EA Sports is set to release its next banger, College Football 26, on July 10. The game will be a symbol of significant innovation in the series, featuring over 300 real-life college football coaches. This inclusion polishes and maintains the authenticity of the gameplay, particularly in modes like Dynasty and Road to Glory.
With so many new faces being included, the realism will be bumped up a notch. So, let’s take a look at all the head coaches we’ll see in College Football 26, as well as those who might not make the cut. We will also be listing the real coordinators who are in the game as well.
This article will also be updated as we find out more.
All Confirmed Coaches in College Football 26
Several prominent coaches from notable teams have been confirmed through either official sources or cover art leaks. Solidice, a trusted OS member, has been keeping track of all this information and has created a meticulous document containing all these details. We also have Twitter user Caleb Figgures who has done a great job compiling all the announcements coming from the schools themselves. That said, here is the full list of head coaches that have been confirmed so far:
| University | Head Coach | Offensive Coordinator | Defensive Coordinator |
| Air Force | Troy Calhoun | Mike Thiessen | Brian Knorr |
| Alabama | Kalen DeBoer | Ryan Grubb | Kane Wommack |
| Appalachian State | Dowell Loggains (first year as head coach) | D.J. Smith | |
| Arizona | Brent Brennan | Seth Doege | Danny Gonzales |
| Arizona State | Kenny Dillingham | Marcus Arroyo | Brian Ward |
| Arkansas State | Butch Jones | Keith Heckendorf | Griffin McCarley |
| Army | Jeff Monken | Cody Worley | |
| Auburn | Hugh Freeze | Derrick Nix | DJ Durkin |
| Ball State | Mike Uremovich | ||
| Baylor | Dave Aranda | Jake Spavital | Matt Powledge |
| Boise State | Spencer Danielson (first year as head coach) | Nate Potter | Erik Chinander |
| Boston College | Bill O’Brien | Will Lawing | Tim Lewis |
| Bowling Green | Eddie George (first year as head coach, and yes, it’s that Eddie George) | ||
| Buffalo | Pete Lembo | Dave Patenaude | Joe Bowen |
| BYU | Kalani Sitake | Aaron Roderick | Jay Hill |
| Central Michigan | Matt Drinkall (first year as head coach) | Jim Chapin | Sean Cronin |
| Charlotte | Tim Albin (first year as head coach) | Todd Fitch | Nate Faanes |
| Cincinnati | Scott Satterfield | Brad Glenn | Tyson Veidt |
| Clemson | Dabo Swinney | Garrett Riley | Tom Allen |
| Delaware | Ryan Carty | Terence Archer | Manny Rojas |
| Duke | Manny Diaz | Jonathan Brewer | Jonathan Patke |
| East Carolina | Blake Harrell | John David Baker | Josh Aldridge |
| Eastern Michigan | Chris Creighton | Mike Piatkowski | Ben Needham |
| Florida Atlantic | Zack Kittley (first year as head coach) | ||
| FIU | Willie Simmons (first year as head coach) | Nick Coleman | Jovan Dewitt |
| Florida State | Mike Norvell | Tony White | |
| Fresno State | Matt Entz (first year as head coach) | Josh Davis | Nick Benedetto |
| Georgia | Kirby Smart | ||
| GA Southern | Clay Helton | Ryan Aplin | Brandon Bailey |
| Georgia State | Dell McGee | ||
| Georgia Tech | Brent Key | ||
| Hawaii | Timmy Chang | ||
| Houston | Willie Fritz | ||
| Illinois | Brett Bielema | Barry Lunney Jr. | Aaron Henry |
| Indiana | Curt Cignetti | Mike Shanahan | Bryant Haines |
| Iowa State | Matt Campbell | Taylor Mouser | Jon Heacock |
| Jax State | Charles Kelly (first year as head coach) | ||
| James Madison | Bob Chesney | ||
| Kansas | Lance Leipold | Jim Zebrowski | D.K. McDonald |
| Kennesaw State | Jerry Mack (first year as head coach) | ||
| Kent State | Mark Carney (first year as head coach) | ||
| Liberty | Jamey Chadwell | Willy Korn | Kyle Krantz |
| Louisiana Tech | Sonny Cumbie | Tony Franklin | Luke Olsen |
| Louisville | Jeff Brohm | Brian Brohm | Ron English |
| LSU | Brian Kelly | Joe Sloan | Blake Baker |
| Marshall | Tony Gibson (first year as head coach) | ||
| Maryland | Mike Locksley | ||
| Memphis | Ryan Silverfield | Jordan Hawkins | |
| Miami University (Ohio) | Chuck Martin | Patrick Welsh | Bill Brechin |
| Michigan | Sherrone Moore | Chip Lindsey | Wink Martindale |
| Middle Tennessee State | Derek Mason | Bodie Reeder | Brian Stewart |
| Minnesota | P.J. Fleck | Greg Harbaugh Jr. | Danny Collins |
| Mississippi State | Jeff Lebby | ||
| Missouri | Eliah Drinkwitz | Kirby Moore | Corey Batoon |
| Missouri State | Ryan Beard | Nick Petrino | L.D. Scott |
| Navy | Brian Newberry | P.J. Volker | |
| NC State | Dave Doeren | ||
| Nebraska | Matt Ruhle | Dana Holgorsen | John Butler |
| Nevada | Jeff Choate | David Gilbertson | Kane Loane |
| New Mexico | Jason Eck (first year as head coach) | ||
| New Mexico State | Tony Sanchez | ||
| North Texas | Eric Morris | Jordan Davis | Skyler Cassity |
| Northern Illinois | Thomas Hammock | Quinn Sanders | Rob Harley |
| Notre Dame | Marcus Freeman | ||
| Ohio | Brian Smith | Scott Isphording | John Hauser |
| Ohio State | Ryan Day | ||
| Oklahoma State | Mike Gundy | ||
| Old Dominion | Ricky Rahne | Kevin Decker | Blake Seller |
| Ole Miss | Lane Kiffin | Charlie Weis Jr. | Pete Golding |
| Oregon | Dan Lanning | ||
| Oregon State | Trent Bray | ||
| Penn State | James Franklin | Andy Kotelnicki | Jim Knowles |
| Pittsburgh | Pat Narduzzi | Kade Bell | Randy Bates |
| Purdue | Barry Odom (first year as head coach) | Josh Henson | Mike S |
| Rice | Scott Abell (first year as head coach) | ||
| Sam Houston | Phil Longo | Zach Patterson | Freddie Aughtry-Lindsay |
| San Jose State | Ken Niumatalolo | ||
| SMU | Rhett Lashlee | Casey Woods | |
| South Alabama | Major Applewhite | Paul Petrino | Will Windham |
| South Carolina | Shane Beamer | Mike Shula | Clayton White |
| Southern Miss | Charles Huff (first year as head coach) | Blake Anderson | Jason Semore |
| TCU | Sonny Dykes | ||
| Temple | K.C. Keeler (first year as head coach) | Tyler Walker | Brian Smith |
| Tennessee | Josh Heupel | Joey Halzle | Tim Banks |
| Texas | Steve Sarkisian | ||
| Texas A&M | Mike Elko | Collin Klein | Jay Bateman |
| Texas Tech | Joey McGuire | Mack Leftwich | Shiel Wood |
| Troy | Gerad Parker | ||
| Tulane | Jon Sumrall | Joe Craddock | Greg Gasparato |
| Tulsa | Tre Lamb (first year as head coach) | ||
| UCLA | DeShaun Foster | Tino Sunseri | Ikaika Malloe |
| UNLV | Dan Mullen (first year as head coach) | ||
| Utah | Kyle Whittingham | Jason Beck | Morgan Scalley |
| UTEP | Scotty Walden | Mark Cala | Bobby Daly |
| UTSA | Jeff Traylor | ||
| Vanderbilt | Clark Lea | Tim Beck | Steve Gregory |
| Virginia | Tony Elliott | Des Kitchings | John Rudzinski |
| Wake Forest | Jake Dickert | ||
| West Virginia | Rich Rodriguez (first year as head coach, well, in his second stint with WVU) | ||
| Western Michigan | Lance Taylor | ||
| Wisconsin | Luke Fickell |
Prominent Head Coaches Who Are Missing (So Far)
While the coaches listed above are confirmed, many are still missing from the game. These include various big names like Bill Belichick. Whether due to licensing issues or other factors, here are some of the major coaches who may or may not make it to College Football 26.
- Bill Belichick (UNC)
- Deion Sanders (Colorado)
- Billy Napier (Florida) — we expect he’s in, Florida just hasn’t posted the official screenshot yet
- Brent Venables (Oklahoma)
- Lincoln Riley (USC)
- Mario Cristobal (Miami)
- Kirk Ferentz (Iowa)
- Gus Malzahn (FSU OC)
Why Bill Belichick And Deion Sanders Might Not Be In College Football 26?
Although we’ve included Bill Belichick in our list of coaches who may make it to CFB ’26, chances are high that he and Deion Sanders might miss the game altogether.
See, despite Bill’s recent appointment as head coach at the University of North Carolina, reports have been buzzing that he will not be featured in the upcoming game. This is because he has always opted out of licensing agreements, abstaining from the NFL Coaches Association. Due to this, EA has failed to feature him since Madden NFL 2002, and has always included him under a fake name.
The head coach of Colorado, Deion Sanders, is likely to stay absent as well. The coach has reportedly declined EA Sports’ offer to be included. And no consent equals no appearance. Although he still has time, the way things are going, his absence is likely to be confirmed.
