Who are the top 5 college football coaches of all-time?

[outlaw okie]

Bear
Bud
Barry
T.Oz
Bobby

 

[Backroads]

Bear
Bud
Barry
T.Oz
Bobby

I have never understood the fascination with Switzer. He was a thug.

The problem with Joe Pa and Bowden was they stayed too long. If they had left earlier, we would remember how great they were, but their final years were losing years (to them). Woody has the fist from hell to overcome and he won't. DKR...maybe...top Ten for sure, but probably not top Five..

 

[4down20]

I have never understood the fascination with Switzer. He was a thug.

The problem with Joe Pa and Bowden was they stayed too long. If they had left earlier, we would remember how great they were, but their final years were losing years (to them). Woody has the fist from hell to overcome and he won't. DKR...maybe...top Ten for sure, but probably not top Five..

Bowden didn't really do any worse than Bear did at the end. I don't see how or why final years should count more weight than previous accomplishments. Leaving "on top" is so over-rated.

 

[Backroads]

Bowden didn't really do any worse than Bear did at the end. I don't see how or why final years should count more weight than previous accomplishments. Leaving "on top" is so over-rated.

Bear last four years
12-0
10-2
9-2-1
8-4

Bowden last four years
7-6
7-6
9-4
7-6

While I agree with you about judging the entirety of the career, sometimes you stay too long and make mistakes that color your legacy...or, in Bowden's case, you have a bad record and get forced out rather than leaving on your own....

 

[Backroads]

Bowden didn't really do any worse than Bear did at the end. I don't see how or why final years should count more weight than previous accomplishments. Leaving "on top" is so over-rated.

History teacher once explained it this way....

If Pres Grant had left after his first term, or been assassinated, he would have been known as one of our great presidents for leading us after the War of Northern Aggression...

John F Kennedy MIGHT have made some mistakes had he lived and he then wouldn't have been known as one of our great presidents.

Timing is a very important aspect.

 

[GoBlueNavyNuke]

Fielding H. Yost, the man only went undefeated his first 4 season, out scoring the opponents by 2,821 to 42. He was also a pioneer of the game, helping to establish the forward pass as a legitimate play

Not to mention he had the foresight as AD to build Michigan Stadium with the foundations that enable it to be largest in nation and and electrical infrastructure which supports all the demands of today........in 1927!






And here come's the naysayers because in was the 1900's in
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[GoBlueNavyNuke]

And to fill out to five

Bear Byrant of Alabama
Darrell Royal of Texas
Tom Osborne of Nebraska
And an joint of Woody Hayes and Bo Schembechler (because you cannot mention one without the other)

 

[Red_Alert]

Yost was also credited with installing rusty nails to hang hats on.

 

[Voltaire26]

Bo Schembechler ... everyone else ... Woody Hayes (yes this is a homer pick)

 

[oaknightshockey1]

Great Mack won 9 a lot. It is pretty easy when you play at least 10 of 12 games vs inferior competition. K State is a secondary school, little brother if you will. Lacks the money and the fan base. kSU stadium held less than 50k during Osborne's time. It sits at 50k now. Nebraska was at around 75k in the early 70s. Currently, it is almost 90k. Tradition is also a very big recruiting tool. If you you can not see the differences in the programs, than I am not sure how you can objectively measure a coaches success. Take a look at Saban. He has pretty much brought every program to its modern heights. He did that at MSU, until Dantonio came to MSU. Does not mean Dantonio is better, but it certainly makes you wonder what he could do at a top 5 program. I simply prefer to judge coaches based on their deviation from the program mean and contribution to the game. If we just use winning percentage and titles, than we are basically deciding things like Heisman voters.

I'm just saying that, aside from tradition and fan support (which did not just happen, by the way. Like I said, Devaney started it, and Osborne solidified it) Nebraska doesn't have some major advantage over K-State, be it recruiting, location, etc. Obviously Nebraska now has an advantage, since we had two coaches win at about an 83% clip for 35 YEARS.

 

[MarkOU]

Great homer thread but I love it because we are getting our blood boiling talking about CFB.

I would stay there are 10 guys you could list as top 5 all time.

Bryant
Wilkinson
Hays
Schembechler
Osborne
Switzer
Bowden
Rockne
Fry
Paterno

Those probably my 10 top 5'ers.

 

[TexasExes98]

I left out two, what a smart person I am.

Nick Saban, WTH, got to include him. List is incomplete without
Mack Brown, hey. all Longhorns who lived through the 1970-2005 drought, know what he did for the program.

Jefe, Mack over DKR? Really?

 

[TexasExes98]

Great homer thread but I love it because we are getting our blood boiling talking about CFB.

I would stay there are 10 guys you could list as top 5 all time.

Bryant
Wilkinson
Hays
Schembechler
Osborne
Switzer
Bowden
Rockne
Fry
Paterno

Those probably my 10 top 5'ers.

No DKR, even though he won more NC's and conference titles than 4 of those coaches on your list? Just saying....

 

[TROJAN-MAN]

No DKR, even though he won more NC's and conference titles than 4 of those coaches on your list? Just saying....

And John Mckay has as many as Texas has during their entire existence, Go fugure

 

[Tin Man]

Fielding H. Yost, the man only went undefeated his first 4 season, out scoring the opponents by 2,821 to 42. He was also a pioneer of the game, helping to establish the forward pass as a legitimate play

Not to mention he had the foresight as AD to build Michigan Stadium with the foundations that enable it to be largest in nation and and electrical infrastructure which supports all the demands of today........in 1927!

I give consideration to your contention that Yost deserves consideration. Strange that you look deep into history but choose to ignore my case for Robert Neyland.