Mickey Joseph emerges as a candidate for head coach opening at Tulsa

After Nebraska opted to fire former head coach Scott Frost earlier this season, Mickey Joseph was promoted to the position on an interim basis. Joseph’s name has popped up as a candidate for multiple head coach openings in the time since, and after Nebraska hired Matt Rhule over the weekend, one possibility was ruled out for Joseph.

According to The Athletic’s Bruce Feldman, though, Joseph is a candidate for the head coach opening at Tulsa. The Golden Hurricane fired head coach Philip Montgomery on Sunday. Montgomery had been at Tulsa since 2015, leading the program to an overall record of 43-53 with four bowl appearances. After a 5-7 campaign in 2022, the Golden Hurricane decided to move forward in another direction.

This season was Joseph’s first on Nebraska’s staff. He had just joined the Cornhuskers after spending 2017-2021 as an assistant at LSU. After taking over as the interim head coach, Joseph led Nebraska to a 3-6 record. But while the record might not show it, his incredible ability to lead was on display and he impressed many throughout the country.

“Joseph, who stabilized the Nebraska program as interim head coach, went 3-6 this season and is expected to be in the mix,” Feldman said of the Tulsa opening. “Joseph, 54, has a lot of juice as a recruiter and displayed some real leadership amid tough circumstances with the Cornhuskers. He also has ties to the athletic director from their time together earlier in their careers.”

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Joseph is a possibility to remain on Nebraska’s staff, though he will surely continue to mentioned for other opportunities across the country.

Joseph thankful for his experience as Nebraska’s interim head coach

It would have been easy for Nebraska’s program to continue to falter in the weeks and months following Scott’s firing, but Joseph played a big role in keeping things together. He was able to create buy-in amongst players within the program, and the team’s ability to continue fighting was a great accomplishment for him.

“I wanna take my hat off to these players, to these coaches, Trev Alberts, our director, and our administration for believing in me,” said Joseph. “This was early when this happened, taking this team over. One thing I say is that they fought. They fought every Saturday they came out. Nobody can deny that. Because that’s what we asked them, and that’s what we expected out of them.

“You’re talking about a high-character group. I love them for that; I love these coaches for that. And I wouldn’t trade it for the world. They finished something that they started, and that’s what we asked them to do.”