The Zeitgeist List · coordinators · never a head coach
Matt Barnes.
Defensive coordinator · 4 seasons · 2 stints · 2 programs0 seasons ranked in the national top 10%
Own effect on the unit
Defense+0.21#78 of 458 · more than most
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.
Memphis 2022–2023
Mississippi State 2024–2025
Median of those still in the job, that year of a tenure. A shrinking pool, not a path.
Memphis, 2 years
−41.9
88.2 to 46.2 percentile.
Mississippi State, 2 years
+3.5
10.1 to 13.6 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2022–2023 | Memphis | 35.8 | 88.2 | 88.2 | +17.5 |
| 2024–2025 | Mississippi State | 73.3 | 10.1 | 13.6 | −46.7 |
Mississippi State 2024–2025: ranked 73rd the year before he arrived, 14th at its best — went backwards.