The Zeitgeist List · coordinators · never a head coach
Joe Rossi.
Defensive coordinator · 9 seasons · 7 stints · 3 programs0 seasons ranked in the national top 10%
Own effect on the unit
Defense−0.15#334 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.
Rutgers 2014–2015
Minnesota 2019–2023
Michigan State 2024–2026
Median of those still in the job, that year of a tenure. A shrinking pool, not a path.
Rutgers, 2 years
−0.8
11.3 to 10.5 percentile.
Minnesota, 5 years
−56.5
71.2 to 14.7 percentile.
Michigan State, 3 years
+0.1
40.7 to 40.8 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2014–2015 | Rutgers | no record | 11.3 | 11.3 | −43.1 |
| 2019–2019 | Minnesota | 41.2 | 71.2 | 71.2 | +17.0 |
| 2020–2021 | Minnesota | 71.2 | 9.8 | 79.6 | −8.2 |
| 2022–2022 | Minnesota | 79.6 | 71.4 | 71.4 | +18.0 |
| 2023–2023 | Minnesota | 71.4 | 14.7 | 14.7 | −37.4 |
| 2024–2025 | Michigan State | 31.2 | 40.7 | 40.8 | −15.2 |
| 2026–2026 | Michigan State | no record | — | — | — |
No prior-season record for the first stop (Rutgers, 2014) — the data floor starts there.
Minnesota 2022–2022: ranked 80th the year before he arrived, 71st at its best — went backwards.
Minnesota 2023–2023: ranked 71st the year before he arrived, 15th at its best — went backwards.
Michigan State: just hired, no season coached yet.