Tag: top college football coaches

Kirk Herbstreit names Steve Sarkisian one of top performing coaches of Week 1

Kirk Herbstreit deems Steve Sarkisian one of his top coaches of the week.

Week 1 marked the debut of Steve Sarkisian’s third head coaching stint, and it could not have gone any better.

While many college football experts were calling for the Longhorns to fall to the Billy Napier led Louisiana Ragin’ Cajuns, Sarkisian and Co. had other plans.

After falling behind 3-0, Sarkisian started working his magic as he was scheming up plays to perfection. Texas would go on to take the lead, and the game was never in question again as they would go on to win 38-18.

ESPN’s Kirk Herbstreit ranked the top seven coaching performances of the week, and the first-year Texas head coach landed at No. 4. His team was prepared and composed in all three phases against Louisiana.

Sarkisian deserved to be on the list as he had a redshirt freshman quarterback making his first career start. Thanks to the great play calling, Hudson Card was looking like a seasoned veteran behind center, while also displaying running back Bijan Robinson’s ability to do everything.

The Longhorns are headed to Fayetteville to take on Arkansas for their Week 2 matchup in what is expected to be a sellout crowd and a very hostile environment. While Sarkisian is used to the SEC crowds, many players for Texas will be playing in their most hostile away game as a Longhorn.

This has the chance to be a great win for the program, and if Sarkisian plays his cards right, he might end up on Herbstreit’s list again.

College Football Head Coach Rankings By Conference: CFN Preview 2020

Ranking the college football head coaches in each conference before the season starts, where do they all stack up?

Ranking the college football head coaches in each conference before the season starts, where do they all stack up?

– Contact/Follow @ColFootballNews & @PeteFiutak

Next we’ll do the full ranking from 1 to 130 of all the head coaches going into the 2020 college football season – whatever it’s going to be and however it’s going to look – but first, here are the galleries with the CFN head coach rankings by conference.

How did we pick who goes where? Let’s just say the criteria was very, very loose.

It’s a combination of the head coaches with the best resumĂ©s, and who has the most experience, and who has done a great job at the toughest places, and who has the most longevity, and who you’d want right now to be your head man, and who has more to prove, and …

Again, it’s very loose. In general, those who have consistently done a great job at the toughest places get ranked higher.

Disagree with any of this? Great … if your guy rocks – or struggles – we’ll adapt and adjust the rankings throughout the season.

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ACC Preseason Head Coach Rankings

– CFN 2020 Preseason All-ACC Team

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American Athletic Conference Preseason Head Coach Rankings

– CFN 2020 Preseason All-AAC Team

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Big Ten Preseason Head Coach Rankings

– CFN 2020 Preseason All-Big Ten Team

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Big 12 Preseason Head Coach Rankings

– CFN 2020 Preseason All-Big 12 Team

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Conference USA Preseason Head Coach Rankings

– CFN 2020 Preseason All-C-USA Team

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Independents Preseason Head Coach Rankings

– CFN 2020 Preseason All-Independents Team

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MAC Preseason Head Coach Rankings

– CFN 2020 Preseason All-MAC Team

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Mountain West Preseason Head Coach Rankings

– CFN 2020 Preseason All-Mountain West Team

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Pac-12 Preseason Head Coach Rankings

– CFN 2020 Preseason All-Pac-12 Team

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SEC Preseason Head Coach Rankings

– CFN 2020 Preseason All-SEC Team

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Sun Belt Preseason Head Coach Rankings

– CFN 2020 Preseason All-Sun Belt Team

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Photo Credits: (Dabo Swinney, Scott Satterfield) Brian Spurlock; (Tom Herman, Mike Gundy) Rob Ferguson; (PJ Fleck, Paul Chryst) Jesse Johnson; (Jimbo Fisher, Gus Malzahn) John Glaser-USA TODAY Sports

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Which College Football Head Coaches Were The Best Players?

College Football News Preview 2020: Which current college football head coaches were the best players? 

College Football News Preview 2020: Which current college football head coaches were the best players? 

– Contact/Follow @ColFootballNews & @RichCirminiello

20. WR PJ Fleck, Northern Illinois (Minnesota)

Caught a school-record 77 passes for 1,028 yards and six touchdowns as a senior.

19. QB Jeff Brohm, Louisville (Purdue)

Blossomed as a senior, throwing 20 TD passes and leading the Cards to a 9-3 record.

18. FB Frank Solich, Nebraska (Ohio)

Inducted into the Nebraska Football Hall of Fame in 1992. Ran for 1,010 yards and seven scores, averaging 5.2 yards per carry.

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17. QB Rick Stockstill, Florida State (Middle Tennessee)

Named honorable mention All-American with the Seminoles in 1981.

16. NG Luke Fickell, Ohio State (Cincinnati)

Started a school-record 50 straight games along the defensive line in Columbus.

15. S Kirby Smart, Georgia (Georgia)

Earned four letters, rising to the All-SEC First Team as a senior in 1999.

14. LB Kevin Sumlin, Purdue (Arizona)

Four-year starter made 375 tackles and was twice named honorable mention All-Big Ten.

13. QB Jonathan Smith, Oregon State (Oregon State)

Four-year starter who led the Beavers to their best season in school history.

12. QB Jimbo Fisher, Samford (Texas A&M)

Named 1987 Division III Player of the Year, setting a single-season D-III mark with 34 TD passes.

11. QB Tom Arth, John Carroll (Akron)

Set 18 school records and earned unanimous All-American honors as a junior and senior.

10. LB Kyle Whittingham, BYU (Utah)

Made 240 tackles and forced six fumbles in his final two seasons with the Cougars.

9. S Lovie Smith, Tulsa (Illinois)

Started every game for three seasons at Tulsa, making 367 career tackles.

8. QB Tim Lester, Western Michigan (Western Michigan)

Finished his college career with 87 touchdown passes and 11,299 passing yards.

7. QB Josh Heupel, Oklahoma (UCF)

All-American and Heisman Trophy runner-up led the Sooners to a national championship.

6. QB Willie Taggart, WKU (Florida Atlantic)

Two-time finalist for the Walter Payton Award, the I-AA equivalent of the Heisman Trophy.

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5. QB Scott Frost, Nebraska (Nebraska)

Led the Huskers to a perfect season and a share of the national championship in 1997.

4. DB Herm Edwards, Cal/San Diego State (Arizona State)

Intercepted 33 passes during a nine-year career with the Philadelphia Eagles.

3. QB Mike Gundy, Oklahoma State (Oklahoma State)

Broke the Oklahoma State and Big 8 passing records with 7,997 yards.

2. QB Jim Harbaugh, Michigan (Michigan)

Left Ann Arbor as Michigan’s career passing yards leader before playing 15 years in the NFL.

1. LB Pat Fitzgerald, Northwestern (Northwestern)

In the College Football Hall of Fame, he was a two-time consensus All-American and the recipient of the Bednarik Award in 1995 and 1996.

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247Sports spot on in ranking Kirby Smart 4th best coach in CFB

247Sports ranked Georgia football’s Kirby Smart as the #4 coach in college football. Here’s why he was spot on.

On Thursday, Brad Crawford of 247Sports released his list of the top-25 coaches in college football.

Give credit to Crawford — he took on this story knowing that it would receive mixed reviews from across the country.

Here was his top-five:

1. Nick Saban, Alabama

2. Dabo Swinney, Clemson

3. Ed Orgeron, LSU

4. Kirby Smart, Georgia

5. Lincoln Riley, Oklahoma

I don’t think there’s any question about numbers one and two. Saban and Swinney have taken turns ruling college football for the last decade.

But after those two is when fans start to think their coach should occupy that #3, #4 or #5 spot.

I’m not here to bash Crawford’s ranking of Smart at #4. Instead, I 100% agree with it. How can you not?

I saw a story that stated Georgia fans should be offended by Smart’s ranking on this list. It mentioned recency bias as the main reason Orgeron was put at #3.

I’m not on board with that. Some can call it recency bias, but I call it a national championship win, meaning he’s accomplished something that Smart has not. Meanwhile, they were both playing in the same conference, and LSU kicked Georgia’s butt for the second straight season. At one point, you have to tip your cap to Coach O.

Smart’s time will come where he’ll eventually pass Coach O, but that won’t be until he wins a title. He’s doing everything else right. He’s getting his team to the big games, he’s recruiting better than any coach in America, he catapulted Georgia back into the national spotlight and he’s producing NFL talent.

All that’s left is a ring. That may be a very simplistic way of looking at it, but in the end that’s how success is measured. Have you not been watching the Jordan documentary?

Had Georgia beaten LSU last season in the SEC Championship Game, then we would be having a different discussion. But Georgia did not just lose, it got pounded by a final score of 37-10. The year before, Georgia got spanked in Baton Rouge 36-16. In Smart’s last two games vs Orgeron, his Bulldogs have gotten beat by a combined score of 73-26.

So no, Georgia fans have no right to be offended about the #4 ranking for Smart. If anything, we should be celebrating the fact that Georgia has the fourth best coach in America.

I loved Mark Richt as much as the next guy, but come on, he was never a top-five coach in America. Maybe not even top-10.

Kirby’s time will come.

A few other notable names on the list:

#8 – Florida head coach Dan Mullen

#9 – Texas A&M head coach Jimbo Fisher

#13 – Auburn head coach Gus Malzahn

#15 – Kentucky head coach Mark Stoops

#21 – Tennessee head coach Jeremy Pruitt

247Sports ranks top-25 CFB coaches: Where is Georgia’s Kirby Smart?

Georgia football coach Kirby Smart was ranked 4th in 247Sports’ list of the top-25 coaches in college football.

On Thursday, Brad Crawford of 247Sports released his list of the top-25 coaches in college football.

Georgia coach Kirby Smart checked in at No. 4.

Crawford’s top-five was as follows:

1. Nick Saban, Alabama

2. Dabo Swinney, Clemson

3. Ed Orgeron, LSU

4. Kirby Smart, Georgia

5. Lincoln Riley, Oklahoma

Smart was named the Bulldogs coach in 2015 after serving as Alabama defensive coordinator under Nick Saban for eight years.

Smart has led his alma mater to a 44-12 record over four years as the Bulldogs head coach and has boasted three consecutive No. 1 ranked recruiting classes.

There is no question that Smart has built a powerhouse at Georgia. He recruits at an elite level and has one of the best defensive minds in all of college football.

So, what separates Smart from Saban, Swinney and Orgeron?

A national championship.

Smart has led Georgia to three consecutive SEC East titles, an SEC Championship title, a College Football Playoff victory and a National Championship bid, but a couple of close losses to Bama have held the Bulldogs from the top of college football.

Jan 1, 2018; Pasadena, CA, USA; Georgia Bulldogs head coach Kirby Smart holds the Rose Bowl trophy — Kirby Lee-USA TODAY Sports

However, Smart will have another shot at a title in 2020 and it may be with the most talented team he has had in his time at Georgia.

The Bulldogs return many of the starters from the 2019 record-breaking defense and have a new air-raid offensive system behind the arm of Wake Forest transfer quarterback Jamie Newman, and new offensive coordinator Todd Monken.

A few other notable names on the list:

#8 – Florida head coach Dan Mullen

#9 – Texas A&M head coach Jimbo Fisher

#13 – Auburn head coach Gus Malzahn

#15 – Kentucky head coach Mark Stoops

#21 – Tennessee head coach Jeremy Pruitt