Over the last few weeks, we’ve ranked the college football coaches in each of the Power 5 conferences.
Some conferences have obvious choices at the top — such as the SEC and ACC. Meanwhile, the pecking order is up for debate in the Pac-12 and Big 12. The Big 10 has an obvious choice at No. 1, but 2-5 are all very close.
There shouldn’t be much debate surrounding the top three coaches in the country, but the rest of the list could result in some heated arguments amongst fans.
Before we get to our list, here are the 10 coaches who just missed the cut:
Honorable Mention
20. Mark Richt, Miami
19. Gus Malzahn, Auburn
18. Kirby Smart, Georgia
17. Dan Mullen, Florida
16. Mike Leach, Washington State
15. Kyle Whittingham, Utah
14. James Franklin, Penn State
13. Paul Chryst, Wisconsin
12. Mike Gundy, Oklahoma State
11. Bill Snyder, Kansas State
Now, here are the best 10 coaches in college football. Feel free to let us know if you disagree. The breakdown by conference: Pac-12 (3), Big 10 (3), SEC (2), ACC (1), Big 12 (1).
Top 10 College Football Coaches
- Chip Kelly, UCLA
After four largely unsuccessful seasons in the NFL, Kelly is returning to his roots in the Pac-12. Kelly’s experiment in the NFL should take nothing away from what he accomplished in four seasons at Oregon. He never lost a game he should have won with the Ducks, and he quickly turned the program into a national contender. The Ducks nearly won the national title in 2010, and Kelly was 46-7 overall and 33-3 in the Pac-12 during that four-year stretch.
Now, Kelly is tasked with turning another Pac-12 program into a national contender. The Bruins have never won more than 10 games in a season. Kelly has never won less than 10 games in a season. It’s unrealistic to expect UCLA to be a contender immediately, and going head-to-head with USC won’t be easy. But once Kelly brings in the right players for his system, the Bruins will be a force in the Pac-12.
- Mark Dantonio, Michigan State
Dantonio has transformed Michigan State into one of the best programs in the country. The Spartans have won three Big 10 championships under Dantonio, and they also made the playoffs in 2015. Dantonio won at least 11 games in five of six seasons. The Spartans have been a contender in the Big 10 for most of the last decade. The 3-9 season in 2016 was an anomaly, and Michigan State rebounded with another 10-win year a season ago. Dantonio has managed to keep the Spartans nationally relevant despite being in the same division as Ohio State, Michigan and Michigan State.
- David Shaw, Stanford
When Jim Harbaugh handed Shaw the keys to the program in 2011, he left behind a loaded roster — including Andrew Luck at quarterback. Shaw had a great season with Luck, and he managed to keep the Cardinal in the national spotlight in the six years following Luck’s departure for the NFL. Shaw is 73-22 in seven seasons in Palo Alto, and his teams have won three conference titles during that span. The 45-year-old Shaw might give the NFL a try in the near future, but for now, he has one of the best programs in the country at Stanford.
- Jimbo Fisher, Texas A&M
Only four active coaches in college football have won a national title, including Fisher and the top three coaches on this list. So why is Fisher behind other coaches who haven’t won national championships? Perhaps this isn’t totally fair, but look at Fisher’s record with and without Jameis Winston.
With Winston: 27-1 overall, one national title, two trips to the playoffs, two ACC titles, 18-0 in conference play.
Without Winston: 56-22 overall in six seasons, one ACC title, 32-17 in conference play.
Fisher didn’t have a bad season at Florida State until his final year, and injuries derailed the Seminoles early. He has a fresh start at Texas A&M, and the new job should reenergize him. The only problem for the Aggies and Fisher is that they are going head-to-head against Nick Saban and Alabama every year. Given Fisher’s track record, it won’t be long before Texas A&M is a national power.
- Gary Patterson, TCU
Since taking over as the head coach of the Horned Frogs on a permanent basis in 2001, Gary Patterson has coached TCU in three different conferences. And he’s won in all of them. Patterson had back-to-back double digit win seasons in 2002-2003 in Conference USA. In seven seasons in the Mountain West, the Horned Frogs won at least 10 games six different times from 2005 to 2011. That run also included a 13-0 season in 2010 and a Rose Bowl victory over Wisconsin.
The transition into the Big 12 wasn’t as seamless, but it didn’t take long for Patterson to break through. In TCU’s third year in the Big 12, the Horned Frogs finished 12-1 and arguably had one of the best two or three teams in the country. They also won 11 games in 2015 and 2017. Patterson’s teams rarely have two bad years in a row, and he’s 160-57 in 17 seasons. He probably won’t win a national title in his career, but Patterson can flat out coach.
- Jim Harbaugh, Michigan
Many college football fans have soured on Jim Harbaugh. Truthfully, most were probably tired of him before he ever coached a game at Michigan. The results in Ann Arbor have been good, but not great. There are even pundits who don’t consider Harbaugh to be an elite coach anymore.
Calling Harbaugh “overrated” is completely overlooking his extraordinary rebuilding job at Stanford. Or with the San Francisco 49ers. Harbaugh is one of the best coaches in the sport at any level, and he’s worth every penny he’s being paid at his alma mater. The season before Harbaugh took over at Stanford, the Cardinal finished 1-11. By Year 4 with Harbaugh, Stanford was 12-1 and a national title contender. In fact, Stanford is still a contender because of the foundation built by Harbaugh.
Harbaugh is 28-11 through three years at Michigan. The problem is they haven’t looked like a contender, which makes the 2018 season a pivotal one for Harbaugh. The pieces are in place for a big season for the Wolverines. Eight or nine wins won’t cut it this year. Harbaugh certainly isn’t coaching for his job, but he needs a championship contender to prove to fans and critics he’s worth the money. Given his track record, it’s a safe bet Michigan will be much improved next season.
- Chris Petersen, Washington
Petersen boasts an astonishing 129-29 record during his 12 seasons as a head coach. He turned Boise State into a national power, and he managed to accomplish the same feat at Washington in only three seasons. The Huskies made the College Football Playoff in Petersen’s third season, and they followed that up with a 10-3 campaign a season ago.
Though he doesn’t have a national title, there aren’t many coaches in football better than Chris Petersen. There’s a good chance Washington will be the best team in the Pac-12 in 2018, and Petersen could lead the Huskies back into the playoffs for the second time in three years. Almost every school in the country would trade their current coach for Petersen in a heartbeat.
- Dabo Swinney, Clemson
Swinney has had a meteoric rise to the top of the college football world. Just 10 years ago, Swinney was an interim coach fighting to keep the job on a permanent basis. Many schools would’ve bailed on Swinney after a 6-7 record in his second full season. However, Clemson stuck with him, and the Tigers haven’t won less than 10 games in a season since. Swinney won his first national championship in 2016, and he’s led Clemson to the playoffs in the last three seasons.
As long as Swinney is around, Clemson isn’t going anywhere. They’re the favorites in the ACC again in 2018, and there’s a pretty good chance they’ll be in the playoffs for the fourth straight season. At 48, Swinney has plenty of time to add to his already impressive resume.
- Urban Meyer, Ohio State
There are only two coaches in modern college football history who have won national titles at multiple schools: Nick Saban and Urban Meyer. That’s it. If it weren’t for Saban, Meyer might have gone down as the best coach in the history of the game. It’s unlikely Meyer catches Saban in terms of championships, but it’s not totally out of the question. Urban will go down as one of the best coaches ever — and he isn’t quite finished building his resume just yet.
Meyer is a remarkable 73-8 in six seasons at Ohio State. The Buckeyes haven’t won less than 11 games in any of his six seasons. Meyer has built a juggernaut. They are among the favorites to win it all in 2018, and they likely will be for the next several years. Alabama and Ohio State are the two most dependable programs in the country each year. Meyer built the same type of program at Florida, and the only way Ohio State slips is if Meyer burns out like he did in Gainesville.
- Nick Saban, Alabama
In case there was any doubt before last season, Saban locked down GOAT status after capturing his sixth career national championship in 2017. It was Saban’s fifth title at Alabama since 2009. The bad news for the rest of college football? He hasn’t shown any signs of slowing down. He’ll probably coach for at least another five years.
Saban is still the best recruiter in college football, and his team will be the favorites to win it all again in 2018. Even if Alabama has a quarterback controversy in the upcoming season, it won’t be enough to derail the Tide of making the playoffs again. Nothing matters as long as Saban is at the helm.
Alabama is a lock to win 11-plus games every year. They’ve even proven twice they don’t even need to win a conference title to win the national championship. Saban already has the best resume of any coach in college football history. Soon, he’ll probably break a tie with Bear Bryant for most national championships for a coach. It seems like losses only make him stronger. There might be a year or two where Alabama doesn’t win the national title, but that just means Saban will return the next season with something to prove. And that’s never a good thing for the rest of the country.
