Speculation about college football head coaches‘ futures never slows down, even as the season is kicking off.
Even for North Dakota State, fresh off a 33-7 blowout win over Jacksonville State, the Bison came up in the coaching rumor mill. ESPN’s Adam Rittenberg floated NDSU head coach Tim Polasek as a potential candidate for a bigger job, and Rittenberg indirectly suggested a potential replacement for Polasek.
“The last three North Dakota State coaches before Polasek — [Matt] Entz, Chris Klieman and Craig Bohl — all eventually ended up as FBS coaches,” Rittenberg wrote. “Polasek already has the distinction as he guides the Bison into the land of bowls and the Mountain West [Conference] in their inaugural FBS season, which began with a 33-7 win against Conference USA runner-up Jacksonville State.”
“Continued success this fall will bring more attention to Polasek, 47, who is 27-3 as a college coach with an FCS national title in 2024,” Rittenberg continued. “Polasek is a Wisconsin native with deep roots in the state, and he has Power 4 experience from Iowa, where he coached the offensive line from 2017 to 2020.”
Wisconsin has endured back-to-back losing seasons under head coach Luke Fickell, and patience could run out in Madison if it’s a third. For NDSU, the Bison could land a familiar face in Montana State‘s Brett Vigen.
Brett Vigen Ready For FBS
Fresh off an FCS national championship with Montana State, Vigen is a prime coaching candidate to move up as Rittenberg sees it.
“After helping North Dakota State become an FCS power as an assistant, Vigen is doing the same as the head man at Montana State, which last season won its first national title since 1984,” Rittenberg wrote. “Vigen, 51, has reached the championship game three times in five seasons and finished in the top 10 in each year, going 61-12 overall. The North Dakota native has some FBS experience at Wyoming and could appeal to schools with openings in the regions where he has coached.”
Vigen worked under Bohl with both NDSU and Wyoming, and a return to Fargo someday could make sense. If it happened in 2027, it would carry some extra irony since the Bison open with Montana State in the Vegas Kickoff Classic next year.
Tim Polasek Seems Unlikely to Leave
While Rittenberg makes legitimate points on how the college football coaching carousel goes for the likes of Polasek and Vigen, it seems likely Polasek will stay in Fargo for a while.
Polasek became a main player for NDSU’s transition to the FBS this year, and he accepted a new contract with the Bison twice after passing on Oregon State. In addition, his emotional investment in the Bison has shined through leading up to the program’s FBS debut.
“I’m fighting it back pretty good right now, and I need to,” Polasek told the CBS Sports Network after the win on Saturday. “I can’t wait to go through this process of making this move up. This is step No. 1. I just think for Fargo, and for our university, this can be explosive, and we’re excited about this season.”
NDSU Tabbed For Potential Coaching Change in 2027