JIMMY ROGERS IS the likely new guy at Washington State, although the deal is not done yet. A name that gained serious traction over the last few hours, the South Dakota State head man would check a lot of boxes for WSU.
Multiple sources, starting with Ross Dellenger of Yahoo.com are reporting that Rogers is being targeted by the Cougs with a deal expected to be finalized soon. He would become the 35th head coach in WSU history.
Rogers has spent 18 of the last 20 years at SDSU, first as a linebacker and then in various coaching roles, rising from a graduate assistant to a head coach, with a two-year break as a GA at FAU in 2012 and 2013. After John Stiegelmeier retired in 2022, Rogers was promoted to the head man and promptly won a national title in 2023. He followed that with a 12-3 mark in 2024, falling in the FCS semifinals.
In two seasons as a head man, Rogers is 27-3 with just two losses to North Dakota State and one to Oklahoma State. He’s a young up-and-comer as well, checking in at just 37 years old.
As fate would have it Rogers actually spent a year with Jake Dickert while at SDSU. Rogers was the linebackers coach in 2016 while Dickert was the safeties coach and co-special teams coordinator.
His identity as a coach is built on defense. Rogers coached linebackers for a decade at SDSU and while he deferred those responsibilities when he took over as head coach, it was still his footprint on the defense.
But what may be the biggest selling point is how he maintained his roster. SDSU went 15-0 in 2023 and won the national title and he convinced all of his eligible players to stay. There were several graduations, but any player that could have transferred decided against it.
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THE GOOD NEWS is Rogers can bring an entire staff with him if he chooses, something that could fit WSU nicely. Ryan Olson and Danny Freund were his co-offensive coordinators this year while Jessee Bobbitt, a former WSU graduate assistant, was the DC.
The Jackrabbits may try and promote one of them into the HC job to bring some continuity but if that does not happen, Pullman may be in their futures. The next step will be Rogers determining whether or not he wants to retain any staff members from Dickert’s crop at WSU. FootballScoop.com reported on Saturday morning that wide receivers coach Nick Edwards and offensive line coach Jared Kaster are both expected to join Dickert at Wake Forest.
Rogers will likely bring some reinforcements on the player side as well. Wide receiver Griffin Wilde entered the portal on Saturday with a Do Not Contact tag, as reported by Pete Nakos of On3 Sports. It would seem highly possible that Wilde intends on following Rogers to WSU.
Starting QB Mark Gronowski and RB Amar Johnson are out of eligibility, but No. 2 tailback Angel Johnson has another year, as do sack leaders Kobe Clayborne and Bryce Hawthorne, both defensive tackles.
On top of bringing in his own guys, Rogers would need to work to maintain the Cougars’ roster and pull some guys back out of the transfer portal who fit his vision.
NOTABLE NOTES:
- CF.C did confirm that MSU head coach Brent Vigen flew to San Diego to interview but ultimately WSU decided on Rogers.
- Rogers’ coaching history is almost exclusively in the midwest, but he was born in Hamilton, Ariz.
- Based on his Twitter picture, he appears to be married with two children. Information on Rogers’ biography is not listed on the South Dakota State website.
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