In addition to a sudden departure from head coach Luke Fickell on Sunday afternoon, the Bearcats are likely going to lose a handful of assistant coaches to Wisconsin including strength coach Brady Collins.
It’s common for a recently hired head coach to bring a few assistants from his old staff and Fickell is reportedly heading to the Big Ten alongside Collins and a couple recruiting coordinators.
Wisconsin is expected to hire Collins as strength and conditioning coach according to Pete Thamel, and recruiting staffers Pat Lambert and Max Stienecker are potentially on the move as well per Justin Williams.
After being named the director of football sports performance at Cincinnati nearly six years ago, Collins helped develop the program into one of the toughest and most physical in the country.
With the departure of Fickell, the #Bearcats are left with uncertainty and a move to the Big 12 approaching. There are several ramifications from Fickell’s decision including a slew of decommits and transfers on Sunday night. https://t.co/oWlKRt1dAq pic.twitter.com/VR3nOFXPzc
— Cincy on the Prowl (@CincyOnTheProwl) November 29, 2022
Cincinnati Football: Multiple coaches expected to follow Luke Fickell to Wisconsin
There will be a lot of changes in the near future with current players considering transfer options, recruits deciding to decommit and more coaching staff adjustments so it’s important to hire a new head coach soon.
With the transfer portal opening next week and signing day right around the corner, Cincinnati will need to move fast to avoid additional changes to the coaching staff, roster and recruiting class.
Bearcats athletics director John Cunningham reacted to Fickell’s departure and mentioned what he’s looking for in a head coaching candidate in a recent press conference via Cincinnati Athletics.
"“We’re going to go find the very best coach in the country to coach the Bearcats going forward. I’m extremely excited about this opportunity. It’s 100 percent about just finding the best person for the University of Cincinnati. The goal is to do a nation-wide search. There will be potential internal and external candidates. We have to find the very best person for this new-age of college football that we’re in and that’s going to be a key as well. My search committee is internal and we’ve got really good people to help me do this. We’re going to move as quickly as we can. I told the team it’s going to feel a lot longer than it is but we also recognize that there are considerations regarding transfer portal and signing day so we will move very quickly.”"