The North Carolina State Wolfpack are honing in on Philip Rivers as their next head coach. On3's Chris Low, Pete Nakos, and Noah Fleischman reported on Sunday morning that the former NFL and Wolfpack star quarterback "is working to finalize a deal" to become his alma mater's next head coach. Rivers most recently played for the Indianapolis Colts and would be replacing Dave Doeren in Raleigh.
While Rivers has coached his son at the high school level, this is a gigantic step up in terms of level of competition for him. Gunner Rivers may be a four-star quarterback committed to the Wolfpack, but everyone is ACC country is laughing at the idea of the former San Diego/Los Angeles Chargers star leading NC State next season. Clearly, Rivers is who Boo Corrigan wanted to hire after firing Doeren.
Although Clemson will not play NC State this season, the two ACC founders have an intriguing rivalry in the form of the Textile Bowl. So any time NC State does something a bit odd, it gets the attention of Clemson fans. While Rivers could be an overwhelming success in Raleigh, he has some tough history to overcome. NC State could have hired anybody, but it went for a splashy and reckless one instead.
BREAKING: NC State is working to finalize a deal to make Philip Rivers its next head coach, @Clowfb, @PeteNakos and @fleischman_noah report🐺
— On3 (@On3) November 8, 2026
Rivers has begun reaching out to potential front office and coaching staff candidates.https://t.co/waGSCEsJls https://t.co/dQj7OR0sg0 pic.twitter.com/OjzGUkkhvS
Philip Rivers will have to overcome a tough history of high-profile hirings
Whether it be Deion Sanders, Trent Dilfer, or Eddie George at the FBS level, or even Michael Vick or DeSean Jackson at the FCS level, hiring a high-profile name to be one's head coach rarely works out. Dilfer lost his job last year at UAB. George's Bowling Green Falcons are an awful MAC team. Sanders has lost the plot at Colorado, while Vick and Jackson have only been so-so in leading their programs.
What we are getting at is NC State had been painfully mediocre for a while under Doeren, but is now betting its 401k on what has regularly been a losing proposition. Yes, Baylor, Florida State, and Maryland all may have head-coaching vacancies, but we did see something similar happen a few years ago in the Group of Six with Charlotte hiring a woefully unprepared Biff Poggi to lead the 49ers.
Rivers may play the position of quarterback, but so did Dilfer. It may be an opportunity too good for him and his family to pass up, but the success rate of this hire feels so much worse than a 50-50 proposition. In short, Clemson may not have to worry about the Wolfpack moving forward. The ACC may be a league where anyone can come in and wreak havoc, but this is such a steep hill to climb.
If Rivers has success as a head coach in Raleigh, then more power to him. Unfortunately, hiring Rivers is not the same as hiring a proven head coach at the FBS level, or even a hotshot coordinator who has bided his time for this once-in-a-lifetime opportunity. By reportedly looking to hire Rivers, NC State is missing out on better candidates such as Shannon Dawson, Bryant Haines, and many more.
Given the nature of high-profile hires, NC State is hitching its wagon to a boom-or-bust candidate.
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