We were not sure if Indiana had the stomach to eat a $20 million buyout, but apparently, the Hoosiers are hungry enough. They have been starved for wins on the college football field ever since the unforgettable 2020 COVID season that is shortly being forgotten. Indiana decided to pull the plug on the Tom Allen era in Bloomington and have fired him the morning after losing to arch-rival Purdue.
Allen went 33-49 over parts of eight seasons. He may have coached in the way tougher division, but Allen's teams only went 18-43 in Big Ten play over that span. Indiana finished the season with a dismal 3-9 (1-8) record, but it was still a shocker when Zach Osterman of the Indianapolis Star first reported that Allen was out on Sunday morning. His team was not good, but his guys were not poorly-coached.
Indiana could have held steady and stuck it out with Allen for one more year, but the Hoosiers felt like they needed to make a change. $20 million is chump change for big-pocketed boosters IU has like Dallas Mavericks owner Mark Cuban. Regardless, Indiana needed some juice to gear up for Big Ten conference expansion with Oregon, UCLA, USC and Washington all joining their league next season.
Without further ado, here are three candidates that would be great fits to lead the Hoosiers in 2024.
3. Justin Frye played at IU and could help establish an offensive identity
After losing The Game for the third year in a row, big changes could be coming to the Ohio State Buckeyes program. Not to say that Ohio State would be foolish enough to actually fire head coach Ryan Day, but he could conceivably leave for another job this offseason. If that were to happen, or not, we could be seeing wholesale changes to his coaching staff. Keep an eye on Justin Frye here...
Frye has been the Buckeyes' associate head coach and offensive line coach the last two seasons. We have seen the Ohio State offense look absolutely electrifying at times, especially a year ago with Heisman Trophy finalist quarterback C.J. Stroud at the helm of it. Frye has worked for coaching stars like Chip Kelly and Urban Meyer previously, having gotten his start out as a graduate assistant at IU.
See, Frye played his college ball in Bloomington from 2002 to 2006. The former offensive tackle is adept at helping his offenses run the ball with conviction. Every team he has been a part of has seen great things happen with the rushing attack. Given that Indiana's offense can be rather listless at times, Frye could come back to his alma mater to help cultivate a new offensive identity for Indiana.
He may not have any head-coaching experience, but this is a job Frye would not turn down if offered.
2. Kane Wommack is a Tom Allen disciple who wins big at South Alabama
If Indiana wants to hire someone with head-coaching experience, look no further than Kane Wommack down at South Alabama. Like Frye, he too has Indiana coaching ties. Wommack most recently served as Allen's linebackers coach and later defensive coordinator prior to taking the job at South from 2018 to 2020. Keep in mind that this was during the peak years under Allen at Indiana.
Since taking over the South Alabama Jaguars program, Wommack has gone 21-16 as a head coach, including an impressive 10-3 campaign a season ago. Although the Jaguars have pretty much been a .500 team in his two other years at the helm, now might be the time for the up-and-coming head coach to go from a great Group of Five league in the Sun Belt to a major job opening up in the Big Ten.
Not to say that he will be able to recapture the magic Indiana briefly experienced during the 2020 COVID season, but Wommack is a rising star in the coaching profession. As soon as Allen was let go at IU, Wommack was the first name I thought of. In truth, I think he could leave South Alabama if the dollars make sense. Conversely, Indiana does have to pay a $20 million buyout for Allen and his staff.
It would not be shocking if Wommack left Mobile for Bloomington, but he will not leave for cheap.
1. Antwaan Randle El needs to come home to make a statement in Big Ten
Although Dan Campbell was briefly tied to his alma mater's opening down in College Station, the Detroit Lions could be losing someone off his staff to a similar gig. Now might be the time to see if Indiana football legend Antwaan Randle El wants to take over the reins of his alma mater's program. The former Hoosiers superstar quarterback is now in year three as the Lions' wide receivers coach.
Randle El is the ideal candidate for IU for so many reasons. One, he is a distinguished alum of Indiana University. Two, he is a former superstar on the gridiron for the Hoosiers. Three, he would provide the cool factor IU desperately needs from a recruiting perspective. Four, he successfully transitioned from quarterback to receiver in the NFL. And five, he played in the NFL for the Pittsburgh Steelers.
So with Randle El, you have an on-the-rise coaching candidate with considerable player development experience. Recruiting may not be something he is all that well-versed in, but he could be a strong CEO-type of head coach IU needs. Given his NFL connections, he might be able to bring with him to Bloomington an up-and-coming hotshot play-caller. That would certainly move the needle at Indiana.
It is a shot in the dark, but I think Randle El could be the cure to what has ailed Indiana football of late.