By Jack Leo
DALLAS (FWAA) – The Football Writers Association of America has released a list of top candidates for the Steve Spurrier First-Year Coach of the Year Award, Freshman Player of the Year and the 2026 FWAA Freshman All-America Team. The Steve Spurrier First-Year Coach Award, presented by Chris Doering Mortgage, goes to the best first-year coach (at his current school) in FBS football.
For the sixth straight year the top first-year coach in the FBS will be honored at a special dinner on Feb. 22, 2027 at Spurrier's Gridiron Grille in Gainesville, Fla. The Spurrier Legends Awardee Coach and Freshmen Players of the Year will also be honored.
Some of the leading candidates for the First-Year Coach Award include:
Bob Chesney, UCLA: Chesney’s rise from the Patriot League to the Sun Belt to the Big Ten in less than a decade is impressive enough on its own. Then consider his 71% career winning percentage as a Division I head coach at Holy Cross and James Madison.
Chesney led the Dukes to their first Sun Belt championship and College Football Playoff appearance last season. The successor to Indiana coach Curt Cignetti now aims to build his own Big Ten powerhouse at UCLA.
James Franklin, Virginia Tech: Franklin has won at a remarkably high clip over his 15 seasons as a Power 4 head coach. His first year with Vanderbilt and the 2020 season at Penn State are the only losing seasons of his career.
Franklin inherits a program that has just four winning seasons since Virginia Tech legend Frank Beamer retired in 2015. Franklin’s ceiling for success will likely be lower than it has been in a long time, but the veteran coach has proven he can improve programs quickly.
Pete Golding, Ole Miss: Golding showed he could lead a team against elite opponents last season when Ole Miss beat Georgia and Tulane in the College Football Playoff. Golding appears to have another competitive roster in 2026, his first season as a college football head coach at any level. Golding does have more SEC coaching experience than 11 active head coaches in the conference. His first official team will be tested early, as Ole Miss’ September schedule consists of Louisville, Charlotte, LSU and Florida.
Brian Hartline, South Florida: Hartline earned his first head job just nine years after he started coaching. The NFL veteran spent the last eight years coaching first-round draft picks Garrett Wilson, Chris Olave, Jaxon Smith-Njigba, Marvin Harrison Jr., Emeka Egbuka and Carnell Tate at Ohio State.
As the Buckeye’s receivers coach, Hartline also signed the program’s next elite pass-catcher, Jeremiah Smith, out of the south Florida area. Hartline hopes his recruiting success at Ohio State can translate to South Florida, which finished with the No. 73 overall recruiting class in 2025, according to 247Sports.
Lane Kiffin, LSU: Perhaps no coach in any American sport made more headlines last year than Kiffin did with his decision to leave Ole Miss for LSU before its College Football Playoff run. Kiffin took over a program that appears to have the talent, tradition and resources needed to contend for conference and national championships.
LSU has averaged just under eight wins per season since its last national title in 2019. Kiffin hopes to be the fresh face that the program needs to reclaim national relevance in the near future.
Collin Klein, Kansas State: Between his roles as quarterback, graduate assistant, quarterbacks coach, offensive coordinator and head coach, Klein has nearly done it all for Kansas State. The beloved son’s return to Manhattan comes after the Wildcats’ worst finish since 2020, a 6-6 season.
Klein has found success as an offensive coordinator over the last four seasons, as his offenses at Kansas State and Texas A&M averaged over 33 points per game. Part of Klein’s success in his first season could be judged by the development of senior quarterback Avery Johnson, who is entering his third year as Kansas State’s starter.
Eric Morris, Oklahoma State: Morris opens a new era for Oklahoma State football, the program’s first season without former coach Mike Gundy since 2004. Last season, Morris led North Texas to its first 12-win season with FWAA Freshman All-Americans Drew Mestemaker (QB) and Caleb Hawkins (RB).
Mestemaker, Hawkins and 14 other North Texas players followed Morris to Stillwater this offseason. Coming off a 1-11 season, the Cowboys seem very likely to improve in Morris’ first year.
Morgan Scalley, Utah: Scalley has been the heir-apparent behind former head coach Kyle Whittingham for years. Scalley’s entire playing and coaching career has been with the Utes, who have flexed strong defenses under his leadership since 2016.
Scalley’s hire certainly appears to provide consistency, if nothing else, as Utah makes its first head coaching transition since 2004. The Utes hope to prove themselves as consistent winners in a conference with little clear hierarchy in 2026.
Jon Sumrall, Florida: Sumrall has come close to winning the Steve Spurrier First-Year Coach of the Year Award before. A 12-2 finish in his first season as Troy made Sumrall a semifinalist for the award in 2022. Last season, Sumrall’s success reached new heights as he led Tulane to its second American Conference championship and its first College Football Playoff appearance. Sumrall could be the first Florida coach to win the award and accept it at the Steve Spurrier Awards reception in Gainesville, Fla. in late February.
Kyle Whittingham, Michigan: For the first time since 1993, Whittingham will not be coaching Utah. The 66-year-old brings more career wins (177) to a program than any other first-year head coach this season.
Whittingham’s physical brand of football resembles Michigan’s in recent seasons, and the Wolverine roster should provide a higher level of talent than he’s used to coaching. Michigan does face four 2025 College Football Playoff teams this season (Oklahoma, Indiana, Oregon and Ohio State).
Here's a list of coaches eligible for the Steve Spurrier First-Year Coach of the Year Award:
Blake Anderson, Southern Miss
Ryan Beard, Coastal Carolina
Neal Brown, North Texas
Matt Campbell, Penn State
Jason Candle, UConn
Alonzo Carter, Sacramento State
Bob Chesney, UCLA
Pat Fitzgerald, Michigan State
James Franklin, Virginia Tech
Pete Golding, Ole Miss
Alex Golesh, Auburn
Will Hall, Tulane
Rob Harley, Northern Illinois
Brian Hartline, South Florida
John Hauser, Ohio
Charles Huff, Memphis
Mike Jacobs, Toledo
Charles Kelly, Jacksonville State
Lane Kiffin, LSU
Collin Klein, Kansas State
Tosh Lupoi, California
Kirby Moore, Washington State
Jim Mora Jr., Colorado State
Eric Morris, Oklahoma State
Alex Mortensen, UAB
Billy Napier, James Madison
Tavita Pritchard, Stanford
Jimmy Rogers, Iowa State
Morgan Scalley, Utah
Jamarcus Shepard, Oregon State
Ryan Silverfield, Arkansas
Will Stein, Kentucky
Jon Sumrall, Florida
Kyle Whittingham, Michigan
Casey Woods, Missouri State
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