Davidson's winding search to find a replacement for Scott Abell, roughly three weeks after its commencement, is nearing the finish line.
Multiple sources tell FootballScoop that Saj Thakkar, an NCAA Division II head coach with Ivy League coaching experience from several seasons at Harvard, is in line to replace Abell at the North Carolina FCS school following Abell's departure to Rice University.
Though Thakkar has two full seasons' experience as a head coach, he's been a collegiate coach for more than a decade following his graduation from Fitchburg State.
He's guided D-II program Bentley University the past two seasons, leading the program to a 14-6 mark during that time including an 8-2 ledger in 2024.
Thakkar was offensive coordinator at Maritime and Bentley, work he sandwiched around a five-year run at Harvard.
Abell guided Davidson to unprecedented success before he accepted his first FBS head coaching post at Rice several weeks ago. Abell guided the Wildcats to seven-straight winning seasons -- a stretch that included a trio of FCS Playoffs berths earlier this decade.