As the conference championship games and seedings for the 2025 College Football Playoffs approach, the next month will certainly be an exciting time for the sport on the field.

While bluebloods like Penn State and Clemson have scuffled through nightmarish seasons, the prospect of upstarts like Indiana, Texas A&M and Vanderbilt making unprecedented names for themselves in late December and early January creates an intriguing level of interest that has been higher than most anything that has been generated in the recent past.

James Franklin’s dismissal as Penn State’s head coach on Oct. 12 was one of the centerpieces in a domino effect that has seen a boatload of head coaches at big-name programs get pink slips in the middle of this season.

Among the most notable casualties were Hugh Freeze at Auburn, Brian Kelly at LSU and Billy Napier at Florida. Early this season, Altoona native and former Penn State assistant Brent Pry was dismissed at Virginia Tech, as was Sam Pittman at Arkansas and DeShaun Foster at UCLA.

The end result has been the creation of a lot of high-profile job openings all over the country’s college football landscape, and big-name candidates in the running to fill the positions.

Several coaches are considered promising candidates at two or more schools. Franklin has been closely linked to the Virginia Tech, Florida, Arkansas and Auburn opportunities, and arguably the heaviest hitter of the prospective candidates for relocation, Mississippi coach Lane Kiffin, is a front-runner at both Florida and LSU.

Current Missouri coach Eli Drinkwitz’s name has been mentioned as a top candidate at Penn State and Florida, and veteran coach Dan Mullen — who is working his magic at UNLV this season — has been included as a top candidate at Auburn, Virginia Tech and Arkansas.

What follows is a school-by-school look at who might be each program’s next head coach:

Penn State: Ohio State offensive coordinator Brian Hartline is regarded as a top candidate, but he has no head coaching experience, and the Buckeyes are likely to make another national title run, which would leave him with a big decision to make. Established head coaches who would be solid hires for Penn State include Drinkwitz, Louisville’s Jeff Brohm, Iowa State’s Matt Campbell, Vanderbilt’s Clark Lea, and Duke’s Manny Diaz — who has head coaching experience at two schools and served a solid tenure as the Nittany Lions’ defensive coordinator. Mike Elko has done a bang-up job at Texas A&M, and is on Penn State’s radar, but he has vehemently denied any interest in leaving the Aggies — despite the fact that he has yet to be offered a contract extension. Notre Dame coach Marcus Freeman is more likely to head for the National Football League if he goes anywhere, but his name has also been included in the Penn State candidate mix.

Florida: Despite the fact that the Gators have fallen off considerably this year, the Florida job is still one of the best available. Kiffin would likely be the Gators’ top preference, but Franklin has been waiting in the wings. Other candidates are Lea, Drinkwitz, and Washington head coach Judd Fisch.

LSU: The school is in the midst of a firestorm after its acrimonious dismissal of Kelly, who has taken legal action in a dispute with the Tigers over his contract buyout. Kiffin would be a home-run hire, if he can be pried away from the Mississippi Rebels, whom he has directed to national relevance, or doesn’t wind up at Florida. Tulane head coach Jon Sumrall is regarded as a candidate for the LSU opening, along with the opportunities at Auburn, Arkansas and UCLA.

Auburn: Sumrall, an Alabama native with deep Southeastern Conference ties — he was previously an assistant coach at Ole Miss and Kentucky — would appear to be on the inside track for this position. Franklin and Mullen would both be strong candidates, as would Georgia Tech head coach Brent Key, but he has denied any interest in leaving the resurgent Yellow Jackets. South Florida head coach Alex Golash is an up-and-comer who has been mentioned as a candidate for both this job and the Arkansas opening.

Virginia Tech: The Hokies were reportedly very close to hiring Franklin quite recently, and it’s believed that if this job was his top priority, it would have already been a done deal for him. Mullen and South Carolina head coach Shane Beamer — whose father, Frank, was a Virginia Tech coaching legend — are believed to be in the mix, as is former Penn State running backs coach Charles Huff, who is currently the head coach at Southern Mississippi.

Arkansas: Bobby Petrino, who was formerly the Razorbacks’ head coach years ago, was promoted to the top spot after Pittman’s dismissal. Petrino is a strong candidate for reinstatement. Arkansas is currently a bottom-tier SEC program, but it’s still part of one of college football’s two most elite conferences, so there will be plenty of big-name applicants trying to unseat Petrino.

UCLA: The Bruins never launched just over one season under Foster’s direction, and he was replaced on an interim basis by former assistant coach Tim Skipper early this season. Skipper promoted Jerry Neuhisel to the position of assistant head coach, and UCLA won three straight games after its 0-4 start. If a changing of the guard is in order in Westwood at season’s end, Fisch and current Michigan State coach Jonathan Smith are believed to be strong candidates. Former UCLA player and current Florida State defensive coordinator Troy White could also be in the mix, as could former UCLA defensive coordinator D’Anton Lynn, who is currently occupying the same position at crosstown USC.

John Hartsock can be reached at jhartsock@altoonamirror.com