After just one season, Brian Smith was fired as the head coach of Ohio.
According to a press release, “the termination follows an administrative review of allegations that Smith violated the terms of his employment agreement by engaging in serious professional misconduct and participating in activities that reflect unfavorably on the University.”
Ohio went 8-4 and 6-2 in MAC play in 2025, Smith’s lone year as the head coach after previously being the offensive coordinator. John Hauser, the team’s defensive coordinator, will be the Bobcats’ interim head coach when they take on UNLV in the Frisco Bowl next week.
With Ohio needing another head coach, here are some names that could be considered:
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Ohio Defensive Coordinator John Hauser
Hauser being named the interim head coach is significant. When Tim Albin left Ohio for Charlotte last year, the Bobcats promoted Brian Smith. I wonder if Ohio’s decision-makers will want some stability for a program that’s been successful and make Hauser the long-term head coach.
Hauser became the associate head coach before Ohio’s bowl game last season. He’s been with the team since 2022. He was the Bobcats’ safeties coach in 2022 and was the team’s defensive pass game coordinator in 2023 before becoming the DC going into the 2024 season.
Hauser’s also very familiar with the MAC. He was a cornerbacks coach for eight seasons and a co-defensive coordinator for six seasons at Miami (Ohio). Before that, he was a safeties coach for two years at The Citadel after he was a director of player personnel at Illinois for two months. He was also a DC and DBs coach at Wayne State (2009-12) and a graduate assistant and DBs coach at Northern Illinois (2003-08). He was also an assistant in 2002 at Division III Wittenberg, his alma mater where he was an All-American player.
Notre Dame Offensive Coordinator Mike Denbrock
Denbrock is a top-notch coordinator who could be in the mix for head coaching opportunities.
He’s certainly led the Fighting Irish to success. After they made a run to the national championship in 2024, they were fifth in the country in scoring offense (42 points per game) at the end of the 2025 regular season.
Denbrock has worked with offensive linemen, tight ends, and wide receivers over the years at Notre Dame, but he’s also coached at a variety of other schools as well. He was LSU’s OC and tight ends coach before this from 2022-23 and was an offensive coordinator and quarterbacks coach at Cincinnati from 2017-21.
Denbrock hasn’t been a head coach at the collegiate level, but he has been an associate head coach, including at Notre Dame from 2015-16 and at Indiana State in 2009.
Indiana Defensive Coordinator Bryant Haines
Haines followed Curt Cignetti from James Madison to Indiana, and he has been stellar as the Hoosiers’ DC thus far.
At the end of the regular season, Indiana was second in the country in scoring defense with 10.9 points per game allowed and was fifth in total defense with 251.8 yards per game allowed. Last year, the Hoosiers were second with 256.3 YPG allowed and sixth with 15.6 PPG allowed.
Before his current job, he was instrumental in JMU’s transition to the Sun Belt. He was promoted to DC and linebackers coach after three years as a co-defensive coordinator.
In just their first season as an FBS program, the Dukes allowed the eighth-fewest yards per game in the country with 290.2 while allowing just 20.9 points per game. They were also top 10 in rushing defense, tackles for loss per game, first downs allowed, sacks per game, third-down defense, and fumble recoveries.
In 2023, JMU was in the top 20 in the FBS with 19.5 points per game allowed and the top 30 in the country with 333.8 yards per game allowed.
Indiana Offensive Coordinator Mike Shanahan
As Indiana’s OC, Shanahan has helped the Hoosiers build one of the best offenses in the country. They were second in the FBS with 44.3 PPG and fifth with 483.8 YPG at the end of the regular season.
Shanahan was JMU’s offensive coordinator from 2021-23, and the team’s offense flourished considering the program was new to the FBS ranks. In 2022 and 2023, the Dukes were top 30 in the country in total offense.
Shanahan was JMU’s wide receivers coach and recruiting coordinator from 2019-20. He also coached with Cignetti at Elon (2017-18) and at Indiana University of Pennsylvania (2016) after being a graduate assistant at Pitt.
Illinois Defensive Backs Coach Corey Parker
Parker is a Power Four assistant with knowledge of the MAC and the region.
Parker is in his second season coaching defensive backs at Illinois. Before this, he was a cornerbacks coach at Toledo from 2022-23. And his most notable accomplishment there was coaching Quinyon Mitchell, who was drafted in the first round by the Philadelphia Eagles and is now a top-notch cornerback in the NFL.
Parker was also a high school head coach in the state of Michigan at River Rouge High School. The team was 113-34 and won a state title during Parker’s tenure.
