Nov 21, 2015; Madison, WI, USA; Northwestern Wildcats head coach Pat Fitzgerald stands prior to the game against the Wisconsin Badgers at Camp Randall Stadium. Northwestern won 13-7. Mandatory Credit: Jeff Hanisch-USA TODAY Sports
Of the 128 current FBS head coaches, who had the best college career as a player? And who never even suited up beyond high school?
Nick Saban. Urban Meyer. Bob Stoops. Jim Harbaugh. Everyone knows who’s in the discussion for top coaches in college football. But how would the rankings change if those same head guys were evaluated by their playing careers instead of their exploits on the sidelines?
The majority of today’s coaches had anonymous careers on the field, often at tiny programs most fans couldn’t locate on a map. And it’s likely that that anonymity, along with the reality that the NFL wasn’t an option, provided an early impetus to contemplate careers in football that relied more on the mind than the legs.
128. Tracy Claeys, Minnesota
… Kansas State, but did not play college football
128. David Cutcliffe, Duke
… Alabama, but did not play college football
128. Sonny Dykes, Cal
… Texas Tech, but played baseball and not football
128. Hugh Freeze, Ole Miss
… Southern Miss, but did not play college football
128. Paul Johnson, Georgia Tech
… Western Carolina, but did not play college football
128. Mike Leach, Washington State
… BYU, but did not play college football
128. Chad Morris, SMU
… Texas A&M, but did not play college football
128. Matt Viator, Louisiana-Monroe
… McNeese State, but did not play college football
120. Skip Holtz, Louisiana Tech
… Notre Dame wide receiver
119. Terry Bowden, Akron
… West Virginia running back
118. Doug Martin, New Mexico State
… Kentucky quarterback
117. Mark Hudspeth, Louisiana-Lafayette
… Delta State safety and quarterback
116. Butch Jones, Tennessee
… Ferris State wide receiver
115. Trent Miles, Georgia State
… Indiana State wide receiver
114. Bryan Harsin, Boise State
… Boise State quarterback
113. John Bonamego, Central Michigan
… Central Michigan wide receiver
112. Jim McElwain, Florida
… Eastern Washington quarterback
111. Gary Patterson, TCU
… Kansas State safety and linebacker
110. Urban Meyer, Ohio State
… Cincinnati defensive back
109. Gus Malzahn, Auburn
… Henderson State wide receiver
108. Troy Calhoun, Air Force
… Air Force quarterback
107. Bill Snyder, Kansas State
… William Jewell defensive back
106. Philip Montgomery, Tulsa
… Tarleton State quarterback and safety
105. Dave Doeren, NC State
… Drake tight end
104. Mike MacIntyre, Colorado
… Georgia Tech safety
103. Dabo Swinney, Clemson
… Alabama wide receiver
102. Brian Polian, Nevada
… John Carroll linebacker
101. Jim Mora, UCLA
… Washington safety and linebacker
100. Ron Caragher, San Jose State
… UCLA quarterback
99. Dan Mullen, Mississippi State
… Ursinus tight end
98. Blake Anderson, Arkansas State
… Sam Houston State wide receiver
97. Craig Bohl, Wyoming
… Nebraska defensive back
96. Rich Rodriguez, Arizona
… West Virginia defensive back
95. Clay Helton, USC
… Houston quarterback
94. Tyson Summers, Georgia Southern
… Presbyterian linebacker
93. Bob Davie, New Mexico
… Youngstown State tight end
92. Tim DeRuyter, Fresno State
… Air Force linebacker
91. Brian Kelly, Notre Dame
… Assumption linebacker
90. Dana Holgorsen, West Virginia
… Iowa Wesleyan wide receiver
89. Neal Brown, Troy
… Massachusetts wide receiver
88. Chris Ash, Rutgers
… Drake defensive back
87. Les Miles, LSU
… Michigan offensive lineman
86. Mike Riley, Nebraska
… Alabama defensive back
85. Mike Jinks, Bowling Green
… Angelo State quarterback
84. Will Muschamp, South Carolina
… Georgia safety
83. Paul Chryst, Wisconsin
… Wisconsin quarterback
82.Tom Herman, Houston
… Cal Lutheran wide receiver
81. Mark Stoops, Kentucky
… Iowa safety
80. Doc Holliday, Marshall
… West Virginia linebacker
79. Bret Bielema, Arkansas
… Iowa defensive lineman
78. Jeff Monken, Army
… Millikin wide receiver
77. Dave Clawson, Wake Forest
… Williams College defensive back
76. Willie Fritz, Tulane
… Pittsburg State defensive back
75. Derek Mason, Vanderbilt
… Northern Arizona cornerback
74. Tony Sanchez, UNLV
… New Mexico State wide receiver
73. Ron Turner, Florida International
… Pacific wide receiver
72. Art Briles, Baylor
… Houston wide receiver
71. Kirk Ferentz, Iowa
… Connecticut linebacker
70. Pat Narduzzi, Pittsburgh
… Rhode Island linebacker
69. Tommy Tuberville, Cincinnati
… Southern Arkansas safety
68. Mark Richt, Miami
… Miami quarterback
67. Matt Wells, Utah State
… Utah State quarterback
66. Sean Kugler, UTEP
… UTEP offensive lineman
65. Mark Dantonio, Michigan State
… South Carolina defensive back
64. Kevin Wilson, Indiana
… North Carolina offensive lineman
63. Rod Carey, Northern Illinois
… Indiana center
62. Scott Satterfield, Appalachian State
… Appalachian State quarterback
61. Gary Andersen, Oregon State
… Utah center
60. Chuck Martin, Miami U.
… Millikin safety
59. Nick Rolovich, Hawaii
… Hawaii quarterback
58. Mark Whipple, Massachusetts
… Brown quarterback
57. Chris Creighton, Eastern Michigan
… Kenyon College quarterback
56. Bobby Wilder, Old Dominion
… Maine quarterback
55. Seth Littrell, North Texas
… Oklahoma running back
54. Jay Hopson, Southern Miss
… Ole Miss defensive back
53. David Beaty, Kansas
… Lindenwood wide receiver
52. David Bailiff, Rice
… Texas State offensive lineman
51. Jason Candle, Toledo
… Mount Union wide receiver
50. Nick Saban, Alabama
… Kent State safety
49. Kalani Sitake, BYU
… BYU fullback
48. Larry Fedora, North Carolina
… Austin College wide receiver
47. Bill Cubit, Illinois
… Delaware wide receiver
46. David Shaw, Stanford
… Stanford wide receiver
45. Chris Petersen, Washington
… UC Davis quarterback
44. Frank Wilson, UTSA
… Nicholls State running back
43. Dino Babers, Syracuse
… Hawaii running back, linebacker and safety
42. Charlie Partridge, Florida Atlantic
… Drake defensive lineman
41. Matt Campbell, Iowa State
… Mount Union defensive lineman
40. Bronco Mendenhall, Virginia
… Oregon State linebacker and safety
39. Matt Rhule, Temple
… Penn State linebacker
38. Lance Leipold, Buffalo
… Wisconsin-Whitewater quarterback
37. Ken Niumatalolo, Navy
… Hawaii quarterback
36. Steve Addazio, Boston College
… Central Connecticut State linemen
35. Everett Withers, Texas State
… Appalachian State defensive back
34. Todd Graham, Arizona State
… East Central defensive back
33. Paul Haynes, Kent State
… Kent State defensive back
32. Darrell Hazell, Purdue
… Muskingum wide receiver
31. Justin Fuente, Virginia Tech
… Murray State quarterback
30. Mike Neu, Ball State
… Ball State quarterback
29. Mike Bobo, Colorado State
… Georgia quarterback
28. James Franklin, Penn State
… East Stroudsburg quarterback
27. Mike Norvell, Memphis
… Central Arkansas wide receiver
26. Brad Lambert, Charlotte
… Kansas State defensive back
25. P.J. Fleck, Western Michigan
… Northern Illinois wide receiver
24. D.J. Durkin, Maryland
… Bowling Green defensive end and linebacker
23. Scottie Montgomery, East Carolina
… Duke wide receiver
22. Charlie Strong, Texas
… Central Arkansas safety
21. Rocky Long, San Diego State
… New Mexico quarterback
20. Rick Stockstill, Middle Tennessee
… Florida State quarterback
19. Barry Odom, Missouri
… Missouri linebacker
18. Bob Stoops, Oklahoma
… Iowa safety
17. Kirby Smart, Georgia
… Georgia safety
16. Bobby Petrino, Louisville
… Carroll College quarterback
15. Paul Petrino, Idaho
… Carroll College quarterback
14. Jeff Brohm, Western Kentucky
… Louisville quarterback
13. Kevin Sumlin, Texas A&M
… Purdue linebacker
12. Bob Diaco, Connecticut
… Iowa linebacker
11. Mark Helfrich, Oregon
… Southern Oregon quarterback
10. Joey Jones, South Alabama
… Alabama wide receiver
Jones was more than a fan favorite in Tuscaloosa. He was an outstanding pass-catcher at a time when Bama receivers were rarely given a chance to shine. He was clutch throughout four seasons, catching 71 career passes for 1,386 yards and 15 touchdowns, including eight as a junior in 1982. As a senior, Jones was named to the All-SEC Team, and later to Alabama’s All-Decade Team for the 1980s.
9. Jimbo Fisher, Florida State
… Samford quarterback
Years before he became a head coach, Fisher was a very good quarterback at the lower levels. He was twice named the WVIAC Player of the Year while at Salem College before transferring with head coach Terry Bowden to play for Samford. In his lone season with the Bulldogs, Fisher was named the 1987 Division III National Player of the Year, setting the single-season D3 mark with 34 touchdown passes.
8. Kyle Whittingham, Utah
… BYU linebacker
Whittingham crossed enemy lines when he joined the Utah staff in 1994, because he was a Cougar a decade before becoming a Ute. And a very productive Cougar at that, racking up 240 tackles, 10 stops for loss and six forced fumbles over his final two seasons in Provo. As a senior in 1981, Whittingham was named honorable mention All-America and the WAC co-Player of the Year.
7. Frank Solich, Ohio
… Nebraska fullback
Solich has deep ties to Lincoln, both as a coach and a player. One of the key members of Bob Devaney’s first Husker recruiting class, Solich became an important cog in the ground game in the 1960s. “Fearless Frankie” was inducted into the Nebraska Football Hall of Fame in 1992, earning All-Big Eight honors while establishing a school single-game record for rushing yards by a fullback.
6. Willie Taggart, South Florida
… Western Kentucky quarterback
Taggart has a certain appreciation for dynamic dual-threat quarterbacks, because he once was one. In fact, he’s one of the most decorated players in Hilltopper history. By the time he was through as a four-year starter, Taggart had set the school standard for rushing and scoring, as well as the I-AA mark for rushing yards by a quarterback. And in his final two seasons, he was a finalist for the Walter Payton Award, the I-AA equivalent of the Heisman Trophy.
5.. Scott Frost, UCF
… Nebraska quarterback
Frost’s playing career actually began at Stanford, though he became a household name after transferring to the Huskers. In two seasons in Lincoln, he was the quintessential Nebraska option quarterback, rushing for 28 touchdowns and throwing for 18 more. As a senior in 1997, Frost led Big Red to a perfect season while becoming just the tenth player in history to rush and throw for more than 1,000 yards in a year. He’s also the rare college head coach to be drafted by an NFL team.
4. Mike Gundy, Oklahoma State
… Oklahoma State quarterback
Though often overshadowed by his backfield mates in Stillwater, Barry Sanders and Thurman Thomas, Gundy enjoyed a record-setting four-year career as the Cowboy starter. Gundy took over midway through his rookie season and went on to become the all-time leading passer in Oklahoma State and Big Eight history. His school mark of 7,997 yards still stands today, and he was the leader of squads that won 10 games in back-to-back seasons in 1987 and 1988.
3. Jim Harbaugh, Michigan
… Michigan quarterback
Nah, Harbaugh never posted gaudy numbers. Who did in Ann Arbor when Bo Schembechler was in charge? Harbaugh started parts of three seasons with the Wolverines, winning 10 games in 1985 and finishing third in the Heisman vote as a senior in 1986. He finished his career as Michigan’s all-time leader in passing yards, while leading the program to a 21-3-1 record. Harbaugh was selected in the first round of the 1987 NFL Draft, testament to his ability, setting the stage for a 15-year pro career.
2. Kliff Kingsbury, Texas Tech
… Texas Tech quarterback
Kingsbury plus Mike Leach equaled plenty of monster numbers and smashed records at Texas Tech. As a three-year starter as the rifleman of Leach’s Air Raid, Kingsbury rung up 95 career touchdown passes and more than 12,000 yards through the air. As a senior, he rewrote the Red Raider and Big 12 record books by passing for 45 scores and 5,017 yards. Kingsbury was the forerunner to the likes of B.J. Symons, Cody Hodges and Graham Harrell in Lubbock.
1. Pat Fitzgerald, Northwestern
… Northwestern linebacker
No individual has been more instrumental to Wildcat football, past and present, than Fitzgerald. Today, he’s the school’s all-time leader in coaching wins. In the 1990s, he was one of the game’s fiercest linebackers and the catalyst for a turnaround in Evanston. Fitz was a beast from the second level, overcoming modest athleticism to become a tackling machine. In both 1995 and 1996, he was the Big Ten Defensive Player of the Year, a consensus All-American and the winner of the Bednarik Award and Nagurski Trophy.