2025 Week 1 Coaches Inc. Highlights

We’re back. The college football season is underway, the NFL starts this week, and you’re reading the first edition of the Coaches Inc. Highlights of the 2025 season. Life is good!

Despite a weather delay before kickoff at Pitbull Stadium, one of the biggest crowds in years turned out for Florida International’s first game under new Head Coach Willie Simmons and his team did not disappoint. The Panthers’ offense scored a school record six rushing TDs while gaining 223 yards through the air and 233 yards on the ground. The defense, led by Assistant Head Coach/Defensive Coordinator Jovan Dewitt, did not give up a TD the entire game – a first for a FIU team since 2019. Thirteen different WRs had a catch and three different RBs rushed for at least 50 yards and scored a TD, proving that FIU is serious when talking about building depth on the roster. LB Johnny Chaney, Jr., who played at Florida A&M under Willie, forced a fumble early in the 3rd quarter setting up a short 12-yard TD drive that put the game out of reach. Willie, Jovan, and Assistant AD/Football Operations LaTroy Johnson started off their first season together at FIU in dominant fashion. 

Florida State was coming off its most disappointing season in recent memory heading into its opener at home against a Top 10 opponent. Last year, FSU was a preseason Top 10 team who was upset in Week 1 by a Boston College team led by QB Tommy Castellanos. As with nearly every college program in this era, there are plenty of new faces on the 2025 FSU team. One of those happens to be transfer QB Tommy Castellanos, who made waves this offseason with his confident comments after transferring to the Seminoles. He once again upset a Top 10 team in Week 1, only this time he was playing for Florida State. Castellanos backed up his offseason talk and showed why the Seminoles went all in to secure his services by leading the revamped offense to score 31 points. FSU RBs Coach/Recruiting Coordinator David Johnson is not new to FSU, having joined the staff in 2020 after stints at Tennessee, Memphis, and Tulane. He proved why he has staying power by showcasing the depth of his room as 3 different RBs ran for touchdowns and FSU amassed 230 yards on the ground. What a difference a year makes! 

South Carolina Defensive Passing Game Coordinator/Defensive Backs Coach Torrian Gray is without question one of the best in the business and his DBs played a crucial role in the Gamecocks’ win over his alma mater in Atlanta on Sunday. Always near the top of the country in INTs, USC DBs had two crucial picks in the game, one in the Red Zone to prevent a score in the 1st quarter and a second in the 4th quarter to effectively seal the game. Not only were the INTs huge, but DB Vicari Swain had a spectacular 80-yard punt return for a TD to break the game open early in the 4th. The Gamecocks, with a roster assembled by Director of Player Personnel and Recruiting Darren Uscher, picked up where they left off last season and could move into the Top 10.

Wisconsin Safeties Coach Jack Cooper was promoted after serving the past two seasons in a Analyst role and it looks like his Head Coach made a wise decision. Jack left his Defensive Coordinator position at Rhode Island to join the Wisconsin staff as an Analyst after the 2022 season and it looks like that was a wise decision too. As one of the younger fulltime position coaches in the Big Ten, Jack proved he belongs in Week 1. Senior Safety Preston Zachman recorded two INTs, returning one to the 2-yard line to set up a Badger TD, to help secure a shutout for the Badgers in their home opener. As icing on the cake, Zachman was also named Big Ten Defensive Player of the Week. A completely new face with the Badgers this season is Director of Player Personnel Ethan Russo, who arrived in Madison in March after two seasons at North Texas. Jack and Ethan seem to be doing their part in helping Wisconsin return to a bowl game this season.

Howard University Head Coach Larry Scott has emphasized building a sustainable championship program since he took over in Washington, DC right before the world shut down due to the pandemic in 2020. So far, he has led the Bison to a MEAC championship, the school’s first in thirty years, and the school’s first ever Celebration Bowl appearance in 2023 - where they came up just short against Florida A&M. He had a chance to avenge that FAMU loss on Saturday at Miami’s Hard Rock Stadium in the Orange Blossom Classic and came away with a W thanks to a last second FG.

Bison Defensive Coordinator/Safeties Coach Kyshoen Jarrett has been a part of the HU staff since Larry took over, but Saturday was his first game as Defensive Coordinator and he showed why he earned his promotion. The Bison defense didn’t give up a touchdown and consistently stymied FAMU even though FAMU dominated the field position battle. Howard led most of the game but FAMU went ahead on a FG after yet another HU Red Zone stop with 1:49 remaining. In thrilling drama, Howard QB Tyriq Starks and RB Eden James then led the Bison 49 yards to set up the game winning 43-yard FG as the clock ran out. Larry has talked about how much he likes this year’s team and they showed why in their resilient Week 1 victory. 

Cam Spence was a top DL high school prospect coming out of the DMV who stayed home to play at Maryland. Unfortunately, injuries cut his playing career short but his young coaching career is on the rise. He spent time as a GA at both Ohio State and UNC and now is in his first season as a Defensive Line Coach back home in the DMV with Georgetown. His first game could not have gone better as the Hoyas trounced Davidson 51-14. The Georgetown D came up with 4 sacks and 3 of those were attributed to his group. He’s learned from some of the most respected coaches in the game and he showed in Week 1 that he is up to the task of leading his own room and will make a difference for the Hoyas this year. 

Presbyterian College secured the highest-ranked win in program history by beating #11 Mercer 15-10 on Saturday. Presby Defensive Coordinator/OLBs Coach Dan Owen’s Blue Hose defense was a big reason why. They limited Mercer to just 241 total yards and a mere 24:10 time of possession. With the game on the line and Mercer’s offense on the PC 30, the PC defense help strong, knocking down the final two pass attempts.

Not only was it an upset of epic proportions for Presbyterian, but it was also astounding for Presbyterian’s conference. Pioneer League teams have struggled mightily against FCS Top-25 teams, going just 4-68 since 2010 and no Pioneer League team had beaten a Top-15 opponent in that time. The Blue Hose have consistently improved under this staff and their huge upset win in Week 1 shows they aren’t finished yet.

Head Coach Quinn Gray’s Albany State Golden Rams entered the season picked to finish 1st in the SIAC. In his first two seasons as a Head Coach, Quinn led ASU to a 12-4 conference record but had yet to secure a win over an out of conference opponent. He can cross that off the list after Saturday’s 51-7 thrashing on the road against CIAA member Shaw University. Quinn returns SIAC Offensive Player of the Year QB Isaiah Knowles, who threw for a TD and rushed for 2 more on Saturday. RB Tiant Wyche, who was named 2024 SIAC Freshman of the Year, picked up where he left off by rushing 14 times for 137 yards and 2 TDs. Expectations are high this year for the Golden Rams and the team lived up to the hype in Week 1. 

Angelo State Head Coach Jeff Girsch took over the head coaching duties after the 2018 season and has led the Rams to tremendous success. On Thursday, he notched his 50th win as Head Coach, the fastest in program history to do so, bringing his overall HC record to an impressive 50-15.

As they did in 2024, the Rams traveled to Hays, Kansas to open the season against Fort Hayes State, a game they lost last year. Returning QB Braeden Fuller had a stellar game going 12/19 for 177 yards and 3 TDs while also rushing 14 times for 33 yards. The defense also played well, allowing just 268 total yards. Angelo State entered the year ranked as D2 preseason #13 nationally and is looking to put together another championship season with a NCAA playoff run.