With all the transferring going on, FCS football is more of a proving ground than ever before. The concept goes for coaches as well. Some are getting head coaching positions without a lot of previous experience. But, like Marshall Faulk, they’re already household names.
In December, Southern University hired College and Pro Football Hall of Famer Marshall Faulk as its new head football coach after he had just one season in the profession.
He’s on both a familiar and successful path in FCS football, and he had a pretty good resource during the 2025 season as Colorado’s running backs coach under Deion Sanders.
Faulk’s hire follows the trend of FCS schools bringing in former NFL players to run their programs, some with little coaching experience. With the emphasis being more on CEO head coaches to build programs, it has made actions like this more popular.
The college football landscape has undergone a complete overhaul with the introduction of NIL. Some say it’s leveled the playing field and others say it has created a growing gap between the haves and have-nots. The FCS finds itself in a strange place, caught between being turned into feeder systems for FBS programs looking to quickly fill holes with experienced collegiate talent and teams battling for supremacy.
Former NFL players are often able to quickly establish credibility with college players who are seeking a path to professional football. Their hirings gain added attention from fans and the media, which can help increase ticket sales and possibly raise money for the program.
They also have found success on the field, and that’s why the Faulk hiring at Southern is intriguing. Will he be the next to find success and, if so, will he move on quickly to a higher level or establish deeper roots in the FCS?
We take a look at some former NFL players who – prior to Marshall Faulk – picked up their coaching whistle with little to no college experience before being placed as a head coach, and how they have fared in the position.
The OG’s: Late 1990s to Early 2010s
Doug Williams, Grambling State (1998-2003; 2011-13)
Legendary Grambling head coach Eddie Robinson retired in 1997, which left humongous shoes to fill. Every coach who entered would not only need to deal with following such a legend at the SWAC school but also try to turn around a program that had seen three straight years of five or fewer wins.
Williams, who played under Robinson and was a Super Bowl-winning quarterback, provided the name that was big enough to follow his mentor.
Despite returning to Grambling with only minimal collegiate coaching experience – including one year as the running backs coach at Navy and one year as the head coach of Morehouse – Williams turned the program around. After posting 5-6 (1998) and 7-4 (1999) records in his first two seasons, he led the program to three conference championships and a 52-18 overall record over six seasons.
He left Grambling in 2004 to return to the NFL in a front office capacity, but Williams coached the Tigers again in a second stint, winning another SWAC title in 2011.
Jim Harbaugh, San Diego (2004-2006)
On the heels of Williams’ successful tenure at his alma mater, the former Michigan great accepted the head coaching job at San Diego, a non-scholarship FCS program in the Pioneer Football League. Upon completing a long career in the NFL, Harbaugh jumped on the staff with the then-Oakland Raiders and spent two seasons as quarterbacks coach before being hired to guide the Toreros.
He inherited an eight-win team but won just seven games in his first season while trying to figure out what type of coach he wanted to be. That’s when the program really took off.
San Diego posted back-to-back seasons of 11-1 records, losing only out of league, and it prompted a call from Stanford to inquire about Harbaugh’s services. The rest is history, as not only did Harbaugh move on to the Cardinal and have success at every stop since San Diego, but the Toreros would win eight-or-more games in 11 of their next 13 seasons.
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3 months ago Craig HaleyChris Villarrial, Saint Francis (2010-Present)
The former All-Pro guard played 11 seasons in the NFL and made 148 career starts from 1996-2006.
With just two seasons of coaching experience as a high school assistant, Villarrial took over at Saint Francis (PA) in 2010. Before his arrival, the Red Flash were a perennial doormat at the FCS level, as they had failed to win more than three games in a season since 1992, and five of the seasons were winless.
The struggles remained in Villarrial’s first two seasons – a combined 3-19 – but over his time with the program, he turned the Red Flash into two-time Northeast Conference champions and was awarded conference coach of the year three times.
A consistently competitive and respected FCS program through Villarrial’s first 15 seasons, he will now oversee the program’s transition back down to a Division III program this year.
The Coach Prime Effect: 2020-Present
Deion Sanders, Jackson State (2020-2022)
Sanders shocked the college football world when he was named the head coach at Jackson State. What followed was all the pomp and circumstance that you would expect with a name and a figure as prominent as the College and Pro Football Hall of Famer.
The COVID pandemic delayed his debut, turning the 2020 fall campaign into a 2021 spring season. At the start, there were mixed results as to what Jackson State would be able to do.
Although Sanders had extensive high school coaching experience, some doubted his ability to be a collegiate head man. After the 4-3 spring season (one win was a forfeit), Coach Prime led Jackson State to a 23-3 record with back-to-back SWAC titles and berths in the Celebration Bowl over the next two seasons. He received the 2021 Eddie Robinson Award as the FCS coach of the year.
It all led to Coach Prime being named Colorado’s head coach, but he then helped to select Jackson State’s next head coach, T.C. Taylor, who was on his staff. The Tigers have since sustained the excellence and even won the Celebration Bowl title that eluded Sanders.
Eddie George, Tennessee State (2021-2024)
George, the former Tennessee Titans running back, followed Sanders into the FCS at Tennessee State. Being a beloved running back in the Nashville area helped his candidacy, but the task of turning the Tigers into a championship program was much more daunting as an HBCU program participating in a non-HBCU conference (Ohio Valley).
George’s tenure at Tennessee State was one marked by steady improvement, as opposed to the massive jump experienced at Jackson State. These Tigers went 5-6 in his first season, 4-7 in his second and 6-5 in his third year. But in his fourth season in 2024, they put it all together, going 9-4, including 6-2 in conference en route to a share of the OVC-Big South title (their first conference championship since 1999) and an FCS playoff bid (their first since 2013).
The Eddie Robinson Award finalist then moved on to Bowling Green as its new coach.
Michael Vick, Norfolk State (2025-Present)
After an electric 13-year career in the NFL and a few years working in sports media, Vick was named Norfolk State’s head coach in late December 2024. His Virginia ties made him an attractive selection, as the MEAC school hoped his name and cachet in the area could help continue to build the program, similar to what George and Sanders had done at their respective programs.
In Vick’s first season, Norfolk State finished only 1-11, but seven of the defeats were by a touchdown or less – giving hope for a quick rise this year. In his debut, it was still easy to see the blueprint Vick was trying to get his team to follow.
DeSean Jackson, Delaware State (2025-Present)
Jackson was named Delaware State’s head coach less than two weeks after Vick did the same at Norfolk State. Like Vick, the longtime Philadelphia Eagles receiver, hoped to capitalize off his name and stature in the area to turn the Hornets’ long-struggling program into a thriving success.
Delaware State had not had a winning season since going 6-5 in 2013, but Jackson walked in and, behind a stellar rushing attack, helped the Hornets go 8-4. Their seven-win improvement from 1-11 in 2024 was the biggest in the FCS last year.
The Hornets finished second in the MEAC to eventual Celebration Bowl champion South Carolina State. Jackson not only brought respect back to Delaware State, but he also helped the school kick off initiatives to improve facilities and continue to move the program forward.
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(Little) Coaching Experience Needed: Marshall Faulk Jumps Onto Unusual, Yet Successful Path in FCS Football Opta Analyst.
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