The ACC is still a power conference, even if it’s not spoken in the same breath as the SEC and Big Ten. The conference proved that a season ago when Miami played for a national championship. It didn’t win, but it proved the conference can still compete at that level.
Trying to get to that level of success can lead to plenty of turnover in the ranks of the coaches. That included three moves following last season, the biggest of which ended with James Franklin going to Virginia Tech.
For now, it’s too early to tell how many ACC coaches are going to get fired next season. However, there will be at least some level of turnover. So, here are some coaches who could be fired, or who could be hired away in 2026.
There’s no way around it for Mike Norvell; the last two seasons have been a disaster. That’s all the more surprising when you consider he had an undefeated regular season and ACC Championship in 2023. It’s just hard to overcome going 7-17 in the two seasons since then.
Could Norvell turn it around with the transfer portal this year? It’s possible, but most would say improbable. There are still roster concerns, particularly at quarterback. On top of that, the schedule has Alabama and SMU in Florida State’s first three games.
Making the jump from Washington State to Wake Forest after one season in the two-team Pac-12, Jake Dickert and Wake Forest went under the radar in 2025. Still, when the dust settled, they were 9-4 and walked away with an impressive season.
The reality is that Wake Forest isn’t swimming in resources compared to many of its ACC peers. It’s a hard job to succeed at beyond a certain point. After all, the Demon Deacons have two conference championships in their entire team’s history. So, another strong season might offer him an opportunity to jump to a new job.
The Bill Belichick era at North Carolina looks like it’s heading for disaster. After a 4-8 first season, which was notable for offseason distractions involving Belichick’s personal life, the second offseason has seen the program go through some major changes. That includes Belichick’s right-hand man, GM Mike Lombardi, being put on leave.
There is a world where Belichick and the Tar Heels show enough improvement to keep him from being fired. However, the writing is on the wall. The roster isn’t good enough on paper, and Belichick looks like a fish out of water in the college game.
Could be hired: Rhett Lashlee, SMU Mustangs
It shouldn’t be undersold the job that Rhett Lashlee has done at SMU. Since the program returned from the death penalty in 1989, it didn’t manage to finish in the top 25 until Lashlee took over. Since then, he’s taken it to the CFP, led it into the ACC and made it consistently competitive at that level.
So, the question is whether or not a bigger fish comes calling. SMU has the money to keep Lashlee happy, but there are still jobs that might be able to draw his attention if they came calling.
