The Zeitgeist List · coordinators · never a head coach
Steve Russ.
Defensive coordinator · 5 seasons · 3 stints · 2 programs0 seasons ranked in the national top 10%
Own effect on the unit
Defense−0.28#411 of 458 · less 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.
Air Force 2014–2017
UAB 2025–2025
Air Force 2026–2026
Median of those still in the job, that year of a tenure. A shrinking pool, not a path.
Air Force, 4 years
−52.6
66.0 to 13.5 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2014–2017 | Air Force | no record | 66.0 | 66.0 | +7.4 |
| 2025–2025 | UAB | 30.2 | 4.8 | 4.8 | −37.8 |
| 2026–2026 | Air Force | no record | — | — | — |
No prior-season record for the first stop (Air Force, 2014) — the data floor starts there.
UAB 2025–2025: ranked 30th the year before he arrived, 5th at its best — went backwards.
Air Force: just hired, no season coached yet.