Current Notre Dame Fighting Irish assistant named one of the worst college football coaching hires of the past decade
When your favorite football team makes a new coaching hire, most fans are inherently optimistic for the overall potential. We aren’t programmed to consider the worst case scenario typically, but as we know, bad hires happen all the time. In a recent article for CBS Sports, college football analyst Will Backus looked back over the […]
When your favorite football team makes a new coaching hire, most fans are inherently optimistic for the overall potential. We aren’t programmed to consider the worst case scenario typically, but as we know, bad hires happen all the time. In a recent article for CBS Sports, college football analyst Will Backus looked back over the last ten years and ranked the 15 worst coaching hires in college football.
One name very familiar to Notre Dame fans made the list, seeing new defensive coordinator Chris Ash come in at No. 15. Ash’s place, obviously, doesn’t come from the hire head coach Marcus Freeman just made for Ash to replace the departed Al Golden. No, this inclusion is due to what Coach Ash did as head coach of the Rutgers Scarlet Knights from 2016-19, which wasn’t pretty.
Here is what Backus had to say about Ash, and what earned him a lot on this unfortunate list.
15. Chris Ash, Rutgers (2016-19)
Record: 8-32
Ash inherited a bit of a mess left by his predecessor Kyle Flood, but it became apparent rather quickly that Ash was ill-prepared to right the ship in his first head coaching job. Ash only won more than two games in a single season once, and the Scarlet Knights failed to win a single Big Ten game in three out of four seasons under Ash. He was fired midway through the 2019 campaign, and after a brief stint at Texas in 2020, he recently made his return to college football as Notre Dame's defensive coordinator.
For Notre Dame fans, it’s comforting to know that Coach Ash isn’t going to be judged based on what he has done as a head coach in the past. He was hired to become a very good defensive coordinator for the Fighting Irish, so his resume for that position is what matters in the end. While a little spotty, there are a lot of positives to look at from Ash’s past, most notably his time as the defensive coordinator for Ohio State from 2014-15.
When Coach Golden left for the same position with the Cincinnati Bengals this offseason, it was a tough pill to swallow. Luckily for Ash, Coach Golden had left this defensive roster and system in a very good place. He has walked into a room with loads of talent from the top to bottom.
Coach Ash is also surrounded by a lot of great defensive mind, including Coach Freeman, who was considered one of the very best defensive minds in college football during his coordinator career. He also has the chance to lean on secondary coach Mike Mickens as Coach Ash navigates the transition. Notre Dame is expected to have a very, very good defense heading into the 2025 season.
