One of the elite conferences in the country, much is expected of coaches in the Big Ten, especially after three different Big Ten teams have won the national championship in the past three seasons.
That, of course, can lead to coaching turnover when teams aren’t as competitive as they need to be in the Big Ten. A season ago proved that in the Big Ten, with four coaches turning over a season ago.
It’s early to say just how many coaches will change in the Big Ten in 2026. One thing is clear, though. There will be change, likely through both firings and coaches leaving for new jobs. Here are a couple of names to keep an eye on.
In a way, Mike Locksley has become an institution at Maryland. After previously being their offensive coordinator and interim head coach in 2015, he was hired to be the head coach in 2019. Now, going into his eighth season there, he has a 37-49 record and is coming off back-to-back 4-8 seasons.
Maryland, as a school, has seen a push and pull between basketball and football for resources. That has made a tough Big Ten job even tougher, but it’s hard to justify the recent on-field results for Locksley.
Jedd Fisch is a coach who has already jumped from one school in his conference to another, back when he left Pac-12 Arizona for Pac-12 Washington, just before the Huskies moved to the Big Ten. He’s also, seemingly, already made a pass at the Florida job before staying with Washington.
So, it’s no guarantee, and he’d likely need to put together a strong season to do so, but Fisch is someone willing to look for a better opportunity. That could mean leaving Washington.
Many people thought Luke Fickell should have been fired last year. He wasn’t, and the team instead invested in its roster. It’s another chance for Fickell to prove himself in the Big Ten, after going 17-21 in his first three seasons in Madison.
Quarterback has been a major reason for Fickell’s struggles. Wisconsin hasn’t found one. Colton Joseph is the presumed starter, moving over from Old Dominion, where he was solid but not a premier Group of Six quarterback, either, at a 59.7 completion percentage for 21 touchdowns to 10 interceptions. Fickell better hope that and his other roster moves work.
David Braun took over Northwestern amid a scandal. The Wildcats should have been awful because of that, but they weren’t. Instead, they went 8-5, and he earned the full-time job. Now, three seasons in, he’s 19-19 with two bowl wins at a very difficult job.
Braun is still young, at only 41 years old. He’s also proven he can win at what is probably the toughest job in the entire Big Ten. So, with another good year, there’s a chance another team with better resources sees the vision and tries to bring in Braun.
It would take a massive scandal to get Kirk Ferentz fired, and it doesn’t seem like he’d leave Iowa for anywhere else. At the same time, he’s over the age of 70 now, and retirement is very possible.
