With spring football beginning on campuses around the country this month, six 30-something coaches are getting their first crack at running a program. That doesn’t include Willie Taggart – he’ll be 37 when South Florida kicks off next fall and it will be head coaching job No. 2 for him.

It seems that when schools are searching for a leader these days, they are more willing to trust somebody young.

“If you’re great at your job, it’s only fair that you move up quickly,” said Texas Tech coach Kliff Kingsbury, who was 33 when he was hired by his alma mater in December.