NFL Rumors: Ryan Day, Lincoln Riley Not Generating Much 'Excitement' as HC Candidates

While Jim Harbaugh's Los Angeles Chargers are 6-3 in his first season after making the jump back to the NFL from Michigan, that reportedly isn't inspiring much interest in other notable coaching names from the college football ranks.

Conor Orr of Sports Illustrated reported Thursday he doesn't "see there being an appetite for college coaches at the NFL level" during the upcoming coaching carousel.

He specifically mentioned USC head coach Lincoln Riley and Ohio State head coach Ryan Day as names that aren't generating much "excitement" and added he isn't aware of any "seriousness" to the possibility of Deion Sanders taking over for the Dallas Cowboys.

There is a major difference between Harbaugh and some of these other college coaches when it comes to the NFL.

The leader of the Chargers was formerly an NFL head coach before he took the job at Michigan and found plenty of success. Harbaugh went 44-19-1 in four seasons as the coach of the San Francisco 49ers from 2011 through 2014 and led the team to three straight NFC Championship Games and a Super Bowl.

A track record like that was surely appealing to the Chargers and other teams that were interested in him last offseason, and Los Angeles jumped at the opportunity to add him.

Riley and Day are both known as offensive innovators who have coached the likes of C.J. Stroud, Baker Mayfield, Caleb Williams and Justin Fields, among others. They also have experienced plenty of success at the collegiate level, although Riley's USC program has trended in the wrong direction of late.

The Trojans went 8-5 last season despite having 2024 No. 1 overall pick Williams under center and are just 4-5 in their first season in the Big Ten in 2024. Perhaps that has tempered any interest from the NFL.

As for Day, he is a sparkling 64-9 during seven seasons at Ohio State but has drawn criticism from outside and inside his own fanbase for falling short of the program's overall goals in recent years. The Buckeyes have lost three straight to rival Michigan and haven't won the Big Ten title since the 2020 campaign.

Perhaps he can change that this season with a team that is No. 2 in the latest College Football Playoff rankings, but it doesn't seem like there are many NFL teams knocking down his door at this stage.