It’s been a wild stretch in college football lately, with coaches getting fired and new ones quickly taking their place. In the SEC alone, six schools are undergoing coaching changes — and the Kentucky Wildcats have become one of the latest after parting ways with Mark Stoops.
“I have informed Coach Mark Stoops that we have decided to go in a new direction at head coach,” athletic director Mitch Barnhart said in a Monday press release. “I want to thank Mark for his dedication and leadership over the past 13 years, and as importantly, the friendship that is marked by walking these journeys together. His tenure transformed the program and reset expectations.”
Now, the Wildcats are playing catch-up after seeing Arkansas, Auburn, Florida, LSU and Ole Miss all hire their new head coaches. But according to Pro Football Talk, Kentucky could be taking a mighty swing — at least that’s what some of the team’s players seem to believe.
“Word is circulating among Kentucky players that Kelly could be the team’s next head coach,” PFT’s Mike Florio reported. “That doesn’t mean he will be. It doesn’t even mean he’s an official candidate. It means only that Kentucky players have somehow developed the impression that Kelly could be the new coach.”
Chip Kelly Could Make College Football Return After Raiders Firing
Chip Kelly hasn’t been away from college football for long. He helped lead Ohio State to a national championship in 2024 as the Buckeyes’ offensive coordinator before bolting to the Las Vegas Raiders for the same role. That stint lasted just 11 games, with the Raiders fielding one of the worst offenses in the NFL.
Things reportedly got so bad that Kelly was said to have “botched his own play calls and, on several occasions, called plays that weren’t in the game plan,” according to NFL Network insider Tom Pelissero.
Still, that likely wouldn’t stop a desperate SEC program searching for renewed relevancy — like Kentucky — from showing interest in Kelly as its next head coach.
Chip Kelly’s Past Success Could Bode Well for Kentucky
The Wildcats aren’t among the SEC’s perennial powerhouses, but it was clear a change was needed. Stoops, the 2018 SEC Coach of the Year, finished his 13th season in Lexington with an 82-80 overall record, seven winning seasons, and two top-25 finishes. However, after back-to-back losing campaigns in 2024 and 2025 (a combined 9-15), the program was ready to move on.
Kelly could bring immediate credibility — and possibly more success — to Lexington. The 62-year-old has compiled a 109-76 record as a head coach (81 in college), with stops at Oregon, UCLA, and in the NFL with the Philadelphia Eagles and San Francisco 49ers. His most notable run came with the Ducks, where he led Oregon to a BCS National Championship appearance.
The biggest question is whether Kelly would even want to return as a college head coach. When he left UCLA after the 2023 season to become Ohio State’s offensive coordinator, it wasn’t because he was fired. Kelly explained his decision by saying he wanted to “just focus on football.”
College head coaches today have far more on their plates than X’s and O’s. They’re expected to act as CEOs — managing rosters, NIL opportunities, and recruiting. In a conference like the SEC, that’s exactly the type of head coach every program needs — even Kentucky.
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