Several of the best college football jobs in the country have come open in the past year, but Wisconsin firing a coach — Paul Chryst — for the first time since 1989 was quite the wake up call and reminder of how times are changing in the sport. Just five weeks into the year, five head coaching jobs at the Power Five level have already opened. The college football coaching carousel continues to spin faster with each passing season while coaches collect massive buyouts in the process. 

Nebraska coach Scott Frost was the first coach fired after the 2022 season began, and things have only spiraled from there. Georgia Tech and Colorado made changes after Geoff Collins and Karl Dorrell, respectively, led their teams to historically miserable starts. Arizona State then finally fired Herm Edwards as an NCAA hammer waits to drop on the program. Meanwhile, Chryst was off to a 2-3 start at Wisconsin for the third straight season and coming off a 34-10 loss to an Illinois team led by former Badgers coach Bret Bielema. 

Part of firing a coach midseason is attempting to get to the market early. It can work out in a big way, like USC having weeks to orchestrate poaching Lincoln Riley from Oklahoma. If the market gets too saturated with better competitors, however, it can also leave you with second-tier candidates.