Bob Chesney’s name has been tied to multiple Power Four openings this season.
James Madison’s head coach has been regarded as a rising star in the profession, and the Dukes’ 11-1 record and upcoming Sun Belt Championship appearance this season has only bolstered that notion.
So if Chesney does go somewhere like UCLA or Penn State, here are some coaches who could be considered at JMU:
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.
Going into the final week of this season, Indiana is second in the country in scoring defense with 10.9 points per game allowed and is fourth 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.
Maybe Haines’ familiarity with the program makes him a leading candidate for this job.
Indiana Offensive Coordinator Mike Shanahan
Here’s another former JMU coordinator from the Cignetti era who has also thrived in the Power Four.
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 going into the final week 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.
If Chesney leaves, Shanahan could be considered for JMU’s head coaching vacancy.
Oregon Offensive Coordinator Will Stein
It’s tough to argue against what Stein has accomplished with the Ducks.
Going into the final week of the regular season, Oregon was eighth in the country in scoring offense with 39.3 points per game scored and 11th in total offense with 471.8 yards per game gained. He’s currently regarded as one of the best coordinators in college football.
Stein got his coaching start at his alma mater, Louisville, where he was a quarterback. He worked with quarterbacks his first year in 2023 before focusing on wide receivers in an offensive quality control role in 2014. After that, he was a quality control coach with an emphasis on wide receivers at Texas from 2015-17 and then worked with QBs in 2017 before coaching at Lake Travis High School the following two seasons.
He then went to UTSA where he was a pass game coordinator and wide receivers coach for two seasons and then was a co-offensive coordinator and quarterbacks coach in 2022. The Roadrunners were ninth in the nation in total offense (486.1 YPG), 12th in scoring offense (38.7 PPG), and 12th in passing offense (308.6 YPG).
Kennesaw State Head Coach Jerry Mack
Jerry Mack finally got a head coaching opportunity at the FBS level this season, and he’s guided the Owls through a fantastic 2025 season.
Kennesaw State is 9-3 overall and 7-1 in Conference USA play this year, its second in the FBS. The Owls will face Jacksonville State in the CUSA title game next week.
Last year, Mack was the Jacksonville Jaguars’ running backs coach. Previously, Mack was Tennessee’s running backs coach from 2021-23. In 2023, the Volunteers were 10th in the country with 204.8 rushing yards per game.
Mack has also been an associate head coach, offensive coordinator, and quarterbacks coach at Rice, a head coach at North Carolina Central, a wide receivers coach at South Alabama and Memphis, an OC and quarterbacks coach at Arkansas-Pine Bluff, a passing game coordinator and wide receivers coach at Central Arkansas, and a wide receivers/tight ends coach at Jackson State.
Missouri State Head Coach Ryan Beard
Beard has been recognized as one of the up-and-coming head coaches in the FBS.
And that’s for good reason. In their first year in the FBS, the Bears are 7-5 at the conclusion of the regular season and will be playing in a bowl game.
Beard was the youngest person to become Missouri State’s head coach when he was promoted at 34 years old in December 2022.
Previously, Beard was Missouri State’s defensive coordinator for three seasons. During that span, he coached a defense that earned 18 all-conference nods and four All-American accolades while three players from that time had opportunities to play professionally. Missouri State was among the best in the country in several statistical categories on defense when Beard was the DC.
Before going to Missouri State, Beard was a special teams and safeties coach at Central Michigan in 2019. He was a quality control coach at Louisville, where he was from 2017-18, before becoming the team’s linebackers coach and co-special teams coordinator. He was also a defensive quality control coach there from 2014-15.
He coached defensive backs in 2016 at Western Kentucky, where he was a two-time All-Sun Belt defensive back himself, and was a graduate assistant at WKU in 2012-13.
Montana State Head Coach Brent Vigen
Vigen doesn’t have experience at an East Coast school, but Chesney’s never coached on the West Coast and is being considered for the UCLA job.
Plus, Vigen is regarded as one of the best FCS coaches and has reportedly been in the mix for multiple FBS head coaching jobs, including Oregon State.
Vigen has been Montana State’s head coach since 2021. That first year, he led the Bobcats to their first national championship appearance since 1984. The year after that, Montana State reached the national semifinals before losing to the eventual champion, South Dakota State.
And in 2024, the Bobcats went undefeated during the regular season – including a victory at New Mexico – and returned to the FCS national championship.
Vigen also was an offensive coordinator at Wyoming under head coach Craig Bohl from 2014-20, most notably coaching now-NFL star quarterback Josh Allen, and was an assistant at North Dakota State before that.
