The Price of Ambition: When Head Coaches Become Assistants
The HBCU coaching carousel just spun in a direction that should alarm every program in the MEAC and SWAC. Larry Scott, the architect of Howard University's football resurgence, has stepped down as head coach to join Auburn's staff as tight ends coach under newly hired head coach Alex Golesh. Let that sink in for a moment: a Division I head coach with back-to-back MEAC championships just traded his program for an assistant role in the SEC.
This isn't just another coaching move. It's a statement about the brutal economics of HBCU football in 2025.
Scott's Howard Legacy: Building Something From Nothing
When Larry Scott arrived at Howard on February 6, 2020, he inherited a program in shambles. The Bison hadn't won a MEAC title since 1993. Resources were thin. Expectations were low.
What Scott delivered was nothing short of remarkable:
- 23-37 overall record (12-15 MEAC) from 2020-2025, per Wikipedia
- Back-to-back MEAC championships in 2022 and 2023, the program's first titles in nearly three decades
- 2023 Celebration Bowl appearance, putting Howard back on the national HBCU stage
- Ranked 2nd nationally in passing yards allowed and 11th in third-down conversion during his tenure
- Eddie Robinson Award finalist, recognition as one of FCS football's top coaches
The 2022 season was the breakthrough. Scott led the Bison to a 5-6 record (4-1 MEAC), capturing a share of the regular season title. He followed that with a 6-6 campaign in 2023 (4-1 MEAC), earning another championship and that coveted Celebration Bowl bid. These weren't flukes. They were the result of culture change, strategic recruiting, and smart football.
But here's the harsh reality: even with championships on his resume, Scott was making somewhere in the $133,000-$150,000 range, typical for MEAC head coaches. Meanwhile, SEC assistant coaches, especially at positions like tight ends, routinely clear $400,000 to $600,000 annually. Some coordinators make over $2 million.
The Financial Chasm: Why This Move Makes Sense
Let's talk numbers, because they tell the real story. According to HBCU Gameday's 2025 salary analysis, MEAC head coaches earn between $65,000 and $435,000, with the average hovering around $133,000. Compare that to Power 5 assistant coach salaries: coordinators pull in $1 million to $2 million, and even position coaches start at $350,000.
Scott isn't just getting a raise. He's potentially tripling or quadrupling his income. He's gaining access to elite recruiting budgets, state-of-the-art facilities, and a direct pipeline to future head coaching opportunities at the FBS level. For a coach with a young family and legitimate ambitions, it's not a hard decision, it's a necessary one.
This is the uncomfortable truth about HBCU football: you can win championships, develop NFL talent, and transform programs, but the financial ceiling remains brutally low. Scott's move isn't a betrayal. It's survival in a system that chronically undervalues HBCU excellence.
Auburn's Coup: Golesh Builds With HBCU Talent
New Auburn head coach Alex Golesh, hired on November 30, 2025 from South Florida on a six-year deal, is wasting no time assembling his staff. He's bringing in proven winners:
- Kodi Burns: Former Auburn QB and national champion, hired as Associate Head Coach, Co-Offensive Coordinator, and Wide Receivers Coach
- Larry Scott: MEAC champion from Howard, joining as Tight Ends Coach
- Larry Porter: Running Backs Coach, returning to Auburn after previous stint (2017-2020) and most recent role at West Virginia
Golesh clearly values Scott's coaching acumen. Before Howard, Scott spent time at Florida (2018-2020), Tennessee (2016-2017), and Miami (2013-2015), where he served as interim head coach in 2015 and went 4-2. He knows how to develop talent, and Auburn is betting he can do it with SEC-caliber athletes.
For Auburn, this is a low-risk, high-reward hire. They're getting a coach with head coaching experience, championship pedigree, and a hunger to prove himself at the highest level. Scott's HBCU success demonstrates his ability to maximize limited resources, imagine what he can do with five-star recruits.
What This Means for Howard: The Vacancy Crisis
Howard now faces a critical juncture. The Bison finished 5-7 (2-3 MEAC) in 2025, a step back from the championship years but still respectable given the program's resource constraints. Losing Scott, however, creates uncertainty at the worst possible time.
The 2025 Howard coaching staff includes Co-Offensive Coordinators Da'Vaun Johnson (Running Backs) and Brett Kean (Quarterbacks), plus Defensive Coordinator Kyshoen Jarrett. Any of these assistants could be internal candidates, but Howard's administration must move quickly to retain staff and recruits.
Early speculation, per YouTube reports, suggests former NFL star LeSean McCoy could be a candidate. McCoy has HBCU ties and name recognition that could energize recruiting. But whoever takes the job will inherit the same financial limitations that drove Scott away.
This is the HBCU coaching carousel's cruel irony: build something special, and you'll get poached. Stay mediocre, and you'll get fired. There's little middle ground.
The Bigger Picture: HBCUs as SEC Farm Systems?
Scott's move raises uncomfortable questions about the future of HBCU football. Are these programs becoming development leagues for Power 5 assistants? The transfer portal already bleeds HBCU talent to FBS programs. Now coaches are following the same path.
The data shows this isn't an isolated incident. HBCU coaches face constant pressure from the portal, NIL disparities, and resource gaps. According to HBCU Gameday's 2025 coaching roundtable, SIAC and MEAC coaches are navigating unprecedented challenges with transfers and NIL, making it harder to sustain success.
Meanwhile, Power 5 programs are increasingly recognizing HBCU coaching talent. Scott joins a growing list of HBCU coaches who've leveraged their success into FBS opportunities. The difference? Most make lateral moves to Group of 5 head coaching jobs. Scott took an assistant role because the money was that much better.
What Happens Next: The Bison's Crossroads
Howard's administration has a choice: invest in keeping the next coach or accept that the program will always be a stepping stone. That means competitive salaries, upgraded facilities, and NIL infrastructure. Without those investments, the Bison will continue losing coaches every 3-5 years, just as they start building something sustainable.
The MEAC, meanwhile, must confront its own existential crisis. If championship-winning coaches can't make a livable wage, what does that say about the conference's viability? The league has already lost members to the transfer portal exodus and realignment. Losing coaches to SEC assistant roles is another blow to its credibility.
For fans, this stings. Scott brought hope back to Howard. He proved the Bison could compete, could win, could matter. Now they're back to square one, searching for a coach who'll stay long enough to finish what Scott started.
The Verdict: Can't Blame the Man, Blame the System
Larry Scott didn't abandon Howard. The system abandoned him. When a head coach with two conference championships can make more money as an assistant at a Power 5 school, that's not a personal failing, that's structural inequality.
HBCU football is at a crossroads. Programs can either invest in retaining top talent (coaches and players) or accept their role as developmental leagues for wealthier institutions. The transfer portal has already made that choice for players. Now coaches are following suit.
Scott's legacy at Howard is secure: he brought championships back to a program that desperately needed them. His future at Auburn is promising: he'll coach elite talent and position himself for bigger opportunities. But the real question isn't about Scott. It's about whether HBCUs can ever compete in a system rigged against them.
The SEC just poached another one. How many more will follow before something changes?
Stay locked in for updates on Howard's coaching search and the latest HBCU football news. This story is far from over.
