Texas head coach Steve Sarkisian was quite the athlete in the 1990’s before he became one of the top play callers in college football.
ESPN recently ranked all 130 FBS head coaches based on their playing careers (link requires subscription). The ranking put an emphasis on which players made meaningful contributions in college, regardless of level. Those who were multiyear starters or award recipients of FBS teams get more credit, as do those who played professionally.
With that in mind, Sarkisian landed at No. 5 overall. Michigan’s Jim Harbaugh, Northwestern’s Pat Fitzgerald, Tennessee’s Josh Heupel, and Oklahoma State’s Mike Gundy were the only current head coaches listed ahead of him.
Sarkisian first starred at quarterback for El Camino College, setting national junior college records in both completion percentage (72.4) and pass efficiency (203.8 rating). He then transferred to BYU and earned WAC offensive player of the year honors as a senior in 1996, when he led the nation in pass efficiency (173.56) and broke Steve Young’s career completion percentage record (65.2). He won the Sammy Baugh Trophy and then played three seasons in the CFL, starting for Saskatchewan in 1999.
It’s obviously not a must to have been a former player in order to be a successful collegiate coach, but it certainly provides unparalleled experience. In Sarkisian’s case, it was likely a key contributor to him becoming an offensive guru and elite quarterback developer.