Mike Kafka, Lou Ayeni and Five Candidates to Replace Pat Fitzgerald

I have said multiple times that Pat Fitzgerald is among those with the most job security in College Football. That just makes the culture of hazing within the program all the more ridiculous, preventable, and harmful to those involved. If Fitzgerald is fired, the Wildcats will ideally find somebody with direct ties to the school, but at least somebody with experience at another prestigious academic university. Experience coaching in the Midwest will also be a big positive. Surely if Fitzgerald loses his job, an interim will take control this Fall, and if that occurs, here are five candidates who might be the full-time coach come next offseason.

Mike Kafka

Offensive Coordinator, New York Giants

The former Wildcat QB is my odds-on favorite for this job. He was a standout player here, was a position coach to Patrick Mahomes, and led the Giants' underpowered offense to the playoffs in 2022. Kafka knows the place well and would be able to sell it to recruits. 

He is a man who checks almost all the boxes of candidates for this job. However, he doesn't have any previous head coaching experience. But neither did Fitzgerald, so that isn’t a prerequisite here. The only question here is if Kafka wants to stay in the NFL. He was a finalist for multiple head coaching jobs in the past two years and has limited college coaching experience.