:format(webp)/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_image/image/71697907/1284421845.0.jpg "FAU head coach: Owls hire Tom Herman as next football coach, per report")
Action Network's Brett McMurphy reported on Thursday that FAU has hired Tom Herman to fill as its next head football coach. The move comes less than a week after the school parted ways with former head coach Willie Taggart following a 5-7 campaign. The new Owls head coach was last serving as an offensive analyst for the Chicago Bears in 2021.
Serving as offensive coordinator for Ohio State during their 2014 national championship run, Herman landed the Houston job the following year and had tremendous success with the upstart AAC program. In two seasons with the Cougars, he posted a 22-4 record that included a conference championship and a victory over Florida State in the 2015 Peach Bowl. During that run, Herman brought tons of attention to the program and notably landed five-star defensive tackle and current Buffalo Bills standout Ed Oliver.
Those two successful years was able to get him the head coaching job at Texas, where he posted a 32-18 record through four seasons. His accomplishments included a victory over Georgia in the 2019 Sugar Bowl and landing top recruits like current Doak Walker Award finalist Bijan Robinson at running back. However, Herman's personality would clash with the powers that be in Austin, TX, from time to time and he was fired following the 2020 campaign.
Herman will now step into Boca Raton, FL, with the task of transitioning FAU up to the AAC next season.