It’s 2025, and when I was a child, the year 2025 felt like something out of The Jetsons. Nevertheless, I’m here, and if you’re reading this, SO ARE YOU. The holidays are always a little bittersweet for me. While I enjoy the love of family and friends and the joy the season brings, I also recognize my own mortality—another calendar year closer to permanently walking like Fred Sanford. Still, I’m blessed to be here and SO ARE YOU.

As we move into a new year, my focus shifts to playoff football.  While we watch our weekend heroes perform, I find myself paying more attention to the people roaming the sidelines. The guys with the whistles and wearing the baseball hats. I sometimes wonder why the lack of diversity especially in college football. We can go a lot of ways on why, but I want to use this platform on who’s leading the charge to break down the walls and paving the way. Let’s dive in.

The Landscape of College Football Leadership

For years, college football has been a no-fly zone for Black head coaches and athletic directors. As of January 2025, there are 16 African American head coaches among the 134 Football Bowl Subdivision (FBS) teams, representing approximately 11.9% of all head coaching positions. The representation is even lower among athletic directors: currently, 17 Black men and 3 Black women serve as athletic directors at the 131 FBS institutions, accounting for roughly 15% of all such positions.

The reasons are complex, rooted in systemic barriers, biases, and historical inequities. However, there’s hope on the horizon. Several young, dynamic, and capable coaches are rising through the ranks and making their mark. Here are a few of them:

• Fran Brown (Syracuse): The Camden, NJ native has earned his stripes at multiple coaching stops before landing his break with the Orange. Brown led “The Cuse” to a 10-win season in his first year.
• Sherrone Moore (Michigan): Coach Moore faced the daunting task of picking up the pieces for the defending national champions and rebuilding on the fly. After a shaky start, the Wolverines found their rhythm and capped the season with a win over archrival Ohio State.
• Willie Simmons (FIU): Known as “Shotgun Willie,” Simmons is a star on the rise. Formerly the head coach at Florida A&M University (FAMU), Simmons won the Black National Title in 2023. After a brief stint as the running backs coach at Duke, he now takes on the challenge of leading FIU at the FBS level.
• Marcus Freeman (Notre Dame): When your first head coaching job is at “America’s University,” you’d better win—and win fast. No problem for Coach Freeman. In three years as the head of the Fighting Irish, he has compiled a 33-9 record and will play for a national championship on January 20th.
• Deion “Coach Prime” Sanders (Colorado): The Hall of Famer and one of the greatest players of all time has revived a dormant program at Colorado, transforming the Buffaloes into one of the most recognized teams in the sport. With swagger and substance, Coach Prime has made Colorado a program to watch for years to come.
• Brennan Marion (Sacramento State): Marion is a young, innovative football mind poised to lead Sacramento State into FBS football in the near future. The creator of the “GoGo” offense, Coach Marion helped put UNLV on the map and now gets his shot as a head coach. Remember the name.
• DeSean Jackson (Delaware State): The former NFL great heads to HBCU Delaware State looking to change the fortunes of doormat program. Jackson has been busy already bringing in quality talent.
• Michael Vick (Norfolk State): The Michael Vick Experience has come home to the area he groomed his talents as a youth. Can Vick similar to Jackson revitalize a downtrodden football program.

The Role of NIL and Representation

The advent of Name, Image, and Likeness (NIL) agreements, allowing college players to be compensated, has turned the sport into a minefield of relationships and expectations. Today’s players have more power than ever before. In a sport where over 48% of athletes are African American, it only makes sense to have more black coaches who can foster relationships, offer representation, and lead with cultural understanding.

Change takes time, especially when confronting deeply ingrained norms and biases. But we’re making progress. Remember when there were no black quarterbacks? Now, nearly every college and professional team has multiple black players at the position. If you’re a college football fan, support black head coaches. Their success is essential for the growth of the sport.

Here’s to a future where opportunity knows no color, and talent and dedication are the only metrics that matter. Together, we can continue to make strides in representation and inclusivity.