One of the most intriguing aspects of matchups between elite college football teams is the coaching showdown that they often include. College coaches spent all of their time recruiting, teaching, developing and putting their players in position to succeed in order to prepare for 60 minutes to determine a winner every game. Who are college football fans looking forward to seeing match up against one another the most? Here is a look at the four coaching matchups that we can’t wait to see in 2016.
Lane Kiffin vs. Clay Helton
Alabama Crimson Tide vs USC Trojans
The most high profile coaching matchup of the opening weekend of college football will feature the defending national champion Alabama Crimson Tide against USC Trojans. In terms of the coaches, the coaching matchup between Kiffin’s Crimson Tide offense and Helton’s Trojans’ defense will be worth the price of admission. Kiffin was fired as the head coach at USC midway through the 2013 season and by all accounts, the program was a disaster under his watch. However, he has revived his name under Nick Saban at Alabama over the past couple of years as one of the top offensive coordinators in the game. Now Kiffin will look to stick it to his former team in an intriguing showdown at a neutral site in Arlington, Texas on the opening weekend of the college football season. He should be happy about the fact that the game is at a neutral site and not in California where he would be booed and heckled mercilessly.
Dave Aranda vs. Paul Chryst
LSU Tigers vs Wisconsin Badgers
Kiffin isn’t the only SEC coordinator that will face his former team for the first time on opening weekend as Aranda puts on the headset as the defensive coordinator at LSU versus the team he coached for the last three seasons. Aranda was passed over for the head coach job when Gary Anderson left for Oregon State and now he gets a shot at a measure of redemption as he looks to shut down Chryst’s offense. Aranda’s Badgers’ defenses ranked seventh, fourth and second in the nation in total yards allowed per game during his tenure there. It should be fun to see him match a Tigers’ defense that is absolutely loaded with talent against the Wisconsin offense. This game also marks another opportunity for Wisconsin to measure itself against an SEC team. They’ve struggled with that in recent years.
Tom Herman vs. Bob Stoops
Houston Cougars vs Oklahoma Sooners
Herman is one of the hottest coaching names in college football right now and he will get the opportunity to add to his reputation right away with Houston set to take on Oklahoma on kickoff Saturday. Herman has transformed the Cougars in to a program that has the potential to contend every single season and he will open the 2016 season with a chess match against a legendary coach in Stoops. The Sooners are coming off a Big 12 title and college football playoff appearance, so the stakes couldn’t be higher for Herman as he looks to set the tone for a new season. The Sooners are expected to field one of the best defenses in the country while the Cougars are expected to have one of the best offensses. If you like the classic offense versus defense showdown, this is a game you’ll want to be watching closely in the first week of action.
Jimbo Fisher vs. Mark Richt
Florida State Seminoles vs Miami Hurricanes
Richt’s return to Miami should help take the rivalry between the Hurricanes and Seminoles to another level again beginning with his first ACC home game as head coach. Fisher has elevated Florida State in to perennial contenders in the ACC and there is every reason to buy in to the Seminoles’ stock with another influx of intriguing talent this offseason. It will certainly provide a tough test for Richt’s Hurricanes and it will be interesting to see if Miami can hang around with the potential to set the tone for a new era with a big win in front of their home fans.
