Coaching Stock Watch: 2015 Week Five

Although it was a week for we Wahoos to rest our football-watching eyes, games were played around the country in Week Five. As we all expected, I'm sure, Iowa and Northwestern are undefeated atop the Big Ten West. Cal is two games ahead of Oregon in the Pac-12 North and Kentucky leads South Carolina by two games in the SEC East. Totally normal, folks. Nothing to see here.

But amidst this chaos, coaches are making a name for themselves. Or ruining the good names they'd built up before. As always, we're here to watch. And as always, this IMPORTANT NOTE: This feature is NOT—we repeat, NOT—rating who might be the next head coach at Virginia (or any other school).

Stock Rising

Mike Norvell, offensive coordinator, Arizona State

Norvell is the first name up on the Week Five Redemption Tour. After an abysmal start to the season in Week One, Norvell's offense shined against a top-tier UCLA defense. With 465 total yards, including almost 200 on the ground, the Sun Devils grabbed a statement win on the road in Pasadena. If ASU keeps its focus through this week's matchup with Colorado, their October 17th trip to Salt Lake City sets up as a chance to grab Pac-12 South supremacy.

Lincoln Riley, offensive coordinator, Oklahoma

No redemption here, just more air raid good times. Oklahoma played host to a talented, havoc-wreaking West Virginia defense, and promptly dispatched them. QB Baker Mayfield continues to build a quiet Heisman resume, throwing for 3 touchdowns and over 300 yards. The Sooners get Baylor, TCU, and Oklahoma State to close their season (and a Texas team in disarray in this weekend's Red River Rivalry). There's a good chance that Riley's offense could have the crimson and cream at 9-0 when they travel to Waco.

Mike Bloomgren, offensive coordinator, Stanford

Back to the redemption tour. That Week One loss to Northwestern is looking less like a black mark with each passing week, as the Wildcats have established themselves as one of 2015's more suffocating defenses. Since then, Bloomgren's offense has put up the numbers we've come to expect from the Cardinal: 31 against UCF, 41 at a top-10 USC squad, 42 at Oregon State, and an eye-popping 55 against Arizona. Stanford has rushed for more than 300 yards in two straight games and RB Christian McCaffrey is averaging better than 5 yards per carry on the season. Next up: the same UCLA squad bruised and battered by Norvell and ASU.

Stock Falling

Joe Rudolph, offensive coordinator, Wisconsin

Wisconsin scored six points against Iowa. The Badgers threw the ball almost 40 times and rushed for only 86 yards. That doesn't sound like Wisconsin football. Rudolph is a former NFL offensive lineman and a long-time assistant to head coach Paul Chryst. Those two will have to get Wisconsin back to its ground-and-pound identity as they enter the soft underbelly of their B1G schedule.

Ron Turner, head coach, FIU

FIU lost to UMass. That's bad. FIU only accrued 188 total yards against UMass. That's worse. FIU incurred more than 100 penalty yards. That's ugly. Turner has done a good job getting FIU back to some semblance of credibility, building from a 1-11 debut season to 4-8 last year. With an NFL background and a Super Bowl appearance, he's got the resume one would look for in a head coach. But losing to a traditional FBS doormat is a big step backward.

Pete Lembo, head coach, Ball State

This one's for you, Pierce. Lembo is one of the names most frequently bandied about for potential vacancies at major schools. His 2012 and 2013 squads combined to win 19 games, and Lembo is thought of as one of the great offensive minds in college football. But that offense has sputtered so far in 2015, and done so on the heels of a losing 2014 campaign. Ball State has faced the three toughest teams on its schedule in Texas A&M, Northwestern, and Toledo, but Lembo will need to do work to get his stock back up to where it was.