Walters, 33, in his Year 1 of his first head coaching career wasn't a great one by any stretch of the imagination.
Grade: F
Scott Satterfield, Cincinnati
Scott Satterfield could be the guy that is replacing the “guy,” that being Luke Fickell who left for Wisconsin and made the Bearcats the most successful they've been in their history. Satterfield in Year 1 had nothing close to the results Fickell had over the last several seasons. He took the Bearcats to a 3-9 record, all while making the transition to the Big 12, where they finished 1-8.
Not many were wild about this hire to begin with, as Louisville was fine losing him. Watching Cincinnati get blown out by West Virginia and Kansas in their last two games were just an exclamation point to the end of Year 1 for Satterfield. How long is this leash for him?
Grade: F
Zach Arnett, Mississippi State
It was never going to be an easy transition for Zach Arnett at Mississippi State, who had to replace beloved veteran coach Mike Leach, who died unexpectedly at the end of 2022. Arnett had been Leach's defensive coordinator since he arrived in 2020 and was highly regarded to be the next man up. That quickly dissipated after Arnett was fired after just 10 games, going 4-6 into his head coaching tenure with the Bulldogs.
It became apparent due to the timing of Leach's death that Arnett was merely a gap/trial based decision, with the school making a more extensive search later on. Arnett's season will be one that Bulldogs' fans won't be quick to remember, after they finished 5-7 overall and missed a bowl game for the first time since 2009.
Grade: F
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