Jeff Brohm is winning Louisville football offseason. How coaches have fared at alma maters

The sentiment of Jeff Brohm living out his dream of being Louisville’s head football coach will never get old.

While that doesn’t win football games, Brohm is off to a strong start. The Louisville native managed to keep the bulk of the Cardinals' 2023 recruiting class together while adding key players from the transfer portal. Three of the additions out of high school are from Kentucky, and two added via the portal are from the state. And six local prospects committed to the class as preferred walk-ons.

Brohm also brought the majority of his staff with him from Purdue, including fellow Louisville natives Brian Brohm (Trinity High School), Jeff’s brother who is the Cardinals’ new offensive coordinator and quarterbacks coach, and Chris Barclay (Male High School), the new running backs coach.

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Right now, there's a lot to like about the story of Brohm returning to the community he grew up and the college he played for as its head coach.

Here's a look at five coaches over the last decade who have led programs they once played for, and how they fared:

Jim Harbaugh

School: Michigan

Years (played; coached): 1982-87; 2015-present

Pass/fail: Pass.

Despite Harbaugh entertaining the idea of getting back to the NFL, which may be why he’s received contract extensions for the past two seasons, he seems to be content at his alma mater. Prior to Harbaugh’s arrival in Ann Arbor, the Wolverines ended the year with a 5-7 record in 2014. His first season at the helm in 2015 included a 41-7 Citrus Bowl win over Florida, the No. 12 ranking in the final AP poll and a 10-3 record. His only down years were an 8-5 season in 2017 and a 2-4 record at the height of the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020.

Outside of those two years, the Wolverines have recorded five seasons with 10 or more wins. They're a combined 25-3 the last two seasons with two College Football Playoff semifinal appearances. In 2021, Michigan won its first Big Ten Conference championship since 2004 and followed it up with another in 2022. Harbaugh has had eight players selected in the NFL draft, the highest being defensive lineman Aidan Hutchinson going second overall to the Detroit Lions in 2022. Seven of those players were first-round selections.

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Under Harbaugh, the Wolverines have had three top 10 recruiting classes — including the fifth-ranked class in 2017 — according to the 247Sports.com's composite rankings.

Kirby Smart

School: Georgia

Years (played; coached): 1995-98; 2016-present

Pass/fail: Pass (with flying colors).

‘Dynasty’ isn’t a word that should be thrown around. But in Smart’s case, coming off consecutive national championships, it’s starting to feel more and more appropriate. Fresh off a College Football Playoff championship with a perfect 15-0 record, the Bulldogs look poised to keep the success going with the No. 2 recruiting class in the nation this year. Smart, who is set to enter his eighth season coaching the Bulldogs, has had two top-ranked recruiting classes during his tenure with his former college and has never fallen below No. 4 in the recruiting class rankings, signing a total of 33 five-star prospects.

That success has given way to 45 NFL draft selections over the past six years. The Bulldogs took over last year’s draft with 15 total selections, including five in the first round. As for the on-field product, Smart shrugged off an 8-5 debut with Georgia in 2016 and has averaged 12 wins since then. Under Smart, the Bulldogs have appeared in the SEC championship game five times and won twice.

Last July, Smart signed a 10-year contract extension worth $112.5 million.

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Scott Frost

School: Nebraska

Years (played; coached): 1995-97; 2018-22

Pass/fail: Fail.

Hired on Dec. 2, 2017, Frost’s most successful season with his alma mater was in 2019 when the Cornhuskers went 5-7. From there, each year was dismal with little to no success. Ironically, three of Frost’s four full recruiting classes were in the top 20. His 2022 class was his lowest ranked, at No. 41, and the Huskers would go on to start that season 1-2. Following a 45-42 home loss to Georgia Southern on Sept. 10, Frost was fired, ending his tenure with a 16-31 record with only 10 wins in the Big Ten.

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One positive under Frost: seven players were selected in the NFL draft.

Kliff Kingsbury

School: Texas Tech

Years (played; coached): 1998-02; 2013-18

Pass/fail: Fail.

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For as high scoring as Kingsbury’s offenses were, very few translated to the wins during his time at his former college. Kingsbury was hired on Dec. 12, 2012 — 10 years after he finished playing for Texas Tech — and was expected to emulate the success of his former coach, the late Mike Leach. Kingsbury’s first full recruiting class in 2014 included current Kansas City Chiefs quarterback Patrick Mahomes.

The Red Raiders went 8-5 during Kingsbury’s first season in 2013 — one of two seasons during Kingsbury's six-year tenure where they finished above .500. In Mahomes’s collegiate debut in 2014, the program went 4-8 then posted a 7-6 record in 2015. Mahomes’s final season with Texas Tech ended with a 5-7 mark in 2016. Following the Red Raiders' 2018 campaign, and after three consecutive sub-.500 seasons, Kingsbury was let go.

Mario Cristobal

School: Miami

Years (played; coached): 1988-92; 2022-present

Pass/fail: To be determined.

Cristobal was part of Miami’s golden years, winning two national championships with the Hurricanes as a standout offensive lineman. The program has since struggled to get back to what it once was. Miami went 7-5 in 2021, prior to Cristobal’s arrival.

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Miami, losing three of its last four games, ended Cristobal's first season 5-7. The Hurricanes will enter the 2023 season with two new coordinators. Cristobal fired offensive coordinator Josh Gattis after one season while defensive coordinator Kevin Steele left to take the same job at Alabama.

The bright spot for Miami, though, is the 2023 recruiting class. Cristobal’s first full recruiting cycle yielded stellar results with the class ranking No. 7 nationally and first in the ACC. That said, Miami’s 2022 class was No. 13 nationally and second in the conference.

Reach Louisville football, women's basketball and baseball beat writer Alexis Cubit at acubit@gannett.com and follow her on Twitter at @Alexis_Cubit.

This article originally appeared on Louisville Courier Journal: College football: How have these 5 coaches fared at their alma mater?