Saints Coaching Search: Potential College Candidates Who Surprisingly Could Emerge

Notre Dame Fighting Irish head coach Marcus Freeman reacts to a play against the Georgia Bulldogs / Stephen Lew-Imagn Images

The Saints likely will not target the collegiate ranks to fill their coaching vacancy, but here's some names to watch if they do.

By Bob Rose - Saints News Network | SI

The New Orleans Saints will be among as many as 8-10 NFL teams that are expected to have a coaching vacancy this offseason. Now at 5-11 going into the season finale at the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, the Saints fired Dennis Allen after a 2-7 start to the year.

Several NFL coordinators will be highly sought after for head coaching jobs. Other veteran head coaches like Mike Vrabel, Jon Gruden, and Pete Carroll will also be pursued. One avenue that hasn't been mentioned much among the NFL rumor swirls, at least so far, is through the collegiate ranks.

There haven't been many who have made a successful jump from college to the pros. In fact, several have been colossal failures over the years. There are some, like Kirby Smart (Georgia), Dabo Swinney (Clemson), James Franklin (Penn St.), Ryan Day (Ohio St.), Kirk Ferentz (Iowa), and Bret Bielema (Illinois) that are career college guys.

Here are some current college coaches that could emerge as surprise candidates for an NFL job. A few head up storied programs but have NFL ties. Others are extremely young talents rapidly rising through the coaching ranks. ...

Read the Full Story - Saints News Network | SI

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