Not everyone has to wait till they have grey hair to wear the head coaching hat in football. Thomas Sydezki, who has been a college football coach for less than a decade, has bagged that special honor at just 31!

Thomas Sydezki was hired as the head coach of Mercyhurst football, CBS Sports reported. He is now the ‘second-youngest head coach in the FCS Division 1 ranks. The program moved to the upper level from Division II in 2024, which allowed Sydezki to bag the honor. He was previously the offensive coordinator and quarterbacks coach of the program. He replaced Ryan Riemedio at the position, who was hired as Youngstown State’s defensive coordinator.

Sydezki began coaching in 2018. He then joined Old Dominion football as the offensive quality control coordinator. That same year, he moved to FIU to be their offensive line’s quality control coordinator. The Panthers’ O-line allowed only 8 sacks that season, which was the third-fewest in the country. Sydezki then moved to Bryant University, where he was the quarterbacks coach for four years. Here, he coached Zevi Eckhaus, who broke the program record with 75 career touchdown passes and tied the single-season record with 28.

Thomas Sydezki now has a massive challenge ahead of him, as 2026 will be the first year the Lakers will be eligible to contend for conference and national titles. For starters, he has to finish with a winning record this year, as the program’s last winning season came in 2019.

Gardner-Webb’s Kris McCullough beats Thomas Sydezki to be the youngest football head coach. He is younger than the Lakers coach by only one year and will turn 31 in 2026. But McCullough might hold the record of being the youngest college football coach ever hired, as he held that position at just 26 years old at Texas-Permian Basin. With Mercyhurst’s entry into Division I football, the two might get to compete against each other frequently.

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Here’s a look at other young college football head coaches.

Youngest college football coaches at the FBS level

Next up after Thomas Sydezki is FAU’s Zach Kittley, who is 34. He wrapped up his first season as the Owls’ head coach, which finished at a rocky 4-8. But it was still better than FAU’s 2024 3-9 finish. Following him is Kirby Moore, who bagged his first-ever head coaching role at Washington State.

Moore began his college football coaching career in 2014 and has worked with Chris Petersen, Kalen DeBoer, and Eli Drinkwitz. Success seems to be coming early in the family, because his brother is Kellen Moore, head coach of the New Orleans Saints. At 37, he is currently the youngest among NFL head coaches. Kirby and Kellen were teammates at Boise State.

Kirby Moore is tied with Arizona State’s Kenny Dillingham at the fourth position. The latter made a sensational debut as head coach, leading the Sun Devils to the playoffs and the Big 12 Championship in 2024. Dillingham is one of the most prolific head coaches in the P4, who still has a long way to go. He was also fielded as a potential candidate for open head coaching positions elsewhere during the wild 2025 coaching carousel.

Though these young coaches have got a boost in their careers, the responsibilities that come with the flashy title are far more than what they are used to. Only time will tell us if they are cut out for the job in their respective programs.