Mike Tannenbaum pulls back curtain on Jimbo Fisher's efforts to get back into coaching: 'He's working his ass off'

The coaching carousel is in full swing now and it’s not yet November. With all those jobs open comes plenty of opportunities for coaches. That includes Jimbo Fisher, who has made it clear that he wants to get back into coaching.

Fisher hasn’t been quiet about those desires either. Others around the sport have even taken notice of the effort that he’s putting in, including North Carolina GM Mike Tannenbaum. Recently, Tannenbaum spoke to Ross Dellenger of Yahoo Sports. There, he praised the effort Fisher has put into getting back into coaching.

“He’s getting ready to get back in,” Tannenbaum said. “He’s not just sitting there, ‘I have all the answers! I’m Jimbo Fisher!’ No. He’s working his ass off to be ready and prepared.”

Tannenbaum is a longtime NFL executive who spent time as the general manager of the New York Jets. He also founded a 40-plus-person think tank of former and current college and pro football stakeholders who share best practices on a weekly invite-only call, and since 2019, before making the move with Bill Belichick to run the North Carolina program. One of those frequent participants in that call is, perhaps unsurprisingly, Fisher.

If Fisher were to make the jump back into coaching, he’d quickly be one of the most decorated coaches in the entire sport, and one of just a handful who have actually won a national championship. That, of course, came back in 2013 when he was at Florida State and considered among the elite coaches in the sport.

Things ended a bit awkwardly for Fisher at Texas A&M, though, and he would be fired with the school owing him the largest buyout ever paid out. That was for approximately $77.5 million. So, getting back into coaching isn’t about the money for Fisher. Of course, that was never why he coached to begin with.

“I never got into coaching for money,” Fisher said. “Well, I’m not going to get out of it because I’ve got money.”

One thing is clear: there are going to be plenty of FBS and Power Four teams that open up. Already, there have been 11 changes at the FBS level. That includes two programs that entered the season with interim coaches. It also amounts to seven Power Four jobs. More are expected to open.

“When you’re away from something, it makes you reflect,” Fisher said. “I’m back to watching film and have those feelings. I miss the players and those relationships. I miss practice. I miss the grind. I live to coach. I love to do what I did.”

Fisher is still drawn to coaching. Whether or not there’s an opportunity for him out there remains to be seen, though. Certainly, Fisher will make the effort to land a new opportunity.