It would be a lot easier for a number of college football head coaches to take over programs at Ohio State, Alabama or USC this season. The facilities at that school are top of the line, the fan bases are strong and some of the most talented players in the area actually grow up wanting to go to those schools.
However, that certainly isn’t the case with every program as there is an even greater emphasis on coaching elsewhere at schools that don’t have the same resources. Here is a look at the five college football head coaches that get the most out of their roster.
Gary Patterson, TCU
From the WAC to the Conference USA, the Mountain West to the Big 12, TCU has thrived every step of the way under Patterson’s watch. There is no doubt about his ability to maximize the potential of his roster. The Horned Frogs have the benefit of playing in the Dallas-Forth Worth area but their success has been about a lot more than that as they have been built up in the shadow of bigger schools like Texas, Texas A&M and Oklahoma.
Texas is a talent hotbed but TCU still finds a way to compete with bigger programs that have bigger budgets. Patterson has attracted some rare talents to TCU and his ability to plug players in to different positions where they are able to thrive based on their skill sets is something that has helped lift the program to unprecedented heights.
Bill Snyder, Kansas State
There is nobody who will deny what Snyder has been able to accomplish at Kansas State as a coaching icon. He brought the program from being an afterthought to a perennial conference title contender including now in the Big 12.
Snyder has never landed the most talented recruits but he has managed to do a quality job leaning on junior college transfers and coaching up the players that other programs have passed on. The 75-year-old Snyder isn’t willing to step down yet and that’s a good thing for a Wildcats program that is that much better off with him on the sidelines (see: Ron Prince).
Mark Dantonio, Michigan State
There were plenty of question marks and concerns when Dantonio arrived from Cincinnati in 2007 but he has turned things around and built the Spartans into a perennial title contender.
Players like Le’Veon Bell, Darqueze Denard and Trae Waynes arrived at Michigan State as longshots to make it at the college level but thrived under Dantonio’s tutelage. The Spartans have established a dominant presence in the state of Michigan and it will be interesting to see what happens now with Jim Harbaugh arriving to coach the Wolverines but regardless there is no doubt about Dantonio’s ability to maximize his roster’s potential.
David Cutcliffe, Duke
Duke always is and will be a basketball school and that’s what makes what Cutcliffe has done there that much more impressive. The Blue Devils football program has compiled 19 wins over the last two seasons including an improbable ACC title game appearance in 2013.
Cutcliffe’s ability to recruit at a basketball school, prepare his players, raise their level of conditioning and put them in position to execute a winning game plan is testament to his ability to maximize the potential of his players at Duke.
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Dan Mullen, Mississippi State
Mullen was criticized when he left Urban Meyer’s staff at Florida to coach in Starkville but he has proven that he can turn that program around and make them a contender in the powerful SEC.
The fact that the SEC West is absolutely loaded has made his job that much more difficult. Still, the Bulldogs have finished the season ranked in the AP Top 25 and last year, Mississippi State spent some time at No. 1.
Mullen has been able to accomplish some notable achievements despite having to overcome a very difficult situation both in terms of recruiting ability and competition level in the SEC and it’s clear he deserves a spot on this list among the five college football coaches that get the most out of the talent on their roster.
