What to Expect from Every New College Football Coach in 2015

New Michigan head coach Jim Harbaugh has been under an intense spotlight since joining his alma mater this season. But how well will the Wolverines do in year one under their new head coach? Just because Harbaugh is a star doesn't mean Michigan is playoff bound right away. 

Harbaugh was one of 15 coaches hired by Division 1 FBS programs over the past several months. With spring games in the books, it's time to look ahead at what Harbaugh and all the other new coaches can accomplish this season. Whether it's getting back to a bowl game, naming a starting quarterback or competing for a conference championship, every coach has a different to-do list. 

Here's what to expect from every first-year head coach in major college football in 2015 in terms of win total and necessary improvements on offense and/or defense. 

Buffalo: Lance Leipold

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This is a high-risk, high-reward hire for Buffalo. Lance Leipold was a king at Wisconsin-Whitewater in Division III. As Kevin Ryan of 247Sports writes, Leipold was named the "Division III coach of the year six times in the last eight years and led Whitewater to six national titles and a 109-6 record." 

However, Leipold enters a program that has struggled to form winning seasons. A lot of seniors are gone from last year's two-deep roster as well. The good news is that many of the team's offensive leaders are back. Getting back to five wins, which would match last year's total, is certainly doable. Getting to six and bowl eligibility would be a huge victory. 

Central Michigan: John Bonamego

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Dan Enos had the unfortunate title of being the "guy after the guy" with Brian Kelly and Butch Jones. The satisfaction level was never quite there. Adding to that, Enos left Central Michigan to become the offensive coordinator at Arkansas. 

John Bonamego is a Central Michigan alum who's spent most of his coaching career in the NFL. He does inherit a 3,000-yard passer in Cooper Rush, who just tossed seven touchdowns in the Bahamas Bowl. Having one of the better passers in the MAC certainly helps.

The defense loses a handful of seniors, but the overall two-deep is fairly experienced. The Chips should be in line to get back to a bowl game with six wins.

Florida: Jim McElwain

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You can't say first-year Florida coach Jim McElwain doesn't have his work cut out for him. 

McElwain has been public about his feelings on the roster he inherited from former coach Will Muschamp. In March, addressing depth concerns, McElwain said, via Brandon Marcello of AL.com, "You've got to play the hand you're dealt, and right now, quite honestly, the hand we were dealt is really insufficient at some of the areas." 

Depth is an especially big issue along the offensive line, which recently lost Rod Johnson to a career-ending spinal condition. Martez Ivey, a 5-star lineman, should come in and play right away. There's also the ongoing quarterback battle between Will Grier and Treon Harris. 

With the offense in question, the Gators will need to rely on their defense once again to get back to a bowl game. McElwain had success in the SEC as an assistant at Alabama, but it could be a couple of years before he gets Florida back into the SEC East race. 

Houston: Tom Herman

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Former Ohio State offensive coordinator Tom Herman takes over a good situation at Houston. There are a lot of returning starters, and his coaching staff has deep Texas ties for recruiting.

That's a luxury that former Cougars coach Tony Levine didn't have a few years ago, as Andy Staples of Sports Illustrated explained: "Tony Levine inherited a program riding high thanks to previous coaches Art Briles and Kevin Sumlin. But Sumlin had taken much of the staff—on-field and support—with him to Texas A&M. Levine didn’t have as thorough of a list."

The Cougars defense is ready to go with tons of playmakers such as cornerback William Jackson. If the offensive line can shore up, there's no reason why Houston can't make an American Athletic Conference title run. 

Kansas: David Beaty

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David Beaty has a lot of work to do at Kansas. 

This is a program that has won two conference games in the past four years. Its best player, linebacker Ben Heeney, is off to the NFL. Making matters worse, the Jayhawks lost their potential starting quarterback, Michael Cummings, in the spring game due to a knee injury of the "freak accident" variety. 

Beaty is considered an excellent recruiter in the state of Texas, as noted by Sam Khan of ESPN.com: 

"

In his three years in Aggieland, the former Texas high school football coach earned a reputation as a stellar recruiter and was the lynchpin to the Aggies’ success in the Dallas-Fort Worth Metroplex, a fertile area for talent and one that is a priority to Sumlin in the team's annual recruiting efforts.

"

Getting more production out of the offense (without Cummings) and winning a couple of Big 12 games would be a great start, but it's also a lot to ask in year one.

Michigan: Jim Harbaugh

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Jim Harbaugh was easily the best college football hire of the past several months. Michigan got a proven winner and a big name that can revitalize the Wolverines brand.

But 2015 might not reflect future success. Michigan's defense should be in good hands with talented players and a coaching staff that features coordinator D.J. Durkin and defensive line coach Greg Mattison. However, the offense is a serious work in progress. Shane Morris is the No. 1 quarterback for now, but Iowa transfer Jake Rudock joins the team this summer.

There are also questions at running back and offensive line, both of which have underperformed over the past several years. On top of all that, the Wolverines play in the same division as Ohio State, Michigan State and Penn State. 

Harbaugh may be able to get Michigan to a bowl game in year one by relying on the defense. His rebuilding project needs a boost with the 2016 recruiting class, though. 

Colorado State: Mike Bobo

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There are concerns—legitimate ones—about whether first-year head coach Mike Bobo is the right fit at Colorado State with his Southeastern Conference ties. Yes, his predecessor, Jim McElwain, came from the SEC. But McElwain built his staff from scratch to cater to Colorado and the West Coast on the recruiting trail.

Long term, that could be a concern. In the meantime, Bobo is set up for success with the Rams. There will be a new quarterback now that Garrett Grayson is gone, but leading receiver Rashard Higgins is back. Overall, there are a lot of seniors on this starting 22. 

The Rams play in a tough division as far as non-Power Five conferences are concerned. Bobo has been given the keys to a nice ride, though. He can push for a Mountain Division title right away. 

Nebraska: Mike Riley

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Hiring Mike Riley from Oregon State certainly was a unique move by Nebraska. New hires tend to be overcorrections from the previous ones, and you're not going to get much more "night and day" personality-wise than Riley and Bo Pelini. 

Riley has some pieces in place to be successful on offense, even though running back Ameer Abdullah is gone. Quarterback Tommy Armstrong Jr. is back, as are Jordan Westerkamp and De'Mornay Pierson-El at wide receiver. The defense will have to find a replacement for edge-rusher Randy Gregory. 

The knock on Nebraska is that it was never able to get over the nine-and-10-win hump with Pelini. That may be consistent, but the program lacked key wins and never brought home a conference championship. Riley has the roster to compete for another Big Ten West title right away. The longer-term question is whether he can do what Pelini could not. 

Oregon State: Gary Andersen

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Gary Andersen comes to Oregon State after successful stints at Utah State and Wisconsin. The guy can flat-out coach. He inherits a program that has finished in the bottom half of the Pac-12 North in three of the last four years. 

The good news is that Andersen probably has his weapon at quarterback. Seth Collins, though just a freshman, is the type of dual-threat quarterback Andersen wants. It's what he had at Utah State with Chuckie Keeton and wanted to have at Wisconsin with Tanner McEvoy. As David Lombardi of ESPN.com notes, if the quarterback competition ended today, Collins would probably get the nod. 

The overall strength of the Pac-12 has shifted to the South Division. Still, Oregon State has Oregon and Stanford to contend with. Getting back to a bowl game in the first season with Andersen would be a success. 

Pitt: Pat Narduzzi

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Pat Narduzzi is a longtime assistant under Michigan State coach Mark Dantonio who finally got the right situation with Pitt. 

Narduzzi's team will play excellent defense, and he comes into a decent offensive situation as well. Running back James Conner is the reigning ACC Player of the Year, and wide receive Tyler Boyd is getting early first-round consideration for the 2016 draft by B/R's Matt Miller. 

Plus, the Panthers don't have to play Clemson or Florida State in 2015. This is a great situation for Narduzzi, who could get Pitt to seven or eight wins easily. 

SMU: Chad Morris

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As far as coach-program fits go, you'd be hard-pressed to find a better one than Chad Morris at SMU. The former Texas high school coach knows the Dallas-Fort Worth Metroplex well and is given the keys to a program that is capable of winning. 

Eventually, Morris will win at SMU. (If you missed it, B/R colleague Adam Kramer explains why in an awesome feature profile.) In 2015, though? June Jones didn't exactly leave Morris a program ready to go. This is a team that lost games by an average of 30 points in 2014. 

Ideally, you'd like to see some improvement on offense considering that's Morris' background. Considering the Mustangs averaged 11 points per game last season, there's nowhere to go but up. The wins will come; score some more points, and make games more competitive. That's the year-one goal. 

Troy: Neal Brown

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This is a great fit. Neal Brown is a former Troy assistant who brings his version of the Air Raid offense back to the Trojans. At 35 years old, Brown is a young offensive mind who's done good things at Texas Tech and Kentucky. 

Adjusting to Brown's offense shouldn't be an issue for Troy. It's the defense that needs fixing—at least to the point where it's competent. Last year, Troy gave up 36 points and 454 yards per game. That responsibility falls under Vic Koenning, a longtime assistant who was most recently at North Carolina. 

After going 3-9 in 2014, bowl eligibility may be a stretch. But you'd like to see the Trojans notch a couple more wins.

Tulsa: Philip Montgomery

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Philip Montgomery is a longtime assistant of Baylor head coach Art Briles dating back to their days at Stephenville High School. His Texas high school connections should help the Golden Hurricane, who recruit heavily out of Texas. 

Offensively, Montgomery will fit right in with the program's philosophy of spreading the ball around. Scoring points shouldn't be an issue. The defense needs fixing, however. In 2014, Tulsa gave up nearly 40 points per game. Even getting that number down a touchdown a game would be huge. 

This is a program capable of winning more than two games a year. Getting to bowl eligibility may be a stretch, but doubling on last year's win total is doable. 

UNLV: Tony Sanchez

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The Bobby Hauck era at UNLV wasn't long-lasting and ended with just two wins in 2014. The Rebels are looking to rebound with Tony Sanchez, a former high school coach at Las Vegas' Bishop Gorman. It's a risky hire to say the least. 

Sanchez is going to have his work cut out for him. The program seems to be limited financially, as Hauck recently told FootballScoop (h/t Danny Webster of The Rebel Yell) the school still owes him money, and just lost one of its best players in receiver Devante Davis. What can Sanchez do in year one? Getting just a few wins would probably be on par. 

Wisconsin: Paul Chryst

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Paul Chryst inherits a good situation at Wisconsin. A former Wisconsin assistant, Chryst knows the program well and, philosophically, won't require much of a transition. 

Even though leading running back Melvin Gordon is gone, Corey Clement is ready to step up and be the Badgers' next bell-cow running back. The main question, of all things, is whether a banged-up and inexperienced offensive line can come together quickly. 

Defensively, Chryst kept coordinator Dave Aranda, and linebacker Vince Biegel is back. With a manageable schedule—the Badgers don't get Ohio State or Michigan State—Chryst takes over a program that's ready to get back to the Big Ten championship game. 

Ben Kercheval is a lead writer for college football. All quotes cited unless obtained firsthand. All stats courtesy of cfbstats.com. All recruiting information courtesy of 247Sports.