Utah has announced that Morgan Scalley will be the head coach in waiting for Kyle Whittingham. Whittingham is 64 years old and getting ready to start his 20th season in charge of the Utes. He could probably continue to coach for several years and might do exactly that, but the school has taken the first step toward an eventual transition.
Coaches in waiting sometimes work out and become the next head coach. In other circumstances, the coach in waiting finds another opportunity first. Sometimes schools change their minds too. Whether a coach in waiting is merely an extra title to justify a pay increase or it is actually in their contracts depends on the situation.
Dabo Swinney is ten years younger than Whittingham. Swinney shows no signs of slowing down but he is also getting ready to start his 17th season with the Tigers.
Consider the example of Bob Stoops, who resigned from Oklahoma after 18 seasons at the age of 56. Stoops could have coached for several more years if he wanted to, but he decided that he wanted to go in a different direction.
I certainly hope Swinney plans to coach for another decade but if he did decide to explore a different lifestyle that didn’t involve the hours and stress of a head coach for a Power football program, a coach in waiting might be a strategy that he and the administration could decide to pursue.
Here are five current coaches who could be a coach in waiting for Clemson Football:
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