Thin is in, as Fat Heads Roll

There was a time not too long ago when college athletic departments lusted after obese football coaches with the same zeal that these tubby tacticians sought out a bacon cheeseburger.

Like an all-you-can-eat breakfast buffet, coaches such as Mark Mangino and Ralph Friedgen were gobbling up every job in sight.

These days, however, schools are abandoning big guys with a quickness not seen since Krispy Kreme stockholders were dumping their shares at the height of the Atkins Diet fad.

It started last offseason, when the rotund Rocket Tom Amstutz stepped down as Toledo's head coach.

Mangino became the latest victim of the emerging bias against hefty head honchos when he cut ties today with Kansas. This following the news earlier this week that Notre Dame had tired of propping up Charlie Weis, who went from gargantuan genius to dead weight in the course of five seasons in South Bend. Apparently, the ax at Maryland barely missed the ample neck of "The Fridge."

Controversial columnist Jason Whitlock–no picture of health himself at more than three bills–even went so far as to theorize that Mangino's girth underlied his failings as a coach.

So who's rumored to be under consideration to replace these portly play-callers? Svelte slicksters such as Oklahoma defensive coordinator Brent Venables, Houston head coach Kevin Sumlin and Fox analyst Brian Billick.

Brady Hoke, David Cutcliffe, it's on you to keep the ball–or, in this case, boulder–rolling for the big fellas with even bigger dreams of being college football coaches.