Kane Wommack is leaving South Alabama to become defensive coordinator at Alabama, and his shoes are big ones to fill.

The 36-year-old Wommack is the most-successful coach in the Jaguars’ short history, having gone 22-16 in his three seasons on the job. He owns the only winning seasons since South Alabama moved to FBS play in 2012 — going 10-3 in 2022 and 7-6 this past year — and the only bowl victory in program history, a 59-10 blowout of Eastern Michigan in the Dec. 23 68 Ventures Bowl.

South Alabama is an attractive job on the Group of 5 level, with excellent facilities (including a covered practice field and a 4-year-old on-campus stadium) and a solid recruiting base that encompasses the state of Alabama and the talent-rich I-10 corridor between New Orleans and Tallahassee. As it has done each of the last two times it has been open — after the 2017 and 2020 seasons — the position should attract a number of highly qualified candidates.

So who will replace Wommack as South Alabama’s head man? Here are a few potential candidates (in alphabetical order):

• Major Applewhite, South Alabama offensive coordinator

The 45-year-old Applewhite seems like the obvious successor to Wommack, and would almost certainly be interested in the job. He’s been a head coach before, going 15-11 in two seasons (2017-18) at Houston. He’s also been offensive coordinator at Alabama and co-offensive coordinator at Texas and put the best offenses in Jaguars program history on the field the last three years.

• Zach Arnett, former Mississippi State head coach

Arnett, 37, was placed in an impossible situation following the death of Mike Leach last December (he went 5-6 in his lone season), but might thrive in a second opportunity outside the SEC pressure-cooker. He’s got a similar background to Wommack (and the two are friends), and has extensive experience recruiting the state of Alabama and the Southeast from his days as MSU’s defensive coordinator.

• Corey Batoon, South Alabama defensive coordinator

The Hawaii native is popular with players and would offer continuity in the same way Applewhite would. Batoon, 55, has never been a head coach, but has a varied background as an assistant, with stops at Arkansas State, Ole Miss, Florida Atlantic, Hawaii and Liberty. In addition to Wommack, he’s also worked for Hugh Freeze and Lane Kiffin in the past.

• Bill Clark, former UAB head coach

Before his record-setting run with the Blazers from 2014-21, Clark was South Alabama’s original defensive coordinator under Joey Jones from 2008-12. He’s also worked at Jacksonville State and for many years as a high school coach in Alabama. The question with Clark is health, as he stepped down at UAB due to back issues that required surgery.

• Charles Huff, Marshall head coach

The 40-year-old Huff was on the short list for the South Alabama job last time out, and is 22-17 in three seasons with the Thundering Herd. He’s been an assistant coach and ace recruiter at Penn State, Mississippi State and Alabama and has also worked in the NFL. As a sitting head coach in the Sun Belt Conference, however, his buyout might be prohibitive.

• Tee Martin, Baltimore Ravens quarterbacks coach

Martin, 45, is a Mobile native and is very popular among local fans and high school coaches. Though he’s never been a college head coach, he has major-program experience at USC (where he was offensive coordinator from 2016-18), Tennessee and Kentucky, among other stops. He’s also worked the last three years with one of the best-run organizations in the NFL, and coaches the likely league MVP this year in Lamar Jackson. With the Ravens in the hunt for the Super Bowl, however, it’s questionable if South Alabama could wait on Martin to become available.

• Tommy Rees, former Alabama offensive coordinator

The 31-year-old Rees is currently without a job after the retirement of Nick Saban, as new Crimson Tide head coach Kalen DeBoer is expected to bring in his own offensive staff. He was offensive coordinator for three seasons at Notre Dame prior to joining the staff at Alabama, which was his first job in the Southeast. It’s possible — if not likely — he’ll want to wait out the coaching carousel to see if another Power 5 coordinator job is in the offing.

• Rich Rodriguez, Jacksonville State head coach

The 60-year-old Rodriguez has resurrected his career in two seasons with the Gamecocks, who went 9-4 and won a bowl game in 2023, exceeding all expectations in their first year of FBS play. He’s put winning teams on the field at several other stops including West Virginia and Arizona, but at this stage in his career might consider South Alabama a lateral move. And as with Huff, his buyout wouldn’t be all that cheap.

• Lance Taylor, Western Michigan head coach

The 42-year-old Taylor, who went 4-8 in his first season as a head coach in 2023, is a Mobile-area native with excellent bona fides as a recruiter and assistant coach all over the country. He was a graduate assistant under Saban at Alabama, and has also been a position coach at Stanford, Notre Dame and Louisville (where he was offensive coordinator in 2022), and has also worked in the NFL.