San Jose State is targeting longtime Navy head coach Ken Niumatalolo as its next head coach, sources told FootballScoop on Saturday. The news was first reported by ESPN.
San Jose State experienced an opening after Brent Brennan took the Arizona job last week, part of the coast-to-coast fallout of Nick Saban's retirement. Brennan went 34-48 in seven seasons, winning seven games in three of his final four seasons, including a Mountain West championship and a No. 24 final ranking in 2020.
Niumatalolo won 109 games in 15 seasons as Navy's head coach; the Midshipmen were among college football's most consistent winners for most of his tenure, reaching a bowl game in all but two seasons from 2008-19.
Niumatalolo was a serious candidate for vacancies at Arizona and BYU late in his tenure but did not get either job. In both cases he would not have taken the triple option offense West with him, and that will again be the case in San Jose.
Following his final season at Navy in 2022, Niumatalolo spent 2023 as the director of leadership at UCLA and was set to coach tight ends for the Bruins in 2024.
Beyond Niumatalolo, sources tell FootballScoop that SJSU also gave serious consideration to current assistant Zo Carter, vetted BYU defensive coordinator Jay Hill, and gauged interest from former UCF and Nebraska head coach Scott Frost.
As always, stay tuned to The Scoop for the latest.