Texas Football: 6 potential coaching replacements for Tom Herman

4) Texas football HC candidates

The under-the-radar NFL candidate: Joe Brady, Carolina Panthers OC

A name that is starting to come up more and more often among college football coaching candidate searches is the former LSU Tigers co-offensive coordinator and New Orleans Saints analyst Joe Brady. Currently the first-year offensive coordinator under former Baylor Bears head coach Matt Rhule with the Carolina Panthers, Brady is a rising star in the NFL coaching ranks now.

It might not be all that long before Brady capitalizes on his soaring stock on the coaching market at all levels of football and get an NFL head coaching job. This might be the opportunity the Longhorns are looking for to take advantage of all the value that Brady brings to the table, and how potent of a head coach he could be.

When Brady was LSU’s co-offensive coordinator, and the main architect behind last season’s National Championship winning team, he averaged more than 48 points per game (good for best in the FBS). His offense also averaged more than 565 total yards per game, and just shy of eight yards per play. Those are some truly special numbers.

The 31-year-old former William & Mary Tribe graduate Brady has only had a few stops in his football coaching journey up to this point. He started out his coaching career as a linebackers coach at William & Mary. And prior to landing the offensive assistant role with the Saints staff in 2017, he was a graduate assistant with the Penn State Nittany Lions.

In his first year as the Panthers offensive coordinator in the NFL, his offense is middling. But they are improving in turnover margin, touchdowns (in the running and passing game), and in yards per play.