Coaches Research Hub

Explore college football coaches by peak, consistency, and identity.

Turn coach-season records into career arcs, school-by-school tenures, style profiles, and side-by-side comparisons.

Browse coachesCompare coaches

Peak finder

Jump from the broad landscape to the highest single-season ceilings.

Tenure story

See where coaches built, inherited, or stabilized a program.

Compare mode

Stack up to four coaches on the same profile and arc surfaces.

Current Research Window

These totals update with every filter so the discovery visuals and the table below stay on the same coach universe. Start from the recommended sample, then tighten the field around identity, school, time span, or quality.

3+ seasons

1271

Coaches in view

1786 indexed coaches available

11703

Coach-seasons

12402 total coach-season rows

5/51

Page position

1271 coaches in the current filtered result set

Summary and Filtering

Filter and rank coaches

Coach search stays primary, then school, archetype, time span, and quality sharpen the list. The recommended starting point is 3+ seasons.

Reset to recommendedClear all

Recommended baseline

Keep at least 3 seasons in view to avoid tiny-sample profiles dominating the charts and leaderboards.

Coach Identity

The fastest way to narrow style and school context.

Time and Sample

Keep the result set stable before reading the charts.

Recommended: 3+ seasons.

Quality

Shortcut the list toward stronger resumes and stronger finishes.

These filters reshape the charts and the results table together, so every leaderboard and callout below reflects the same active set.

You are on the recommended baseline view.

Primary Discovery

One clear lens at a time.

Start with career shape or flip to identity. Either way, the chart, the coach summary, the outlier list, and the table context all stay synchronized.

Success vs Volatility

Start with the simplest question: who paired real strength with a repeatable week-to-week shape?

250 coaches shown
Elite and steady
Elite but volatile
Lower ceiling but stable
Lower ceiling and unstable

Mike Knoll

Volatility: 4.22 • Average SRS: -30.12

9.1% win rate • -25.6 peak SRS

Volatility
Average SRS

Hover or focus a point to isolate it. Click a coach to carry that selection into the results table.

Average SRS reads overall strength. Volatility is the spread of season-to-season SRS, so lower values mean a steadier profile.

Career shape lens

Mike Knoll

This is the clearest first-pass view for peak versus stability. It is the best place to start browsing.

BalancedBalanced

Mike Knoll is currently highlighted in the success vs volatility view.

Volatility
4.22
Average SRS
-30.12
Career Win %
9.1%
Peak SRS
-25.6
View coach profile

Active chart outliers

These callouts update with the active discovery mode and filtered coach set.

4 markers

  1. Highest peak

    John Corbett

    Single-season ceiling leader in the current filtered set.

    17.1 peak SRS

  2. Most consistent elite coach

    Craig Fertig

    High average strength without the season-to-season swing.

    -5.12 avg SRS • 4.96 volatility

  3. Steadiest floor

    Mike Sanford Jr

    Lowest volatility in the view. Lower is more stable.

    0.21 volatility

  4. Elite but volatile

    Todd Monken

    Big ceiling, but the weekly shape moved around more than the steady tier.

    12.13 volatility

Top Career Peaks

Keep the ceiling board in view, but as a support module for the active lens, not the main destination.

  1. 1. Harry Hughes

    1916

    46.5

  2. 2. Red Blaik

    1945

    44.1

  3. 3. Nelson Norgren

    1916

    44.0

  4. 4. Henry Williams

    1905

    42.5

  5. 5. Amos Alonzo Stagg

    1905

    42.2

Elite and steady

Upper-left is the premium zone: strong average results without much season-to-season swing.

Elite but volatile

Upper-right still reaches major heights, but the shape was less repeatable.

Lower ceiling but stable

Lower-left profiles stayed steady even if the absolute ceiling never reached the very top tier.

Lower ceiling and unstable

Lower-right is where the career shape had neither a high average peak nor reliable steadiness.

Supporting Insights

Quick leaderboards, grouped on purpose.

These are shortcuts into the same table below. Performance leads the stack, while stability and longevity stay visible without competing with the main chart.

Performance

Primary leaderboard shortcuts

The fastest path into peak and results leaders.

3 boards

Highest Peak SRS

Single-season ceiling leaders.

View

  1. 1. Harry Hughes

    1916 Colorado State (6-0-1)

    46.5

  2. 2. Red Blaik

    1945 Army (9-0)

    44.1

  3. 3. Nelson Norgren

    1916 Utah (3-2)

    44.0

  4. 4. Henry Williams

    1905 Minnesota (10-1)

    42.5

  5. 5. Amos Alonzo Stagg

    1905 Chicago (11-0)

    42.2

Best Career Win %

Who won the most across a meaningful sample.

View

  1. 1. Walter Camp

    5 seasons

    97.1%

  2. 2. Knute Rockne

    1924 Notre Dame (10-0)

    88.1%

  3. 3. Ryan Day

    2019 Ohio State (13-1)

    87.5%

  4. 4. Frank Leahy

    1946 Notre Dame (8-0-1)

    86.4%

  5. 5. Jesse Harper

    1913 Notre Dame (7-0)

    86.3%

Most Top 10 Finishes

Coaches who stacked elite endings.

View

  1. 1. Bear Bryant

    1971 Alabama (11-1)

    22

  2. 2. Joe Paterno

    1994 Penn State (12-0)

    22

  3. 3. Tom Osborne

    1995 Nebraska (12-0)

    18

  4. 4. Nick Saban

    2016 Alabama (14-1)

    18

  5. 5. Bo Schembechler

    1973 Michigan (10-0-1)

    16

Stability

Stability shortcuts

Who stays in control year after year.

1 board

Most Consistent

Low-volatility coaches with enough sample.

View

  1. 1. Parke Davis

    1897 Lafayette (9-2-1)

    0.0

  2. 2. DM Balliet

    1901 Purdue (4-4-1)

    0.0

  3. 3. Mike Sanford Jr

    2022 Colorado (1-6)

    0.2

  4. 4. Henry Shenk

    1943 Kansas (4-5-1)

    0.5

  5. 5. Jerry Baldwin

    2001 Louisiana (3-8)

    0.5

Longevity

Longevity shortcuts

Long arcs, big samples, and durable careers.

1 board

Longest Careers

Big careers and long arcs.

View

  1. 1. John Anderson

    1976 Brown (8-1)

    64 years

  2. 2. Paul Davis

    1963 Mississippi State (7-2-2)

    59 years

  3. 3. Amos Alonzo Stagg

    1905 Chicago (11-0)

    53 years

  4. 4. George Barclay

    1951 Washington and Lee (6-4)

    48 years

  5. 5. Joe Paterno

    1994 Penn State (12-0)

    46 years

Results Table

Coach results table

1271 filtered coaches in view. Lower rank numbers are better. Lower volatility means more stable. Lower SP Def numbers are better on the identity chart.

Compare selected (0)
1271 filtered coachesSuccess vs Volatility activeSorted by Identity ascending
Compare
Curtis Johnson

15-34 • 2012-2015

Tulane
449153430.6%-15.0
-6.3

2013 peak

5.217.531.5—0
Defense-First

Defense-First

David Lee

11-41-1 • 1989-1993

UTEP
553114121.7%-13.2
-5.0

1991 peak

4.226.137.8—0
Offense-First

Offense-First

Charlie Snyder

23-36-1 • 1962-1967

Marshall
660233639.2%-16.9
-10.1

1964 peak

5.1———0
Balanced

—

Jerry Berndt

18-69 • 1981-1992

Pennsylvania, Rice +1
887186920.7%-14.9
-0.5

1990 peak

7.922.435.7—0
Offense-First

Volatile Builder

Jerry Wampfler

8-25 • 1970-1972

Colorado State
33382524.2%-13.9
-3.9

1970 peak

9.020.033.1—0
Balanced

—

Johnnie McMillan

6-19-3 • 1945-1954

South Carolina, The Citadel
32861926.8%-16.5
0.2

1945 peak

11.8———0
Balanced

—

David Beaty

6-42 • 2015-2018

Kansas
44864212.5%-13.3
-1.2

2018 peak

7.121.236.3—0
Balanced

—

Marcus Arroyo

7-23 • 2020-2022

UNLV
33072323.3%-12.4
-7.9

2021 peak

4.920.936.2—0
Balanced

—

Will Hall

14-30 • 2021-2024

Southern Miss
444143031.8%-15.3
-5.2

2022 peak

7.017.831.8—0
Defense-First

Defense-First

Gary Nord

14-34 • 2000-2003

UTEP
448143429.2%-19.5
2.7

2000 peak

12.827.842.5—0
Offense-First

Offense-First

Todd Berry

34-80 • 2000-2015

Army, UL Monroe
10113348030.1%-16.0
-1.8

2012 peak

7.419.837.3—0
Balanced

Longevity Coach

Everett Withers

14-36 • 2011-2024

North Carolina, Temple +1
550143628.0%-17.8
2.0

2011 peak

10.819.634.3—0
Balanced

Longevity Coach

Mike Sheppard

25-68 • 1984-1991

Long Beach State, New Mexico
893256826.9%-13.5
-4.6

1986 peak

7.627.737.8—0
Offense-First

Offense-First

Chris Ash

8-32 • 2016-2019

Rutgers
44083220.0%-11.7
-6.1

2017 peak

3.818.329.8—0
Defense-First

Defense-First

Ned McDonald

5-23 • 1953-1955

Virginia
32852317.9%-12.2
-3.7

1954 peak

7.3———0
Balanced

—

Carl Franks

7-45 • 1999-2003

Duke
55274513.5%-11.1
-5.1

2003 peak

6.427.037.1—0
Offense-First

Offense-First

John Rhodes

10-15-2 • 1930-1932

Wyoming
327101540.7%-15.9
-10.6

1930 peak

4.6———0
Balanced

—

Ted Roof

6-45 • 2003-2007

Duke
55164511.8%-11.0
-5.1

2003 peak

4.419.333.0—0
Defense-First

Defense-First

Will Healy

15-24 • 2019-2022

Charlotte
439152438.5%-15.1
-10.3

2019 peak

3.127.737.8—0
Offense-First

Offense-First

John Stiegman

34-48 • 1956-1964

Pennsylvania, Rutgers
982344841.5%-23.9
-1.7

1958 peak

11.3——#200
Balanced

—

Al Buser

7-8 • 1917-1919

Florida
3157846.7%-18.3
-14.3

1919 peak

4.0———0
Balanced

—

Paul Wulff

9-40 • 2008-2011

Washington State
44994018.4%-12.2
-3.1

2010 peak

8.722.634.6—0
Balanced

Volatile Builder

Jeff Horton

22-51 • 1993-2010

Minnesota, Nevada +1
773225130.1%-14.4
-3.4

1993 peak

11.429.040.2—0
Offense-First

Longevity Coach

Rickey Bustle

41-65 • 2002-2010

Louisiana
9106416538.7%-15.3
-9.0

2008 peak

3.019.938.3—0
Balanced

—

Everett Faunce

15-24-1 • 1955-1958

Utah State
440152438.8%-14.5
-11.1

1955 peak

2.6———0
Balanced

—

Showing 101-125 of 1271

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About This Data

How to read the page

Filtered state

Every number, chart callout, and leaderboard on this page reflects the current filter state, not the full indexed universe.

Metric framing

Lower volatility means more stable. Lower finish rank numbers are better. On identity, lower SP Def numbers indicate stronger defense.

Research flow

Use the active chart to form a hypothesis, then drop into the table to sort, compare, and export the exact slice you are studying.