The 20 Greatest College Football Coaches Of All Time
Behind every great college football team, there’s a great head coach. But how do you determine the best ever? By the number of championships? Or the total amount of victories? Or maybe their general impact on the game? Well, we’ve tried to take into account all potential factors to whittle the list down to just 20. After some hard choices, only the best of the best managed to make it into our very own collegiate coach Hall of Fame…
20. Walter Camp
Affiliation: Yale University, Stanford University
Years active: 1888-1895
Claim to fame: Hailed as the “Father of American Football,” Walter Camp only spent eight seasons as head coach at Yale and Stanford in the late 19th century. In that time, though, he still managed to revolutionize the game like no other, with the system of downs and line of scrimmage just two of his major innovations. He also won three national championships with Yale and remained involved in shaping its athletic program until his death in 1925.
19. Bob Neyland
Affiliation: University of Tennessee
Years active: 1926-1952
Claim to fame: Widely regarded as one of the all-time greatest defensive coaches, Bob Neyland transformed the Tennessee Volunteers into a footballing powerhouse. He won two national titles during a 21-season career which was interrupted by his military duties as a brigadier general during the Second World War. Like Camp, he also helped to shape the sport as one of the first coaches to utilize game footage and sideline telephones.
18. John McKay
Affiliation: University of Southern California
Years active: 1960-1975
Claim to fame: USC didn’t have a single national title to its name when John McKay took over in 1960. By the time he left to chase NFL glory with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers in 1976, they’d lifted four. He also helped guide Mike Garrett and O.J. Simpson to the Heisman Trophy, led his teams to eight Rose Bowl appearances, and in 1988 was made a Hall of Famer.
17. Urban Meyer
Affiliation: Bowling Green State, University of Utah, University of Florida, Ohio State University
Years active: 2001-2018
Claim to fame: Urban Meyer’s glittering career since 2001 has included spells at the Bowling Green Falcons, Utah Utes, Florida Gators, and Ohio State Buckeyes. He’s one of just three coaches to have steered two different universities to a major college football national title and boasts an impressive winning percentage of .854. And there's still the chance that Meyer could easily climb even higher in the list of greats. Just try to forget his disastrous NFL stint.
