XFL Dallas Head Coaching Candidates

[MikeMitchell]

*BLACK MONDAY UPDATE 1/13*

There is going to be a lot of XFL news dropping in 2019. From the TV rights deal to team names and logos, team presidents and all 8 XFL Head Coaching hires. Thus far, Oliver Luck has stated that he and Doug Whaley are going to be in charge of identifying and interviewing head coaching candidates. The team presidents may or may not have actual input in this process. They are going to be expected to handle the business end of the teams, promotions, ticket sales etc.

The head coach and quarterback will be the two most important hires for each XFL team. The hires themselves will help determine the level of credibility and interest the league has. That tandem is going to help sell the team for an entire year leading into 2020. The head coach is going to be vital because he will be in charge of all personnel decisions and hiring his entire staff.

It's important to be realistic when it comes to this area. Fans will throw out names like Urban Mayer or Josh McDaniels but those types of candidates will be looking for big money contracts and long term commitments. In the neighborhood of 10 million dollars per year. The XFL has announced that their head coaches will average 500k per season. The contracts will most likely be 3 year deals and the coach will immediately get to work starting in January of 2019. Forming their staff, signing their quarterback and starting up pro scouting/evaluation for the series of drafts to follow.

You can pretty much rule out any high profile NFL and College head coach, offensive and defensive coordinators. These are the highest paid assistants in the sport and they are coaching at the highest levels. The XFL is going to have to target coaches that are out of work or assistants that are not on the head coaching radar for any NFL or NCAA jobs. From the XFL's perspective, you want to find the best candidates possible but as a bonus, it would help if the candidates have some sort of connection to the market that they are going to be coaching in.

With that in mind, here are just a few candidates for The XFL Dallas Franchise. Feel free to comment or add your own. I am going to be doing this for every XFL City.

Graham Harrell- North Texas Offensive Coordinator/QB's Coach- This works on several levels. A prolific college quarterback who holds several NCAA passing records at Texas Tech. Only 33 years old, Texas born and bred. Graham was born only 35 miles south of Dallas. His father was a huge coaching star in The Texas high school ranks. Harrell was mostly a backup in The NFL and had a cup of coffee in The CFL as well. He's been working his way up the ranks as a coach in college. It's the perfect time to target him before he becomes a priority hire for college teams.

Dave Wannstedt- Former Bears/Dolphins/Pitt Panthers Head Coach - Experienced coach. Became a star coach in the 90’s during The Dallas Cowboys dynasty in the nineties. Been out of coaching for several years. Last coached special teams with The Bucs.

Kerry Cooks- Oklahoma Assistant Head Coach/Defensive Backs- Former XFL safety for Chicago. Only 44 years old, Cooks is one of the rising young assistants in college football. He was also born in Dallas and played high school football there. He's also considered one of the nation's best recruiters. That type of background and ability to connect with young players is a plus.

Todd Graham-Former Rice/Arizona St. Head Coach 54 year old Dallas native. Lifelong college coach. Amassing a 95-61 record at 4 different college spots. Former PAC 12 and Conference USA coach of the year. Graham has never coached in the pros. Had brief stint as pro player with Arizona in the late eighties.


Juan Castillo- Buffalo Bills O-Line Coach/Run Game Coordinator- Another coach who was born in Texas and played high school and college football there. Castillo's small town of Port Isabel Texas honored him with a key to the city and he has a day named after him. This isn't a dynamic hire by any means but... you have an experienced man who has been coaching since the 80's, Castillo is 59 years old and is not on any head coaching hire lists despite his resume. It's the kind of coach that would consider leaving the NFL ranks for a shot at being a head coach in his home state. Castillo has a versatile coaching and playing background. He's been a coordinator on both offense and defense in The NFL, a rarity for most coaches. That helps when you are going to be the head coach of an entire team. He started out playing for The San Antonio Gunslingers in The USFL. He's coached under good coaches like Andy Reid and John Harbaugh. This is a football lifer who deserves at the bare minimum an interview. Reminds me of former XFL head coaches Jim Skipper and Kippy Brown, who were great long time assistants in The NFL, who chose the XFL because it was their only opportunity to be head coaches.

Ty Detmer- Former BYU Offensive Coordinator/QB's Coach- I am throwing in the college football hall of famer into the mix here because of his strong ties to the state of Texas. The entire Detmer family is in the coaching ranks and has strong ties to the region. Ty would probably be worth consideration as a potential offensive coordinator more so than as a head coach. Pro football is trending towards former quarterbacks as head coaches. See Superbowl Champion Doug Pederson, Sean McVay a former high school QB, Frank Reich In Indianapolis and Matt Nagy who is a former Arena League QB and current Bears coach.