Could Skip Holtz be the next Holtz on an SEC sideline? If it’s up to him he will be. Reportedly.
In the days since Joe Moorhead was summarily dismissed as the head football coach at Mississippi State, Billy Napier has turned down overtures from the university. Former Auburn head coach Gene Chizik interviewed for the job, but pulled his name from consideration the next day.
On top of that, former MSU football player Joe Judge was considered a (the?) leading candidate to return home. Instead, the New England Patriots special teams coordinator was named as the New York Giants head coach.
If MSU is looking for someone actually interested in the job, perhaps they should give Skip Holtz a call. At least, that’s the case according to the Jackson Clarion-Ledger.
Louisiana Tech head coach Skip Holtz "has interest" in the head coach opening at Mississippi State, per sources.
— Brad Logan (@BradLoganCOTE) January 7, 2020
He finished with a 10-3 record this season and a win over Miami in the Independence Bowl.
Skip Holtz, the son of former South Carolina (and Notre Dame and others) head coach Lou Holtz, just completed his seventh season at Louisiana Tech. At 10-3 this year, the Bulldogs reached double-digit wins for the first time in school history. The program also has six straight bowl wins, all under the 55-year-old Holtz. Prior to Holtz, they had two bowl wins (in six appearances).
Since a 4-8 initial campaign, Tech has won no fewer than seven games. Tech has won eight or more games 14 times as an FBS school; Holtz is responsible for five of those seasons.
Despite the series of events that have led to some dropping out, there are a handful of candidates outside of Holtz who remain a part of the search in Starkville:
- Air Force head coach Troy Calhoun
- UAB head coach Bill Clark
- Florida defensive coordinator Todd Grantham
- Army head coach Jeff Monken
- Alabama offensive coordinator Steve Sarkisian