The Best College Football Coaches of All Time
Updated June 23, 2023 74.3K votes 8.3K voters 146.5K views
Over 8.3K Ranker voters have come together to rank this list of The Best College Football Coaches of All Time
Voting Rules
Only college football coaches. No high school or NFL coaches, unless they coached in college at some point.
This list of the best college football coaches of all time is full of big names and legendary coaching empires. Ever wondered who was is the greatest college football coach of all time? Now is your opportunity to have a say in the matter. Granted, picking who this should be won't be easy, as you have to consider different eras of NCAA football along with a number of other factors, like bowl game wins, national titles, who was on their team, and who got the most bang for their buck out of their players. But it's on you to pick whatever criteria you want in determining who is the best college football coach ever. As long as they coached college play at some point, they can be listed here, but be sure to vote based on each coach's storied college career only.
There are some pretty big names on this list, titans of the coaching world. If you're an Alabama fan, you'll have a tough time picking between Bear Bryant and Nick Saban. The same goes for any Notre Dame fan and for USC supporters, who do you think is a better coach: John McKay or Pete Carroll? Who's the best of these famous college football coaches?
It shouldn't be easy for you to decide who the greatest college football coaches are. There are simply too many all time greats. Just remember though, where would each coaches' team be without them steering the ship and keeping the players in line? Not an easy question to answer.
So who is the best college football coach of all time? It's up to you to decide. If you notice someone isn't on this list and should be, feel free to add him. This is the crowdranked list of what coach deserves to called the greatest ever, so choose wisely!Most divisive: Joe Paterno
Ranked by
- 311,039 votesDec. at 70 (1892-1962)Robert Reese Neyland ( NEE-lənd), MBE, (February 17, 1892 – March 28, 1962) was an American football player and coach and officer in the United States Army, reaching the rank of brigadier general. He served three stints as the head football coach at the University of Tennessee (UT) from 1926 to 1934, 1936 to 1940, and 1946 to 1952. He is one of two college football coaches to have won national titles in two non-consecutive tenures at the same school, along with Frank Leahy of the University of Notre Dame. Neyland holds the record for most wins in Tennessee Volunteers history with 173 wins in 216 games, six undefeated seasons, nine undefeated regular seasons, seven conference championships, and four national championships. At UT, he reeled off undefeated streaks of 33, 28, 23, 19, and 14 games. Neyland is often referred to as one of the best, if not the best, defensive football coaches ever. Sports Illustrated named Neyland as the defensive coordinator of its all-century college football team in its "Best of the 20th Century" edition. 112 of his victories came via shutout. In 1938 and 1939, Neyland's Vols set NCAA records when they shut out 17 straight opponents for 71 consecutive shutout quarters. His 1939 squad is the last NCAA team in history to hold every regular season opponent scoreless. Neyland was also an innovator. He is credited with being the first coach to utilize sideline telephones and game film to study opponents. His teams also were some of the first to wear lightweight pads and tearaway jerseys. Such measures increased his players' elusiveness and exemplify Neyland's "speed over strength" philosophy. Neyland is also famous for creating the seven "Game Maxims" of football that many coaches, on all levels, still use. Tennessee players recite the maxims before every game in the locker room as a team. Neyland Stadium at UT is not only named for The General, but was designed by him. His plans formed the basis for all expansions that brought the stadium to its modern size with an over 100,000 seat capacity. Neyland was inducted into the College Football Hall of Fame as a coach in 1956. On November 12, 2010, a 9-foot (2.7 m), nearly 1,500-pound (680 kg) bronze statue of General Neyland was unveiled between gates 15A and 17 at Neyland Stadium. The statue, which was commissioned by artist Blair Buswell, is twice life-size. Since Neyland is portrayed in the kneeling position rather than standing, the statue is 9 feet (2.7 m) tall (a standing statue would have stood 12 feet (3.7 m) tall). The base is 57 by 87 inches (140 by 220 cm) and features Neyland's well-known seven Game Maxims engraved into the precast.
- 32994 votesDec. at 64 (1908-1973)Francis William Leahy (August 27, 1908 – June 21, 1973) was an American football player, coach, college athletics administrator, and professional sports executive. He served as the head football coach at Boston College from 1939 to 1940 and at the University of Notre Dame from 1941 to 1943 and again from 1946 to 1953, compiling a career college football record of 107–13–9. His winning percentage of .864 is the second best in NCAA Division I football history, trailing only that of fellow Notre Dame Fighting Irish coach, Knute Rockne, for whom Leahy played from 1928 to 1930. Leahy played on two Notre Dame teams that won national championships, in 1929 and 1930, and coached four more, in 1943, 1946, 1947, and 1949. Leahy was also the athletic director at Notre Dame from 1947 until 1949 when he passed the role to the Fighting Irish basketball coach, Moose Krause, so that he could focus on football coaching. Leahy served as the general manager for the Los Angeles Chargers of the American Football League (AFL) during their inaugural season in 1960. He was inducted into the College Football Hall of Fame as a coach in 1970.
- 33536 votesAge: 89Howard Leslie Schnellenberger (born March 16, 1934) is a retired American football coach with long service at both the professional and college levels. He held head coaching positions with the National Football League's Baltimore Colts and in college for the University of Miami, University of Oklahoma, University of Louisville and Florida Atlantic University. He won a national championship with Miami in 1983. Schnellenberger also worked extensively as an assistant coach at the college and pro levels, including as part of the staff of the undefeated 1972 Miami Dolphins. He is also famous for recruiting Joe Namath to Alabama for Bear Bryant in 1961.
- 34464 votesAge: 76Barry Lee Alvarez (born December 30, 1946) is a former American football coach who is currently the athletic director at the University of Wisconsin–Madison. He served as the head football coach at Wisconsin for 16 seasons, from 1990 to 2005, compiling a career college football record of 118–73–4. He has the longest head coaching tenure and the most wins in Wisconsin Badgers football history. Alvarez stepped down as head coach after the 2005 season, remaining as athletics director. Since retiring, Alvarez has served as interim head coach on two occasions. He coached Wisconsin in the 2013 Rose Bowl, after the departure of Bret Bielema to the University of Arkansas, and in 2015 Outback Bowl, following the departure of Gary Andersen to Oregon State University. Alvarez was inducted to the College Football Hall of Fame as a coach in 2010.
- 35715 votesAge: 91Vincent Joseph Dooley (born September 4, 1932) was the head football coach (seasons 1964 through 1988) and athletic director (1979 to 2004) at the University of Georgia. During his 25-year coaching career at UGA, Dooley compiled a 201–77–10 record. His teams won six Southeastern Conference titles and the 1980 national championship. After the 1980 season, Dooley was recognized as college football's "Coach of the Year" by several organizations, including the National Sportscasters and Sportswriters Association, whose annual award has since been renamed as the Paul "Bear" Bryant Award. Dooley's teams were known for their hard nosed defense and conservative yet fundamentally sound offenses. From 1964 to 1980, Dooley was assisted by his defensive coordinator, Erskine "Erk" Russell.
- 36192 votesDec. at 79 (1908-1988)Robert Lee Dodd (November 11, 1908 – June 21, 1988) was an American college football coach at Georgia Tech. He was elected to the College Football Hall of Fame as a player and coach, one of four to do so.After playing quarterback at the University of Tennessee, he served as an assistant coach under William Alexander at Georgia Tech beginning in December 1930. Alexander made the hire while Dodd was still a student at Tennessee. Dodd succeeded Alexander in 1945 as the third head coach at the Institute. He retired from coaching after the 1966 season, compiling a 165–64–8 record. He also served as athletic director from 1950 until 1976. All together, Dodd served Georgia Tech 57 years in various capacities. Bobby Dodd died in June 1988 at the age of 79 in Atlanta, Georgia.
- 37875 votesDec. at 75 (1871-1946)Fielding Harris Yost (; April 30, 1871 – August 20, 1946) was an American football player, coach and college athletics administrator. He served as the head football coach at: Ohio Wesleyan University, the University of Nebraska–Lincoln, the University of Kansas, Stanford University, San Jose State University, and the University of Michigan, compiling a college football career record of 198–35–12. During his 25 seasons as the head football coach at Ann Arbor, Yost's Michigan Wolverines won six national championships, captured ten Big Ten Conference titles, and amassed a record of 165–29–10. From 1901 to 1905, his "Point-a-Minute" squads had a record of 55–1–1, outscoring their opponents by a margin of 2,821 to 42. The 1901 team beat Stanford, 49–0, in the 1902 Rose Bowl, the first college football bowl game. Under Yost, Michigan won four straight national championships from 1901 to 1904 and two more in 1918 and 1923. In 1921, Yost became Michigan's athletic director and served in that capacity until 1940. He was inducted into the College Football Hall of Fame as a coach in 1951. Yost was also a successful business person, lawyer, and author; but he is best known as a leading figure in pioneering the development of college football into a national phenomenon.
- 38129 votesDec. at 65 (1859-1925)Walter Chauncey Camp (April 7, 1859 – March 14, 1925) was an American football player, coach, and sports writer known as the "Father of American Football". Among a long list of inventions, he created the sport's line of scrimmage and the system of downs. With John Heisman, Amos Alonzo Stagg, Pop Warner, Fielding H. Yost, and George Halas, Camp was one of the most accomplished persons in the early history of American football. He attended Yale College, where he played and coached college football. Camp's Yale teams of 1888, 1891, and 1892 have been recognized as national champions. Camp was inducted into the College Football Hall of Fame as a coach in 1951. Camp wrote articles and books on the gridiron and sports in general, annually publishing an "All-American" team. By the time of his death, he had written nearly 30 books and more than 250 magazine articles. He is related to comedian Lee Camp.
- 39878 votesDec. at 102 (1862-1965)Amos Alonzo Stagg (August 16, 1862 – March 17, 1965) was an American athlete and college coach in multiple sports, primarily American football. He served as the head football coach at the International Young Men's Christian Association Training School (now called Springfield College) (1890–1891), the University of Chicago (1892–1932), and the College of the Pacific (1933–1946), compiling a career college football record of 314–199–35. His Chicago Maroons teams of 1905 and 1913 have been recognized as national champions. He was also the head basketball coach for one season at the University of Chicago (1920–1921), and the head baseball coach there for 19 seasons (1893–1905, 1907–1913). At the University of Chicago, Stagg also instituted an annual prep basketball tournament and track meet. Both drew the top high school teams and athletes from around the United States. Stagg played football as an end at Yale University and was selected to the first College Football All-America Team in 1889. He was inducted into the College Football Hall of Fame as both a player and a coach in the charter class of 1951 and was the only individual honored in both roles until the 1990s. Influential in other sports, Stagg developed basketball as a five-player sport. This five-man concept allowed his 10 (later 11) man football team the ability to compete with each other and to stay in shape over the winter. Stagg was elected to the Basketball Hall of Fame in its first group of inductees in 1959. Stagg also forged a bond between sports and religious faith early in his career that remained important to him for the rest of his life.
- 40273 votesAge: 88John Alexander Robinson (born July 25, 1935) is a former American football player and coach best known for his two stints as head coach of the University of Southern California (USC) football team (1976–1982, 1993–1997) and for his tenure as head coach of the NFL's Los Angeles Rams (1983–1991). Robinson's USC teams won four Rose Bowls and captured a share of the national championship in the 1978 season. Robinson is one of the few college football head coaches to have non-consecutive tenure at the same school. In 2009, he was elected to the College Football Hall of Fame.
- 41376 votes
Dick Vermeil
Age: 86Richard Albert Vermeil (; born October 30, 1936) is an American former football head coach for the National Football League's Philadelphia Eagles (1976–1982), St. Louis Rams (1997–1999) and Kansas City Chiefs (2001–2005). He coached the Rams to their only NFL title in St. Louis over the Tennessee Titans. He is in the Sid Gillman coaching tree and has coached at every level; Vermeil owns the distinction of being named "Coach of the Year" on four levels: high school, junior college, NCAA Division I, and professional football. In all three of his stints as an NFL head coach, Vermeil took every team—Philadelphia, St. Louis and Kansas City, each of which had a losing record before he arrived—and brought them to the playoffs by his third season at the helm. - 42342 votesAge: 73Phillip Edward Fulmer Sr. (born September 1, 1950) is a former American football player, coach, and current athletic director at the University of Tennessee. He served as head coach of the Tennessee Volunteers football team from 1992 to 2008, compiling a 152–52 record. He is best known for coaching the Volunteers in the first BCS National Championship Game in 1998, defeating Florida State Seminoles. Fulmer was the Volunteers' 20th head football coach.At the end of his tenure at Tennessee, Fulmer had the second-highest number of wins of any head coach in Tennessee history, 21 behind Robert Neyland. Fulmer also was the third coach in Tennessee history to win a claimed national championship. His 1997 and 1998 teams won consecutive SEC championships. Despite a decline in the later years of his career, he was considered by many to be an icon of college football, especially one of institutional loyalty. In recognition of his accomplishments at Tennessee, Fulmer was inducted into the College Football Hall of Fame in 2012.Fulmer served as a special assistant to the athletic director at East Tennessee State University. On June 20, 2017, Fulmer was named as a special advisor to the University of Tennessee president. On December 1, 2017, Fulmer became the Athletic Director at the University of Tennessee.
- 43147 votesAge: 47Kirby Paul Smart (born December 23, 1975) is an American football coach and former player. He is head coach of the University of Georgia. He previously served as the defensive coordinator at the University of Alabama.
- 44230 votesAge: 68Kirk James Ferentz (born August 1, 1955) is an American football coach. He is the head football coach at the University of Iowa, a position he has held since the 1999 season. From 1990 to 1992, Ferentz was the head football coach at the University of Maine, where he had a record of 12-21. He has also served as an assistant coach with the Cleveland Browns and Baltimore Ravens of the National Football League (NFL). Ferentz played college football as a linebacker at the University of Connecticut from 1974 to 1976. He is currently the longest tenured FBS coach with one program, and as of September 2018, is the all-time wins leader at Iowa.
- 45261 votesDec. at 72 (1915-1987)Hugh Duffy Daugherty (September 8, 1915 – September 25, 1987) was an American football player and coach. He served as the head coach at Michigan State University from 1954 to 1972, compiling a record of 109–69–5. His 1965 and 1966 teams won national championships. Daugherty's tenure of 19 seasons at the helm of the Michigan State Spartans football team is the longest of any head coach in the program's history. He was inducted into the College Football Hall of Fame as a coach in 1984.
- 46370 votesAge: 62Michael Charles Leach (born March 9, 1961) was an American college football coach who primarily coached at the NCAA Division I FBS level. He was a two-time national coach of the year, three-time conference coach of the year, and the mastermind behind the NCAA record-setting air raid offense. He was the head coach at Texas Tech University from 2000 to 2009, where he became the winningest coach in school history.
- 47320 votesAge: 63Gary Allen Patterson (born February 13, 1960) is an American football coach and former player. He was the former head football coach at Texas Christian University and the winningest coach in Horned Frogs' history. Patterson has led the TCU Horned Frogs to six conference championships—one Conference USA title in 2002; four Mountain West Conference titles in 2005, 2009, 2010 and 2011; —and nine bowl game victories—including victories in the 2011 Rose Bowl and 2014 Peach Bowl. His 2010 squad finished the season undefeated at 13–0 after a 21–19 Rose Bowl victory over the Wisconsin Badgers on New Year's Day 2011, and ranked second in the final tallying of both major polls.
- 48697 votesAge: 92Reuben LaVell Edwards (October 11, 1930 – December 29, 2016) was an American football head coach for Brigham Young University (BYU). With 257 career victories, he ranks as one of the most successful college football coaches of all time. Among his many notable accomplishments, Edwards guided BYU to a national championship in 1984 and coached Heisman Trophy winner Ty Detmer in 1990. Edwards played football for Utah State University and earned a master's degree at the University of Utah prior to coaching at BYU, where he also earned his doctorate.
- 49587 votesDec. at 77 (1924-2002)Daniel John Devine (December 22, 1924 – May 9, 2002) was an American football player and coach. He served as the head football coach at Arizona State University from 1955 to 1957, the University of Missouri from 1958 to 1970, and the University of Notre Dame from 1975 to 1980, compiling a career college football mark of 173–56–9. Devine was also the head coach of the National Football League's Green Bay Packers from 1971 to 1974, tallying a mark of 25–27–4. His 1977 Notre Dame team won a national championship after beating Texas in the Cotton Bowl. Devine was inducted into the College Football Hall of Fame as a coach in 1985.
- 501,322 votesAge: 72Peter Clay Carroll (born September 15, 1951) is an American football coach who is the head coach and executive vice president of the Seattle Seahawks of the National Football League (NFL). He is a former head coach of the New York Jets, New England Patriots, and the USC Trojans of the University of Southern California (USC). Carroll is one of only three football coaches who have won both a Super Bowl and a college football national championship. One of Carroll's greatest accomplishments was masterminding the defense known as the Legion of Boom who led the NFL in scoring defense four years straight becoming the first team to do so since the 1950's Cleveland Browns. Carroll is the oldest head coach currently working in the NFL.
- 51552 votesDec. at 80 (1932-2013)Donald Earl James (December 31, 1932 – October 20, 2013) was an American football player and coach. He served as the head coach at Kent State University from 1971 to 1974 and at the University of Washington from 1975 to 1992, compiling a career college football record of 178–76–3 (.698). His 1991 Washington team won a share of the national championship after completing a 12–0 season with a decisive win over Michigan in the Rose Bowl. James was inducted into the College Football Hall of Fame as a coach in 1997.
- 521,392 votesDec. at 82 (1915-1997)Robert S. Devaney (April 13, 1915 – May 9, 1997) was a college football coach. He served as the head coach at the University of Wyoming from 1957 to 1961 and at the University of Nebraska from 1962 to 1972, compiling a career record of 136–30–7 (.806). Devaney's Nebraska Cornhuskers won consecutive national championships in 1970 and 1971 and three consecutive Orange Bowls. Devaney also served as the athletic director at Nebraska from 1967 to 1993, and was inducted into the College Football Hall of Fame as a coach in 1981. He died of a heart attack at age 82 in 1997, and is buried at Lincoln Memorial Park in Lincoln.
- 53255 votes
Mark Richt
- 54607 votesAge: 58Christopher Scott Petersen (born October 13, 1964) is an American football coach, currently head coach at the University of Washington. Previously the head coach for eight seasons at Boise State University, Petersen guided the Broncos to two BCS bowl wins: the 2007 and 2010 Fiesta Bowls. He is the first two-time winner of the Paul "Bear" Bryant Award, which he won in 2006 and 2009. Petersen also won the Bobby Dodd Coach of the Year Award in 2010. At Washington, Petersen led the Huskies to the College Football Playoff in 2016, but fell to Alabama in the Peach Bowl.
- 55250 votes
Mike Gundy
Age: 56Michael Ray Gundy (born August 12, 1967) is an American football coach and former player. He is currently the head football coach at Oklahoma State University. Gundy played college football at Oklahoma State, where he played quarterback from 1986 to 1989. He became Oklahoma State's coach on January 3, 2005. In 2007, he received national media attention for his heated criticism of a newspaper article on one of his players. - 56870 votesAge: 72William Mack Brown (born August 27, 1951) is an American college football coach. He is currently in his second stint as the head football coach at the University of North Carolina, where he coached from 1988 until departing in 1997 to become coach at the University of Texas. He was recently a college football commentator for ESPN. In January 2018, Brown was selected to enter the College Football Hall of Fame. In November 2018, Brown took the vacant job at North Carolina, replacing Larry Fedora.Prior to his head coach position at Texas, Brown was head coach at Appalachian State, Tulane, and North Carolina. Brown is credited with revitalizing the Texas and North Carolina football programs. The Longhorns beat the University of Southern California in the 2006 Rose Bowl, Ohio State at The Horseshoe in September 2005, and conference rival Oklahoma in 1998, 1999, 2005, 2006, 2008, 2009, and 2013. The 2005 season was capped off by victories over Colorado and USC to win the Big 12 Conference and national championships, respectively. In 2006, he was awarded the Paul "Bear" Bryant Award for "Coach of the Year". Brown achieved his 200th career win during the 2008 season, making him the first Texas coach to reach that mark. He resigned after the 2013 Alamo Bowl.
- 571,032 votesAge: 70James Patrick Tressel (born December 5, 1952) is an American college football coach and university administrator who is currently the president of Youngstown State University in Youngstown, Ohio. Before becoming an administrator, Tressel was the head coach of the Youngstown State Penguins and later the Ohio State Buckeyes in a career that spanned from 1986 until 2010. Tressel's teams earned several national championships during the course of his career, earning him numerous accolades. Tressel was born in Mentor, Ohio and attended Baldwin–Wallace College, where he played football as quarterback under his father, Lee Tressel. Tressel succeeded Bill Narduzzi as Youngstown State's fourth head football coach in 1986 and would remain there until 2000. In 2001, he was named John Cooper's successor as the head coach of Ohio State. During his tenure as Ohio State's 22nd head football coach, Tressel's teams competed in three BCS National Championship Games, and his 2002 squad won a national title, achieving the first 14–0 season record in major college football since 1897 Penn Quakers.Tressel's tenure would, however, come to an abrupt end with his resignation in May 2011 amidst an NCAA investigation into improper benefits violations involving OSU football players during the 2010 season. The investigation resulted in OSU self-vacating victories from the 2010 season including the 2011 Sugar Bowl. Tressel finished his career at Ohio State with an official overall record of 94–22 (.810), including six Big Ten Conference championships, a 5–4 bowl record, a 4–3 mark in BCS bowl games, and an 8–1 record against the arch-rival Michigan Wolverines. Tressel's eight wins against the University of Michigan place him second in school history to Woody Hayes, who had 16, and he is tied with Urban Meyer as the only Ohio State head coaches to win seven consecutive games against the Wolverines. Tressel's success as a head coach led to him being inducted into the College Football Hall of Fame in 2015. From September 2011 until February 2012, Tressel was a consultant for the Indianapolis Colts of the National Football League (NFL). From 2012 to 2014 Tressel served as Vice President of Strategic Engagement for the University of Akron, before being named as Youngstown State University President on May 9, 2014.
- 58727 votesAge: 69Leslie Edwin Miles (born November 10, 1953) is an American football coach who is the head football coach at the University of Kansas. His head coaching career began with the Oklahoma State Cowboys, where he coached from 2001 to 2004. Following that, he coached LSU from 2005 to 2016. Miles is nicknamed "The Hat" for his signature white cap, as well as "The Mad Hatter" for his eccentricities and play-calling habits. Prior to being a head coach, he was an assistant coach at Oklahoma State as well as at the University of Michigan, the University of Colorado at Boulder, and with the Dallas Cowboys of the National Football League (NFL). Miles led the 2007 LSU Tigers football team to a win in the BCS National Championship Game, defeating Ohio State.
- 59226 votesAge: 79Frank Thomas Solich (born September 8, 1944) is an American football coach and former player. He is currently the head coach at Ohio University, a position he has held since the 2005 season. From 1998 to 2003, Solich served as the head coach at the University of Nebraska–Lincoln, where he also played fullback under Bob Devaney in the mid-1960s.
- 60219 votesAge: 48Patrick William Fitzgerald Jr. (born (1974-12-02)December 2, 1974) is the current head coach of the Northwestern University Wildcats football team. He was selected after the unexpected death of Randy Walker and announced at a press conference on July 7, 2006. He was 31 at the time, making him the youngest head football coach in the Big Ten Conference and NCAA Division I FBS by five years. As a linebacker for Northwestern from 1993 to 1996, he won both the Bronko Nagurski Trophy and Chuck Bednarik Award twice as the best defensive player in college football. He was inducted into the College Football Hall of Fame in 2008.
