Akron football coaching job profile with Tom Arth out: Pluses, minuses, candidates and more

June 06, 2024

The Akron job is open once again. Tom Arth is out as head coach after a dreadful 3-24 run in three seasons, and one of the toughest jobs in college football needs a new coach.

It’s been a rough stretch for Akron. The Zips went 35-52 under Terry Bowden from 2012 to ’18, but that included two bowl games and a MAC East division championship in 2017. Bowden was fired one year removed from that division crown after a 4-8 season, as many had felt he had relied too much on recruiting outside the state. Bowden is now 4-4 in year one at ULM after taking over a winless team, while Arth won fewer games over the past three years.

Arth had a successful 40-8 record at Division III John Carroll from 2013 to ’16, and he was 9-13 in two years at Chattanooga before getting hired by the Zips. Akron went 0-12, 1-5 and 2-7 under Arth. The Zips lost 31-25 to Ball State on Tuesday, fumbling what would have been the go-ahead touchdown into the end zone in the final two minutes. Now they’re looking for a new head coach.

So how good is the Akron job? What names could get in the mix? Here are some factors to keep in mind.

The school is in rough financial shape.

In May 2020, the early stages of the pandemic, Akron announced it would cut six of the 11 colleges within the university, as part of a plan to offset more than $65 million in losses. The school recommended a 20 percent budget cut for athletics and later cut three sports. There’s also a $5 million annual debt on InfoCision Stadium.

Arth’s salary just under $600,000 was the second-lowest in the MAC, and he’ll be owed a little more than $600,000 in buyout, per his contract. Given all of this, the funds available for a new coach may not be much, which could impact the candidate pool.

Are Ohio or Midwest ties a requirement?

Bowden has spent much of his coaching career in the South and didn’t recruit Ohio enough, so Akron turned to an Ohio guy. Arth is from the state and spent most of his coaching career at John Carroll in Ohio.

When Bowden was fired, the Akron roster had 44 players from Ohio and 32 from Florida. Less than half the roster came from the talent-rich home state. Now, the roster includes 53 players from Ohio and just 10 from Florida, as the program turned back to the region for players (15 from Pennsylvania, five from Michigan), though it does have 16 from Georgia, up from three when Bowden left.

But it’s tough to get players.

The school may be in Ohio, but that doesn’t mean getting Ohio players is easy. The Athletic polled more than 60 people in college football, and Akron got several votes as the toughest job in FBS. One reason? The quality of football at lower levels.

“A good two-star recruit who may have a scholarship offer to play football at Akron might decide to play football at Mount Union and win a national championship,” a Power 5 administrator said. “You’re not winning any championships at Akron.”

The facilities are quite good.

What I wrote when the job opened in 2018 still holds true: InfoCision Stadium, which opened in 2009, is the nicest stadium in the MAC, though the school is still paying off the debt on it. The Stile Athletics Field House opened in 2004. It’s a vast indoor facility for all of Akron’s teams, and it includes a full-length football field. There are also outdoor practice fields, including one full-length turf field. These facilities are better than most of the rest of the MAC.

So what names could get in the mix?

There could be several options from the Power 5 level, but those coaches might need to take a pay cut for this job.

Iowa State offensive coordinator Tom Manning was a target last time the job opened, when he was an Indianapolis Colts assistant coach. He’s back with Matt Campbell now and making $900,000. The Cyclones are in the midst of one of the most successful stretches in school history, going 14-6 over the past two years with an 8-1 Big 12 record last year. There’s also the factor of Campbell’s future. If he leaves for a bigger job, Manning could follow him or potentially be a candidate at Iowa State.

Ohio State running backs coach Tony Alford has produced yet another elite-level running back in freshman TreVeyon Henderson and continues to be one of the best coaches in the country at that position. The Akron-native Alford has tried and failed multiple times to land the head coaching job at Colorado State, his alma mater. If he really wants a head coaching job, does he take a chance at Akron? His current salary is around what Akron paid Arth.

Texas running backs coach Stan Drayton is a Cleveland native who coached at Ohio State from 2011 to ’14 and then spent two years with the Chicago Bears. Akron had interest in him the last time this job opened, and now Drayton coaches one of the best running backs in the country in Bijan Robinson.

Notre Dame special teams coordinator Brian Polian played at John Carroll and has been at Notre Dame since 2017 (and previously coached there from 2005 to ’09). He went 23-27 as Nevada’s head coach from 2013 to ’16, reaching two bowl games, and he’s been trying to get another head coaching job since then. He was a finalist for the Bowling Green job when it opened in 2018. Notre Dame defensive line coach Mike Elston was a candidate for that Bowling Green job, too. Elston has been at Notre Dame since 2010 and previously coached at Cincinnati, Central Michigan and Eastern Michigan.

Northwestern defensive backs/associate head coach Matt MacPherson has been a finalist for MAC jobs in recent years. The Dayton native has been at Northwestern for 13 years and previously coached at Eastern Michigan and Kenyon College (Ohio). Northwestern led the nation in pass efficiency defense last season.

Pitt wide receivers coach Brennan Marion has bounced around in recent years, and the Panthers have one of the best passing offenses in the country this season. Pitt receiver Jordan Addison ranks second nationally with 10 touchdown catches. Marion was previously the offensive coordinator at Howard and William & Mary, running what is known as his “Go-Go Offense.”

Green Bay Packers quarterbacks coach Luke Getsy and Miami Dolphins quarterbacks coach Charlie Frye are two of the best players in Akron history. Getsy was a two-year starting quarterback from 2005 to ’06 and won the MAC championship in 2005. He’s spent all but one season since 2014 with the Packers. Perhaps Aaron Rodgers’ impending departure could cause Getsy to take a look at his alma mater? Don’t be surprised if Akron makes a call. The same goes for Frye, who started 44 games at Akron from 2001 to ’04 and is the school’s all-time leading passer by a wide margin. Frye was previously offensive coordinator at Central Michigan from 2019 to ’20 and also worked as director of player development at Florida.

Hiring a MAC coordinator would be unusual, but Toledo defensive coordinator Vince Kehres went 95-6 as Mount Union’s head coach from 2013 to ’19, winning two Division III national titles, and he was in the mix for this Akron job last time. Hiring a D-III coach worked for Buffalo in Lance Leipold, but the strategy didn’t work with Arth.

As the search plays out, stay tuned to the Coaching Tracker for the latest news.

(Photo: Frank Jansky / Icon Sportswire via Getty Images)

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