The transition from a college head coach to an NFL head coach has not been easy in the 21st century.
When the Arizona Cardinals fired Kliff Kingsbury on Monday, pro football claimed another college coach who failed to live up to the hype at the NFL level.
Matt Rhule was also dismissed as the Carolina Panthers head coach halfway through the season. He then became the head coach at the University of Nebraska, going back to the college ranks.
Adam Schefter of ESPN compiled the records for the head coaches who made the jump from college to the NFL since 2000 (yes, it includes Urban Meyer).
When we look at these coaches and their records, we can realize just how special Pete Carroll has been since making the jump from USC and becoming the head coach of the Seattle Seahawks, who play in the wild card round on Saturday against the San Francisco 49ers.
Carroll has never missed the NFL postseason in consecutive years in Seattle. He has made the playoffs in 10 of 13 seasons with the Seahawks.
You will see in the list below that only one man has had a level of NFL success which is legitimately comparable with Carroll’s: