What are the top 5 HC jobs in college football?

[Buffnik]

I'd look at prestige, recruiting grounds, infrastructure/support, and salary.

I'm not going to put any order to mine because I think they're interchangeable on these criteria so it comes down to personal fit instead of one job being better than another on this stuff.

• Alabama
• Texas
• Ohio State
• USC
  
• Florida State

Just missing for me were Oklahoma and Notre Dame.

 

[onealcd]

Texas, USC, Florida, Ohio State and Michigan.

 

[Gary Indiana]

I'd look at prestige, recruiting grounds, infrastructure/support, and salary.

I'm not going to put any order to mine because I think they're interchangeable on these criteria so it comes down to personal fit instead of one job being better than another on this stuff.

• Alabama
• Texas
• Ohio State
• USC
  
• Florida State

Just missing for me were Oklahoma and Notre Dame.

Pretty much the same. My only change would be swapping out Notre Dame for FSU in the Top 5 and adding Michigan to the others receiving votes category.

 

[sackman]

Michigan
Ohio State
Florida
USC
ND

W/ Texas and Alabama at 5a and 5b.

 

[Buffnik]

I continue to be surprised by the Florida love. I mean, didn't McElwain just prove that it's easier to win at CSU vis a vis peer schools than to do so at UF?

 

[TDforTD]

Florida won their division twice under McElwain without an offense. He also recruited poorly for their standards, they shouldn’t be dropping out of the top 10. Obviously, probably too much to expect #1 classes like they pulled with Meyer, but they should be fringe top 5. Muschamp was able to do that.

 

[Buffnik]

Florida is the UCLA of the southeast, but they made 2 incredible coaching hires.

 

[onealcd]

My next receiving votes category would be Georgia, LSU, Bama, ND, FSU, Clemson and OU.

 

[MtnBuff]

Texas
Michigan
ND
USC
Bama

OGV - tOSU, Oklahoma, FSU,

 

[Fight CU]

ya'll forgot Baylor

 

[onealcd]

I continue to be surprised by the Florida love. I mean, didn't McElwain just prove that it's easier to win at CSU vis a vis peer schools than to do so at UF?

Texas had similar problems and you have them in your top 5 though.

 

[Buffnik]

Texas had similar problems and you have them in your top 5 though.

I had a difficult internal debate between Texas and Oklahoma. Texas has the resources and is the most popular program in the state both schools are targeting for recruits. I decided that trumped Oklahoma's pedigree of having had more success. If I'm reaching for the brass ring in college coaching, I put UT slightly above OU.

With UF, the commitment's not there like it is at FSU within the state and Miami is more popular where the greatest concentration of recruits come from. I'd actually put them behind Auburn, LSU and UGA within the SEC and probably a hair behind Tennessee and aTm. They're a lot like Texas A&M, but without the same level of facilities.

 

[sackman]

Florida has all the advantages with a less uptight group of boosters. Beat Georgia and FSU 50% of the time and you will work at Florida as long as you want to. No SEC titles necessary. Recruiting, admin support, fan support, academic reputation, climate, resources ... UF has it all. Just because they haven’t done much with what they have doesn’t mean it’s not a top job.

 

[onealcd]

I had a difficult internal debate between Texas and Oklahoma. Texas has the resources and is the most popular program in the state both schools are targeting for recruits. I decided that trumped Oklahoma's pedigree of having had more success. If I'm reaching for the brass ring in college coaching, I put UT slightly above OU.

With UF, the commitment's not there like it is at FSU within the state and Miami is more popular where the greatest concentration of recruits come from. I'd actually put them behind Auburn, LSU and UGA within the SEC and probably a hair behind Tennessee and aTm. They're a lot like Texas A&M, but without the same level of facilities.

Florida had made/is making substantial upgrades to their facilities though so I don't know how you can say the commitment is there. They just built a brand new indoor facility a couple of years ago and begin construction on a $60 million, football only facility next month to go along with some pretty massive upgrades to other sports in the same project. Their facilities fell off a little bit after Urban but they were still average in the SEC, it wasn't a complete meltdown. I guess I just don't get the comparisons to UCLA and A&M. Florida hired some good coaches which makes them a whole lot different than those other schools and I think it if unfair to say that Muschamp and McElwain were on the level of some of the poor hires those other schools made, Florida still won their division 3 out of the 7 years those two coaches were there.

 

[SINKRATZ]

I had a difficult internal debate between Texas and Oklahoma. Texas has the resources and is the most popular program in the state both schools are targeting for recruits. I decided that trumped Oklahoma's pedigree of having had more success. If I'm reaching for the brass ring in college coaching, I put UT slightly above OU.

With UF, the commitment's not there like it is at FSU within the state and Miami is more popular where the greatest concentration of recruits come from. I'd actually put them behind Auburn, LSU and UGA within the SEC and probably a hair behind Tennessee and aTm. They're a lot like Texas A&M, but without the same level of facilities.

Huh? Florida draws 90k to their home games and they do it consistently, while Miami draws less than 60k. I know attendance isn't the defining stat, but Miami seems to be a fair weather fans team.

 

[Duff Man]

USC
Oklahoma
Alabama
Ohio State
Michigan

 

[Buffnik]

Huh? Florida draws 90k to their home games and they do it consistently, while Miami draws less than 60k. I know attendance isn't the defining stat, but Miami seems to be a fair weather fans team.

Recruiting grounds. Dade & Broward recruiting is like the talent in CA's Trinity League + greater LA publics. The U is the dominant player in recruiting that area. There's also a lot of talent in Central and Northern FL, but it's not like the Miami area.

 

[hokiehead]

asking someone to generate a "top 5" list of anything without established criteria is a really tough task. Most posters above ITT were just listing programs with the best chances of prolonged success, but that is over-simplifying the problem, IMO. If you can make great bank with little expectation of performing in your role, that's a damn good job.

I see two things that could make a coaching job desirable, both include high salary:
-- the program is setup for winning, implying the coach will leave a desirable legacy and/or set themselves up for future success
-- the administration does not have high expectations for winning, implying the coach can "coast" and maintain a good work/life balance, OR, the program may place a high value on winning but is so cash rich they're happy to pay coaches to not work for years

secondary criteria include university level politics and geographic location.

my top 5 grouping:
Virginia -- they pay $3MM+ and have no expectations of winning at football. if making money while doing as little work as possible is your priority, this is the job for you. Charlottesville is a beautiful city in a nice climate and the girls wear sundresses to the games.
Notre Dame -- they (historically) pay high salaries and have no reservations about paying people to NOT coach their team.
Alabama -- absurd money, great recruiting, great facilities. if making money AND winning is your goal, and you don't mind high expectations from the administration, this is the job for you.
Arizona -- they pay $6MM+ with little expectation of winning
tOSU -- absurd salary, setup for success

 

[skibum]

I actually think a program like UGA where you have the resources available to win it all, and that has a track record of long coaching tenures would propel it up the list.

There are also programs, as @hokiehead notes, where the pay is good, the environment is nice, and the pressure to win championships is low. But - you could still win it all at those schools if the stars aligned one magical season (i.e. they're in the P5).

 

[SINKRATZ]

Recruiting grounds. Dade & Broward recruiting is like the talent in CA's Trinity League + greater LA publics. The U is the dominant player in recruiting that area. There's also a lot of talent in Central and Northern FL, but it's not like the Miami area.

I guess I've just never seen Florida being at any appreciable disadvantage to Miami when it comes to recruiting. They generally out-recruit Miami and even when Miami is good their stadium looks like this...

 

[dyemeduke]

asking someone to generate a "top 5" list of anything without established criteria is a really tough task. Most posters above ITT were just listing programs with the best chances of prolonged success, but that is over-simplifying the problem, IMO. If you can make great bank with little expectation of performing in your role, that's a damn good job.

I see two things that could make a coaching job desirable, both include high salary:
-- the program is setup for winning, implying the coach will leave a desirable legacy and/or set themselves up for future success
-- the administration does not have high expectations for winning, implying the coach can "coast" and maintain a good work/life balance, OR, the program may place a high value on winning but is so cash rich they're happy to pay coaches to not work for years

secondary criteria include university level politics and geographic location.

my top 5 grouping:
Virginia -- they pay $3MM+ and have no expectations of winning at football. if making money while doing as little work as possible is your priority, this is the job for you. Charlottesville is a beautiful city in a nice climate and the girls wear sundresses to the games.
Notre Dame -- they (historically) pay high salaries and have no reservations about paying people to NOT coach their team.
Alabama -- absurd money, great recruiting, great facilities. if making money AND winning is your goal, and you don't mind high expectations from the administration, this is the job for you.
Arizona -- they pay $6MM+ with little expectation of winning
tOSU -- absurd salary, setup for success

My friends and I were debating this exact question over the weekend, and my statements are very similar to yours. There is more to a job than just the prestige and salary. Sure 6 is greater than 4, but you can still do very well on 4 million a year, especially since you're working so much to really enjoy yourself. I want a place that has low expectations of winning, fertile recruiting grounds, a decent AD, solid community for me to raise a family, and if available, a place where my name is synonymous with that program (ego stroke) ala Snyder at KSU or Beamer at VT.

I agree that Virginia fits that bill. While Stanford has had a lot of success recently, I think it fits my criteria as well. Georgia has high expectations, but I don't think it'd be absurd like other SEC schools. Athens is also a nice town, and Georgia has a lot of talent in that state. I also think Northwestern would be good - even though recruiting and pay may not be top notch, if I'm a badass coach, I'm confident in my abilities and NW would be attractive. Texas also is in a really nice town; a place I think I could live with a family. However, I may be too stressed out by that job... ...I'm not sure on #5 based on my criteria.

 

[The Alabaster Yak]

There's no such thing as a low expectation, low pressure job that has the pedigree and resources to continually compete for National Championships year in, year out, so it depends on what a coach wants.

 

[hokiehead]

I guess I've just never seen Florida being at any appreciable disadvantage to Miami when it comes to recruiting. They generally out-recruit Miami and even when Miami is good their stadium looks like this...

no data, but since I've been following football, my perception is that whenever Miami is at full scholarships (admittedly, this isn't often), they out-recruit FSU and UF.

 

[skibum]

There's no such thing as a low expectation, low pressure job that has the pedigree and resources to continually compete for National Championships year in, year out, so it depends on what a coach wants.

The bolded is the key.

I might be projecting my own biases here, but I think there's a lot of coaches who would like to ascend that mountain once or twice in their career, and being at a place where that is at least possible is important. But year in, year out? Hell no, don't want that pressure cooker.

 

[Buffnik]

I guess I've just never seen Florida being at any appreciable disadvantage to Miami when it comes to recruiting. They generally out-recruit Miami and even when Miami is good their stadium looks like this...

What does their stadium have to do with it? The Orange Bowl was a dump. The U's facilities were awful. Fan support is terrible in terms of ticket sales (not in terms of wearing gear from the common folks and giving booster benefits). They absolutely dominate football recruiting in Miami-Dade & Broward counties. And that's why they have the national championships.

 

[SINKRATZ]

no data, but since I've been following football, my perception is that whenever Miami is at full scholarships (admittedly, this isn't often), they out-recruit FSU and UF.

For kicks, I compared their class rankings going back to 2002 (earliest available on Rivals). In the 17 classes (including current 2018 class) Miami has out recruited Florida only 4 times.

Florida avg class rank: 9
Miami avg class rank: 14

Both really good of course, no doubt, but I'm not seeing Florida having any real disadvantage. Since 2002, Florida is more likely to have a top 5 class (7 times) than to have a class ranked outside the top 10 (6 times).

 

[SINKRATZ]

What does their stadium have to do with it? The Orange Bowl was a dump. The U's facilities were awful. Fan support is terrible in terms of ticket sales (not in terms of wearing gear from the common folks and giving booster benefits). They absolutely dominate football recruiting in Miami-Dade & Broward counties. And that's why they have the national championships.

What does an empty stadium have to do with an undefeated team's fan support? It tells me it's weak relative to the on field product. Fan support for Florida is extremely strong and not being located in Miami hasn't hurt their recruiting a bit apparently.

 

[MiamiBuffs]

I guess I've just never seen Florida being at any appreciable disadvantage to Miami when it comes to recruiting. They generally out-recruit Miami and even when Miami is good their stadium looks like this...

That's partly because the city of Coral Gables will not let them build an on campus stadium and the stadium they do use is nearly right on the border of the next county (55 min (20.9 mi) via I-95 Express). The Dolphins suffered similar attendance down turns after leaving the Orange Bowl in the 80s. There is to this day nothing around it. You go there, go to the game, and then go home. No bars, no restaurants, no nothing.

What does an empty stadium have to do with an undefeated team's fan support? It tells me it's weak relative to the on field product. Fan support for Florida is extremely strong and not being located in Miami hasn't hurt their recruiting a bit apparently.

I agree that they should have better attendance given their record.

Miami, like L.A., is another concrete jungle with mean people and bad traffic. The people who live there have a lot of apathy towards a lot of things and certain some fatigue from surving M-F. There are also not tons of UM alums either since an expensive private school thats has only 10,000 undergrads (USC is 18,700) and they still get a lot of students from the NE.

Besides, why go when you can watch it on TV.

 

[Johnny Juzang]

How long has it been since Michigan had a season that satisfied their fans? Four or five coaches ago? Brian Griese's Sr. year? They aren't top five anymore. And if they lose to Ohio St Saturday, the heat will be turned up a little on Harbaugh. You can't finish 3rd or 4th in your division every season.

 

[Buffnik]

For kicks, I compared their class rankings going back to 2002 (earliest available on Rivals). In the 17 classes (including current 2018 class) Miami has out recruited Florida only 4 times.

Florida avg class rank: 9
Miami avg class rank: 14

Both really good of course, no doubt, but I'm not seeing Florida having any real disadvantage. Since 2002, Florida is more likely to have a top 5 class (7 times) than to have a class ranked outside the top 10 (6 times).

For perspective, UF had Urban for 6 seasons in there.

More importantly, Miami came off scandal and hired Donna Shalala from 2001-2015 with the emphasis from the president's office that they were going to lose the Miami rep and be a nice little private research university with a football team (instead of a football program attached to a university). She left after 2015 and they're serious again. It shows.

Will be interesting to see how quickly they're dominant again. Hell, they're 2-0 and ranked #2 in the country but Miami folks still say they're a long way from being back. It's insane how good they were for a while.

Anyway, to get back on topic it is Florida State that has the best situation for a HC in the state. 40+ years with only Bobby & Jimbo as coaches. .756 and .781 win percentages, respectively. That's the top program in the state. Has everything.