Kevin Warren May Be About To Break A 95-Year Old Bears Tradition

According to psychology experts, I'm sorry, Chicago Bears fans who watched the recent press conference helmed by team president Kevin Warren and GM Ryan Poles. Based on how both men spoke, they were certain that Warren was unquestionably the man running the show now. His insistence that the final say over the next head coach is Poles', but nobody is buying it. Either way, there was never any doubt that Warren would be directly involved in the decision, just as Ted Phillips was when he was president.

That almost certainly means the Bears president will influence the search. If we look into his background, one thing becomes apparent immediately. There is a strong possibility the organization will search for its next guy in the college coaching ranks.

Such an outcome would be a pool this franchise hasn't dipped in for almost a century. The only time the Bears hired a head coach straight out of college was in 1930 when they brought in Ralph Jones from Lake Forest Academy. He held the job for a couple of seasons, won a championship, and was replaced by a returning George Halas. Since then, they have never again delved into the college ranks.

Kevin Warren has the connections to make this happen.

There have been some close calls over the years. In 2004, Jerry Angelo wanted to bring in Nick Saban from LSU, but the money didn't work out. They had a shot at Chip Kelly in 2013 but chose to go with Marc Trestman instead. It isn't clear why the Bears haven't explored this avenue more. The best explanation is they've never had anybody in the building with decent connections to that landscape. All of that has now changed. Warren was Big Ten commissioner from 2019 through 2023. He has a network that runs deep across college football.

Don't think for a second that top NFL insiders mentioned Notre Dame head coach Marcus Freeman by accident. It is the first indication that Chicago will have their toes in the college pool deeper than ever before. Kevin Warren is the reason for that. He knows a lot of key people at that level. There is a strong probability he has a gauge on which coaches may want to jump to the NFL and who can handle it. Don't be surprised if Freeman isn't the last college name to surface over the next month.