Iowa fans are well versed in the football wizardry of both Iowa defensive coordinator Phil Parker and Hawkeye special teams coordinator LeVar Woods.
Now, a special set of numbers are backing up what Iowa Hawkeyes fans already knew: This duo is elite.
247Sports got a sneak peek into some incredible numbers. Matrix Analytical Solutions developed its Coach Rating Index in 2009 to measure the careers of all on-field coaches regardless of position.
Both Phil Parker and LeVar Woods find themselves inside the Coach Rating Index’s top 10 coaches nationally. First, a bit more about what exactly the Coach Rating Index is.
The Coach Rating Index is “a massive grading system with over 30,000 individual unit profiles and over 250,000 annual coaching result reports. If a coach was designated in an on-field role in that time span in either the FBS or FCS levels, he is in the database with a career number rating & accompanying career star rating.”
Position coaches are “graded on the cumulative play-by-play effectiveness of their unit.” Coordinators are graded on per-play efficiency. Head coaches are “graded on their win and loss records broken down and weighted by difficulty/importance in nine distinct categories ranging from expected close margin games to how they perform in games with equivalent talent profiles.” – Brandon Marcello, 247Sports.
Who are college football's best coaches?@bmarcello dives into the data from the Coach Rating Index via Matrix Analytical Solutions and breaks down the top 10:https://t.co/GDRShpwQHF pic.twitter.com/v6csfohvox
— 247Sports (@247Sports) June 22, 2023
Its data is not available publicly, but 247Sports was granted exclusive access to select data. 247Sport’s Brandon Marcello broke down college football’s 10 best coaches using the Coach Rating Index.
Iowa defensive coordinator Phil Parker checked in as the country’s No. 9 coach.
Phil Parker is the most overlooked defensive coordinator in the sport. He has coordinated Iowa’s defense since 2012, turning the Hawkeyes into one of the more consistent defenses of the last decade. He has coached consensus All-Americans, a Butkus Award winner and five defensive backs of the year in the Big Ten.
Despite an anemic offense, he has carried an Iowa program to bowl games with an impenetrable defense.
The Hawkeyes allowed only 3.99 yards per play in 2022, tying for the best mark in the sport in the last 10 years. – Marcello, 247Sports.
As Marcello pointed out, Phil Parker commanded arguably the greatest unit in Hawkeye history last season. Spearheaded by the Butkus Award winner in linebacker Jack Campbell, the Hawkeyes ranked second nationally in both total defense (270.8 yards per game) and scoring defense (13.3 points per game).
The Hawkeyes also ranked inside the top 12 nationally in pass efficiency defense (fourth), passing yards per game (sixth), first down defense (10th), third down defense (11th) and rushing defense (12th).
Meanwhile, Iowa’s special teams were once again exemplary under the direction of Woods. The Hawkeyes ranked among the top three in the Big Ten in punt and kickoff returns, and punt and kickoff return defense. Iowa was third in the Big Ten and 15th nationally in net punting, while ranking second in the conference and 19th in the nation with three blocked kicks.
Punter Tory Taylor was named first-team All-America by the FWAA, Pro Football Focus and Phil Steele, while also earning first-team All-Big Ten honors. Taylor was second in the Big Ten and 11th nationally with a 45.3 average. Freshman kicker Drew Stevens led the team in scoring and earned freshman All-America recognition from College Football News.
Woods ranked No. 6 nationally in the Coach Rating Index.
Levar Woods transitioned from tight ends to special teams in 2017, leading the unit to consistent production and opportunistic turnovers. The Hawkeyes blocked three kicks in 2022, and their punt and kick returns ranked in the top three of the conference. Meanwhile, punter Tory Taylor was a first-team All-American on three lists and kicker Drew Stevens was a freshman All-American. In fact, Iowa has had at least one All-Big Ten first-teamer from special teams in each of the last three seasons. – Marcello, 247Sports.
Iowa fans don’t take it for granted, but it really puts things into perspective when you see a list like this. Hawkeye fans have two of the absolute best manning their defense and special teams.
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