What an official search for a head football coach means for Chicago State

CHICAGO - Dr. Monique Carroll understands there might not be much when Chicago State's first head football coach sets up in their offices.

After conducting a feasibility study in 2023, the university began to move forward. After taking plenty of steps forward, Carroll said CSU was blessed to be in a position to publicly fundraise for the football program that's set to debut in 2026.

When that coach is in place, Carroll can't promise a shimmering office like the Division I offices some Power 4 coaches have. 

"Right now, it just may be an office with their laptop," Carroll said. 

But, there needs to be an intangible requirement that Carroll sees as both a dealbreaker and a necessary superpower. 

"They can see what this thing is going to look like down the road," Carroll said.

Chicago State is becoming the latest athletic program to build a football program from scratch. It hasn't been a common occurrence recently.

The latest school to build a football team from the ground up is Texas-Rio Grande Valley (UTRGV). The Vaqueros will begin official competition in the FCS 2025. Before that, the last school to start a football program was Kennesaw State in 2015.

Since 2000, there have been 10 programs that have started football programs. Only two are in the FCS, with the other eight playing in the FBS. Of those 10 programs, seven are located in either Texas, Georgia or Florida, which is where pipelines to the best high school football players in the nation have been established.

The last Illinois university to begin a college football program was Southern Illinois in 1904. This means Chicago State has a chance to begin its football history with a blank canvas. Carroll wants a coach that reflects that line of thinking.  

"We're looking for someone that can come in with a vision where there is really a blank canvas," Carroll said. "Everyone says they like to transform and create things. That's one of my superpowers. So I'm looking for somebody with that same superpower that really could come in and see a vision."

Of course, logistical developments are needed.

There needs to be a financial commitment. In 2023, CSU set a fundraising goal of $4 million that would support overall sports expansion, with an emphasis on women's athletics as well as football. Carroll said the university felt comfortable enough to move forward fundraising on its own as opposed to implementing a student fee to achieve that $4 million goal.

Carroll said there has been enough progress made to where the university felt it was in a place where it could put a face on its program as it takes the next steps and begins recruiting players.

There have been some other logistical developments, such as a firmer idea of where Chicago State would play. The Athletic reported CSU considered Soldier Field, SeatGeek Stadium in Bridgeview and local high schools as possible sites for home games. Carroll has a preference in mind, but she noted that some places she's looked into aren't ready to book events in 2026.

"I would prefer to play at Gately (Stadium)," Carroll said. "We have our eyes set at Gately, but we know there's some things we need to work through to get that to happen."

Those are the next steps needed, and having a face for the program is the step CSU feels comfortable taking now.

Whomever Chicago State hires won't be given strict guidelines to follow. Carroll knows flexibility is needed and things can be fluid while a program is being built.

Carroll wants that program to be one that utilizes the transfer portal, NIL and modern-day college athletics resources where athletes feel like they're playing for the city of Chicago and their home.

"The beauty of a place like Chicago is really room for everybody, but we'll just be here 365 days a year," Carroll said. "Just being here at the right time under the right leadership, it is everything. And it keeps me excited and it keeps me going."