Midseason favorites for 2023 Coach of the Year

Man, you blink and somehow it’s already mid-October.  After a furious first six weeks of the 2023 season, we’ve reached the halfway point, so it’s a good time to highlight my favorites for the 2023 Coach of the Year.

Coaches like Kirby Smart and Jim Harbaugh could find themselves in the mix come season’s end, but this is largely a narrative award, which typically goes to an up-and-comer, riser or a surprise. Nick Saban is the GOAT, and he has FIVE more national championships than he does Bear Bryant Coach of the Year Awards (2003, 2020). 

A couple of potential candidates who just missed the cut but certainly could emerge as stronger candidates later in the season: Deion Sanders, Dan Lanning, Kalen DeBoer and James Franklin. 

Don’t scoff at Coach Prime’s candidacy. Sanders has already exceeded expectations in Year 1, leading Colorado to a 4-2 record with a real chance to make a bowl game. 

Whoever wins Saturday’s showdown between Oregon and Washington will become the frontrunner for the Pac-12, boosting the candidacy of either Lanning or DeBoer. Franklin is the most acclaimed coach in the mix, but would warrant real consideration if he finally gets Penn State over the hump by beating Michigan and Ohio State to win the Big Ten. 

For now, here are my Top 3 midseason favorites (in no specific order) for 2023 Coach of the Year:

Mike Norvell, Florida State

In an industry that churns and burns coaches, Norvell is a shining example of patience in a plan. FSU’s head coach struggled mightily early in his tenure in Tallahassee. The transition from Willie Taggart to Norvell was rocky, and made even more cumbersome by the COVID pandemic. Norvell went 3-5 and 5-7 in his first two seasons at Florida State, but a 10-3 Year 3 in 2022 was seen as a breakthrough. 

Through five games in 2023, the Seminoles are back among the nation’s best. Norvell outcoached Brian Kelly in a blowout win over LSU in the season-opener, and he won at Clemson three weeks later. He’s built a roster with a strong combination of transfers and developmental prospects, and while many claim the throne, Norvell is the true Portal King the last several seasons. FSU is now recruiting prep prospects (No. 6 class, per On3) better than it has since the heyday of the Jimbo Fisher era, too.

If Norvell wins the ACC and gets the Seminoles back to the College Football Playoff, he might be a slam dunk for the award. 

Brent Venables, Oklahoma

My how much can change with a single result. 

Six weeks ago, Sooners fans weren’t sure they had the right head coach. They spent all offseason still fixated on the guy who left Norman for USC, especially after Venables face-planted in his first year at OU. 

The Sooners were seen as a recession-proof program only for Venables to come in last season and immediately deliver the team’s worst results in 25 years. It wasn’t just that the Sooners went 6-7, either — it was how bad they looked. Historically terrible defensively. A 49-0 shellacking against Texas. 

With the looming move to the SEC, Venables entered this fall facing as much pressure as any second-year head coach (see: Mario Cristobal and Billy Napier), and the man has certainly quieted his critics by retooling the roster through the portal and leading OU to an upset over Texas and back into the Top 5. 

Through six weeks, it’s been a redemptive arc for Venables. The Sooners are again atop the Big 12, and the team has embraced Venables’ hair-on-fire attitude. 

Jeff Brohm, Louisville

Brohm resisted mama’s call to come home in 2019, believing the timing simply wasn’t right. 

Good call. 

Brohm did return to his alma mater this offseason, leaving Purdue after taking the Boilermakers to the Big Ten Championship Game last year. He inherited a solid foundation from Scott Satterfield, but while Deion Sanders and Kenny Dillingham received the most headlines for their Year 1 transfer portal hauls, Satterfield arguably landed as impressive a crop as any new coach this season. 

The Cardinals were expected to be frisky in Brohm’s first season, but they’ve been more than that through six games. They’re one of three remaining undefeated teams in the ACC, and they’re fresh of an upset over Notre Dame. 

Brohm has done a nice job blending Louisville’s transfer with the talent already on the roster, getting great contributions from holdovers like tailback Jawhar Jordan (tops in the ACC in rushing, rushing touchdowns) and pass rusher Ashton Gillotte (ACC-high 6.5 sacks), as well as newcomers like wideout Jamari Thrash (leads the league with six touchdowns). 

The back half of Louisville’s schedule is tricky (Duke, Miami and Kentucky) but it doesn’t include FSU or North Carolina. If Brohm can guide the Cardinals to their first ACC title game, then he could push Norvell for the Coach of the Year award.