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Mercer football coach leaving for MAC program, per ESPN report

Mike Jacobs is expected to take over at Toledo on Wednesday.
Mercer head coach Mike Jacobs will take over the coaching job in Toledo. (Butch Dill/AP)

Credit: AP

Credit: AP

Mercer head coach Mike Jacobs will take over the coaching job in Toledo. (Butch Dill/AP)
By
Dec 10, 2025

Mike Jacobs is leaving Mercer football, which made it to the second round of the FCS playoffs, according to ESPN’s Pete Thamel.

Jacobs is expected to take the job at Toledo on Wednesday, per Thamel’s report.

Toledo is replacing Jason Candle, who had been the coach since 2016 and is now at UConn.

Jacobs has been at Mercer since 2024, when he lead the team to a historic first conference championship.

Mercer went on to win the SoCon in 2025, as well.

Jacobs had more than an 80% win rate at Mercer. Before his stint at Mercer, he coached at Lenoir-Rhyne for four years.

About the Author

Caitlyn Stroh-Page is the senior sports editor high school sports and college football at the Atlanta Journal-Constitution. Her resume includes stops at Sports Illustrated Kids, Scout.com, The (Macon) Telegraph, the Lexington (Ky.) Herald-Leader and the Athens Banner-Herald. A South Georgia native, Stroh-Page lives in the Athens area.

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