What It’s Really Like Working for College Football’s Most Wanted Coach
Showing Up Everyday Knowing Your Coach Is Wanted for EVERY Open Job
There are moments in your career that shape how you see leadership, success, and the entire business of college football. Most people talk about hot seats. Rarely do people talk about the other extreme — when your head coach becomes the most wanted man in the sport.
That’s exactly where I found myself during my year at the University of Houston, working for Coach Tom Herman. And today, I want to take you inside that experience. Not the surface-level rumor chatter. But the real emotions, the internal politics, the team dynamics, and the lessons that still influence how I teach player development today.
If your coach is on every shortlist, every rumor tweet, and every fan forum thread… this one’s for you.
The Season Everything Changed
The year I joined Coach Herman at Houston, the program was on fire.
We were winning.
The energy was high.
And the national attention? Immediate.
But attention comes with a cost. When you work at a Group of 5 school that suddenly starts beating giants, everyone — and I mean everyone — assumes your coach is leaving. That was my reality from day one. I remember sitting in my high school office at Hightower when Coach Herman walked in, fresh off a Peach Bowl win, and said, “I want to interview you.”
That moment changed everything. I took the job. I stepped into my alma mater. And I stepped into one of the most chaotic, intense, and revealing seasons of my life.
The team was on the cover of Sports Illustrated. We opened the season beating No. 3 Oklahoma in front of a packed NRG Stadium. CFP talk started circulating. Houston was chasing national relevance and conference realignment.
But behind all of that, something else was growing:
Rumors, speculation, and distractions that never turned off.
The Rumor Mill Never Sleeps
Every win made the noise louder.
Every loss made the speculation worse.
Every coaching vacancy put Coach Herman at the top of the list.
Parents wanted clarity.
Recruits were nervous.
Staff members were quietly looking around.
Players were trying to keep their heads on straight.
When you work for the most wanted coach in the sport, you live in two realities at once:
Reality #1:
You’re winning. You’re climbing. You’re building something special.
Reality #2:
Any day could be the day everything changes.
And no matter how focused the building stays — rumors have a way of slipping through every crack.
This is something many people don’t understand. A hot seat creates fear. But a highly-coveted coach creates instability. You’re winning, but you’re distracted. You’re successful, but you’re anxious. You have momentum, but you’re always bracing for the next alert on your phone.
The Night Everything Blew Up
There’s one moment I’ll never forget.
It was Thanksgiving week. We were in the hotel eating dinner as a team. The mood was light. Guys were relaxed. Coaches were talking. Everything felt normal.
Then the ESPN ticker flashed across the screen.
“Tom Herman has agreed to become the next head coach at LSU.”
Phones started buzzing.
Players turned their heads.
A few looked directly at me.
“Coach Ed… you going too?”
I hadn’t even checked my phone yet. I went outside with the player, pulled my phone out, and saw the alert myself. Rumor turned into reality in real time, whether it was accurate or not.
That moment changed the energy in the room immediately.
And it wouldn’t be the last.
The next day everything intensified.
And when Texas lost to Kansas that Friday night, the writing was on the wall.
Some moments in this profession you will never forget.
That was one of them.
The Team Meeting That Hurt the Most
When Coach Herman gathered the team and told them he was leaving for Texas, the room shifted. Some players expected it. Others were blindsided. The freshmen were hurt the most. They hadn’t lived long enough in college football to understand the business.
They just felt abandoned.
I sat with several of them afterward — the recruiting class I had helped bring in. They were hurting. Confused. Angry. And I couldn’t blame them. When you’re 18, you don’t see contracts and opportunities. You only see the person who told you he believed in you.
I tried my best to help them process it:
“Would you be here if Texas offered you a scholarship?”
It wasn’t about being right or wrong. It was about helping them understand the world they were now a part of — a world where success creates movement and loyalty gets complicated.
What You Don’t See Behind the Scenes
When a coach is wanted by everyone:
Recruiting becomes a battlefield
Parents are anxious and thirsty for answers
Commits are being whispered to by opposing staffs
Staff members are quietly evaluating their futures
Players are caught between pride and fear
Every win brings more chaos, not less
People think winning solves problems.
Often, winning exposes pressure you didn’t know existed.
And from the player development seat?
You’re responsible for the emotional stability of the roster while the ground shifts underneath you.
How I Supported the Team Through It
This is the part most people overlook.
Player development is not just events, culture, and programming.
It is emotional leadership.
It is presence.
It is trust.
It is stability in instability.
Here’s what I had to focus on:
Stay consistent with messaging.
Players need something stable when everything else feels unstable.
Keep the door open. Always.
Sometimes kids don’t need answers. They need presence and honesty.
Be visible.
Breakfast. Practice. The hallways. The facility.
You cannot disappear when they need you most.
Prepare for anything.
New interim coach? New permanent coach? Staff leaving?
Player development has to adapt quickly.
Help them finish strong.
Academics. Bowl prep. Life decisions.
Your job doesn’t stop because the news changes.
This is where the real work happens.
This is where trust is built that lasts years beyond the jersey.
Looking Back: The Lesson I Learned the Hard Way
The one thing I wish I had done differently?
I wish I had told Coach Herman directly that I wanted to follow him to Texas.
Not because I didn’t love Houston.
Not because I wasn’t grateful.
But because closed mouths don’t get fed.
Professionals often assume opportunity will find them.
Sometimes you have to speak up and let people know you’re ready for the next step.
It all worked out — and I’m grateful for the opportunities that followed — but that moment taught me something:
Never hesitate to advocate for yourself.
Hot Seat vs. Most Wanted: What’s the Difference?
After working both extremes, here’s what I’ll tell you:
Hot Seat = Fear
People brace for loss. Roles feel fragile. Morale dips.
Most Wanted = Distraction
Rumors pull focus. Recruiting gets messy. Trust becomes fragile.
Both scenarios test your leadership.
Both require strong player development.
Both force you to center the athletes above the noise.
And both will teach you more than any textbook, conference session, or clinic ever will.
Final Thought: Keep the Players First
When you strip away the headlines, the rumors, the emotion, and the career movement… the heart of this work never changes.
You are there for the athletes.
Whether your coach is on the hot seat or the hottest hiring list, your responsibility is to stabilize, guide, support, and anchor the young people in your program.
That is what player development is.
That is what Beyond The Field stands for.
And that is what this profession needs more of.
The Player Development Guide Book
If this article resonated with you, my book The Player Development Guide will take you even further. It is the complete framework I used to build player development systems at Houston, Kansas, and Baylor. Every chapter comes from real experiences, real challenges, and real solutions that helped athletes grow far beyond the field.
Inside the book, you will find clear guidance, templates, and philosophies that can help you strengthen your current program or build one from scratch. It is the resource I wish existed when I started in 2016.
If you want a roadmap, a reference, or something that helps you lead with more confidence and clarity, this book was created for you.
Get your copy here: GET YOUR COPY TODAY
The 2026 Player Development Summit
In May 2026, we are bringing the Player Development Summit to Detroit, and this year’s event will be the most impactful yet. The Summit brings together people across college athletics, professional sports, high school programs, and international organizations who are committed to improving the athlete experience.
It is a space for learning, collaboration, community, and problem solving. It is for the people who carry the emotional, educational, and leadership responsibilities inside programs and want to grow in their work.
Whether you want to attend, get your school involved, or support the movement through sponsorship, the Summit is the place where the field comes together. If this article hit home for you, the Summit will hit even deeper.
Explore everything here: Player Development Summit