The Zeitgeist List · coordinators · never a head coach
Brian Ward.
Defensive coordinator · 11 seasons · 5 stints · 5 programs0 seasons ranked in the national top 10%
Own effect on the unit
Defense−0.09#292 of 458 · a typical amount
The tenure clock
Every stop re-aligned to its own first year, so the stops stack instead of scrolling past each other. The gray dashed line is a reference, not a path: each point is the median of whoever was still in the job that year, across every real OC/DC stint since 2014 at that role, and the pool shrinks year over year because surviving to a later year means not having been fired.
Bowling Green 2015–2015
Syracuse 2016–2019
Nevada 2020–2021
Washington State 2022–2022
Arizona State 2023–2026
Median of those still in the job, that year of a tenure. A shrinking pool, not a path.
Syracuse, 4 years
+16.8
9.8 to 26.5 percentile.
Nevada, 2 years
+15.7
51.6 to 67.3 percentile.
Arizona State, 4 years
+55.6
13.2 to 68.8 percentile.
Median defensive coordinator
+1.0
first season to last, across 239 stints of 3+ years. 52.3% improve at all.
Every stop on the calendar
| Years | Program | Walked into | Year 1 | Best | Vs. talent |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2015–2015 | Bowling Green | 32.4 | 66.8 | 66.8 | +19.6 |
| 2016–2019 | Syracuse | 35.5 | 9.8 | 60.4 | −22.6 |
| 2020–2021 | Nevada | 25.0 | 51.6 | 67.3 | +15.9 |
| 2022–2022 | Washington State | 45.0 | 36.3 | 36.3 | −13.1 |
| 2023–2026 | Arizona State | 13.4 | 13.2 | 68.8 | −8.4 |
Washington State 2022–2022: ranked 45th the year before he arrived, 36th at its best — went backwards.