FAU Replaces Herman with Texas Tech's Zach Kittley; 33-Year-Old Is Youngest HC in FBS

Florida Atlantic hired Texas Tech offensive coordinator Zach Kittley to be its next head coach, per ESPN's Max Olson.

The hire makes Kittley, 33, the youngest coach in the FBS.

"Following an extensive search with a tremendous amount of interest from candidates across the country, Zach emerged as the ideal choice to be our next head coach," FAU athletic director Brian White said in a statement, per Olson. "He is a man of high integrity and character, with an incredible reputation in the profession for player development. Zach is one of the most innovative offensive minds in the game, and I am confident in his ability to build a championship program with an exciting brand of football that can be a source of pride for our fans, our alumni, and the FAU community."

FAU fired head coach Tom Herman after a 2-8 start to the season and an 0-6 start to conference play. Herman, who was hired ahead of the 2023 season, finished his tenure with a 6-16 record.

The hire marks Kittley's first head coaching job after spending just over a decade in various assistant coaching roles.

He was a student assistant under current Washington Commanders offensive coordinator Kliff Kingsbury at Texas Tech in 2013 and 2014 before becoming a graduate assistant from 2015 to 2017. During his first stint with the Red Raiders, he worked with Kansas City Chiefs star quarterback Patrick Mahomes.

From there, he served as the offensive coordinator and quarterbacks coach at Houston Baptist from 2018 to 2020 and spent the 2021 season in the same role at Western Kentucky.

In his stint with the Hilltoppers, he coached quarterback Bailey Zappe as he threw for 5,967 passing yards and 62 touchdowns, both numbers being single-season records in college football.

"I am thrilled at this opportunity to be the head coach at Florida Atlantic," Kittley said in a statement. "I am extremely grateful. I want to thank Vice President and Director of Athletics Brian White and President Stacy Volnick for believing in me to take over this nationally-regarded program. I know we can win here, and we have tremendous leadership from the top down to create a championship program.

Before hiring Kittley, Hall of Fame linebacker Ray Lewis reportedly emerged as a candidate, though Ross Dellinger of Yahoo Sports was told the hire was "not happening."

FAU experienced a brief moment of success during current Ole Miss head coach Lane Kiffin's tenure in Boca Raton. The Owls went 11-3 with a Conference USA championship in 2017 and had the same record and result in 2019, which was Kiffin's final year at the helm.

Since then, FAU has yet to put together a winning season, but it's now hoping Kittley can change that.