Todd Grantham is apparently a name to watch in the Mississippi State head coach search.
Mississippi State on Friday fired Joe Moorhead as their head coach after two seasons. Moorhead was reportedly viewed as a poor fit in Starkville. The program’s bad bowl loss and some off-field issues reportedly contributed to the decision.
Now that Moorhead is out, many are wondering whom the Bulldogs will target. Yahoo’s Pete Thamel says Florida Gators defensive coordinator Todd Grantham is gaining traction in the search.
Source: Expect Mississippi State to start conducting interviews this weekend. One name gaining traction in the search is Florida DC Todd Grantham, the successful former DC at MSU under Mullen in Starkville.
— Pete Thamel (@PeteThamel) January 4, 2020
Grantham, you may recall, interviewed with the Cincinnati Bengals a year ago about their defensive coordinator job but turned them down to remain under Dan Mullen at Florida. The 53-year-old former offensive lineman coached at Mississippi State under Mullen in 2017, so he has familiarity with the school.
Another name mentioned for the search is former Auburn coach Gene Chizik, according to ESPN’s Adam Rittenberg.
A name to keep in mind for #MississippiState job: Former Auburn coach Gene Chizik.
— Adam Rittenberg (@ESPNRittenberg) January 3, 2020
Louisiana’s Billy Napier was another coached viewed as a potential Mississippi State candidate, but he turned them down, according to Brett McMurphy.
Louisiana’s Billy Napier, expected to be among Mississippi State’s top targets, has declined an opportunity to join the Bulldogs, source told @Stadium
— Brett McMurphy (@Brett_McMurphy) January 3, 2020
Mississippi State is entering the head coach search late in the process. Fellow SEC programs Ole Miss (Lane Kiffin), Arkansas (Sam Pittman) and Missouri (Eli Drinkwitz) have already made coaching hires, which will limit the candidate pool.
