BATON ROUGE, La. — Southern University has parted ways with head football coach Terrence Graves, the school confirmed Monday, marking the end of a short and turbulent tenure for one of the most tradition-rich programs in HBCU football. The move comes just two days after the Jaguars’ 24–3 Homecoming loss to Prairie View A&M dropped them to 1–6 on the season.
Graves, who was hired in December 2023, led Southern University to an 8–5 record and a SWAC West Division championship in his first season in 2024. However, his second campaign unraveled quickly. The Jaguars’ lone win this fall came against Mississippi Valley State, while their offense struggled to find consistency and their defense failed to close out key games.
The decision to dismiss Graves was made amid growing frustration from fans and alumni who are accustomed to the program competing for SWAC titles. Southern’s Director of Athletics, Roman Banks, hinted at possible changes following Saturday’s loss, saying the university would “evaluate the process” moving forward. By Monday, that evaluation had reached its conclusion.
McNair Steps In as Interim Head Coach
Southern University announced that co-offensive coordinator Fred McNair will assume interim head coaching duties for the remainder of the season. McNair, who was promoted to a larger role earlier this month in an attempt to spark the Jaguars’ struggling offense, is a familiar name in HBCU football circles. He previously served as head coach at Alcorn State, where he led the Braves to multiple SWAC titles before joining Southern’s staff.
McNair will now be tasked with stabilizing the program and restoring confidence in the locker room as Southern enters the final stretch of its schedule. His leadership will be tested immediately with the Jaguars set to face Florida A&M — another powerhouse HBCU program — this weekend.
Short Tenure, High Expectations
Graves’ departure marks the second time in as many years that Southern University has fired a head coach it hired. His predecessor, Eric Dooley, was dismissed midway through the 2024 season despite leading the team to a division title in his first year. The back-to-back coaching changes underscore the high expectations that come with leading one of the SWAC’s flagship institutions. Both hires were made by
Before coming to Southern, Graves had a long résumé as an assistant coach at several programs and briefly served as interim head coach at Grambling State University in 2021. His experience across multiple HBCU programs made him an appealing candidate when Southern sought stability after Dooley’s exit. But the 2025 campaign — plagued by offensive struggles and inconsistent execution — proved too steep a hill to climb.
A Program Searching for Direction
Southern University, one of the most storied names in HBCU football, now turns once again to an interim coach in hopes of salvaging the season. The Jaguars have not had a losing season since 2019, and fan patience has worn thin amid high expectations in Baton Rouge.
For now, the focus shifts to McNair, who inherits a proud program seeking both stability and a spark. The Jaguars still have time to finish strong, but after another early coaching change, one thing is clear — Southern University expects to win, and the standard remains as demanding as ever.
So why is the AD still there?
Plain and simple, we are at rock bottom, but things happen for a reason. Let’s clean house from the Athletic Director to the entire coaching staff to include football, basketball, and put baseball on notice. Time to put up or shut up. Bring in folks who know what the heck they are doing. For football, make a call to Marshall Faulk with a new staff and put the football team back where it’s supposed to be. Also keep Aneas Williams in mind too. Do not, I repeat do not make Fred McNair the permanent Head Coach. PLEASE DON’T DO IT!!!!
??. Whoever is in charge of this firing needs to be fired as well. So let me see, in his first season he goes 8-5, wins the west division and is 1-6 at the beginning of this season and you panic, what ? ???