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Come Fan with UsTuesday, August 4, 2026

Charlie Strong, Art Briles, James Franklin the Texas favorites, says Bovada

If you’re the kind of person who likes to bet on which millionaire will be hired by some other millionaires, now’s your chance.

Who’s the No. 1 candidate to replace Mack Brown as Texas Longhorns head coach?

For a long time, it looked to most to be Nick Saban, but a new deal at Alabama has taken him off the market (whether he was actually ever on it to begin with is another story). And now that every site on the internet has released its list of the names to know as the Texas search officially begins (here’s ours!), Bovada has its list of coaches you can bet on:

Charlie Strong 2/1

Art Briles 9/2

James Franklin 5/1

Mike Gundy 7/1

Bill O'Brien 15/2

Chip Kelly 10/1

David Shaw 10/1

Jim Mora 10/1

Jimbo Fisher 15/1

Jim Harbaugh 20/1

Mike Tomlin 20/1

Louisville’s Strong is a surprise favorite (and he’s shooting down the idea), with most chatter seeming to favor the Baylor, Vanderbilt, and Oklahoma State coaches beneath him as three of the likeliest considerations.

The Eagles’ Kelly and Stanford’s Shaw are extreme longshots (Kelly’s succeeding in his rookie year, and Shaw’s taking his alma mater to the BCS again), the Steelers’ Tomlin is almost certainly not happening (almost, because this is college football), and the 49ers’ Harbaugh is also downplaying rumors.

What do you think? Any odds here you like?

More from SB Nation college football:

Interactive bowl season calendar with picks and links to more coverage

Texas coaching search: 11 names to know

You can help send 1,000 kids to a bowl game

College football news | The big, beautiful SB Nation All-America Team

Long CFB reads | This train: Auburn and the future of the SEC

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