The Inside Zone

The Inside Zone

Share this post

The Inside Zone
The Inside Zone
Chicago State is ready to hire its first football coach. Will this work?

Chicago State is ready to hire its first football coach. Will this work?

Adding a Division I football program is no easy task.

Matt Fortuna's avatar
Matt Fortuna
Feb 12, 2025
∙ Paid
1

Share this post

The Inside Zone
The Inside Zone
Chicago State is ready to hire its first football coach. Will this work?
Share
Photo: @ChicagoState on X

Monique Carroll has three phones, one of which she had to bring out of retirement on Tuesday.

The Chicago State athletic director’s lines were buzzing all day after the school issued a morning press release announcing the start of its search for a head football coach.

Its first head football coach.

As in, ever.

“I’ve gotten some calls from agents,” Carroll told The Inside Zone. “I don’t know how they got the number, but hey, they’re calling, which is a good thing.”

The Inside Zone is a reader-supported publication. To receive new posts and support my work, consider becoming a free or paid subscriber.

The tiny school in the Roseland section of the city is moving full-speed ahead toward the gridiron two years after launching a feasibility study to explore adding a Division I program.

Where that gridiron will be is one of a number of questions for Carroll and CSU brass to figure out before things kick off in 2026.

This post is for paid subscribers

Already a paid subscriber? Sign in
© 2025 Matt Fortuna
Privacy ∙ Terms ∙ Collection notice
Start writingGet the app
Substack is the home for great culture

Share