10 college football coaches with real job security
There are coaches on the hot seat and there are coaches with enough developed goodwill to survive even a disaster of a season, relatively speaking.
Last week’s top 10 list took a glance at those Football Bowl Subdivision coaches with a tenuous grasp on their job security, including Butch Jones at Tennessee, Brian Kelly at Notre Dame and Kevin Sumlin at Texas A&M.
On the flip side, there are many FBS head coaches with a long leash. Not surprisingly, these coaches are also among the most successful in the country — such as Dabo Swinney, Nick Saban and Urban Meyer, to name three.
So this week’s list asks: When it comes to job security, who are the safest coaches in college football? (Since many successful coaches are currently in the “honeymoon phase” at their respective stops, this list only names coaches with at least three seasons of experience at their current job – so no Jim Harbaugh, for example, though he’d qualify otherwise.)
1. Dabo Swinney, Clemson
Winning a national title does wonders for a coach’s reputation. But Swinney had been beloved at Clemson — by the fan base and the administration — before the Tigers topped Alabama in January.
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2. Nick Saban, Alabama
A new contract extension also confirms what was already clear: Saban can be the head coach at Alabama for as long as he so chooses. After all, he is the architect of perhaps the greatest dynasty in college football history.
3. Urban Meyer, Ohio State
Meyer is a jaw-dropping 61-6 during his five seasons with the Buckeyes, with one national championship, two trips to the College Football Playoff and just two losses in Big Ten Conference play.
4. Gary Patterson, TCU
TCU erected a statue of Patterson outside its home stadium. That is typically a good sign for a coach’s job security.
5. Ken Niumatalolo, Navy
That Niumatalolo turned down the opportunity to replace Bronco Mendenhall at Brigham Young essentially ensures that he’ll end his career at Navy. Quietly, he’s building a career that will eventually be worthy of Hall of Fame consideration.
6. Pat Fitzgerald, Northwestern
The lone complaint many Northwestern backers have of Fitzgerald’s tenure is that he’s too loyal to his assistants. If that’s the biggest nitpick — and it’s a stupid one, seeing how the same group is behind the Wildcats’ surge to annual Big Ten contender — then things are going pretty well, it’s safe to say.
7. Bobby Wilder, Old Dominion
Wilder is the only coach in the modern history of Old Dominion football, which was resurrected as an independent member of the Football Championship Subdivision in 2009 and has quickly risen to become one of the top programs in Conference USA. He recently landed a contract extension through the 2021 season.
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8. David Cutcliffe, Duke
All success is relative. So while his record at Duke currently stands at nine games under .500, the entire body of work at what was once the worst major-conference program in the country — if not the worst in the entire FBS — means not even another season of eight or more losses will impact Cutcliffe’s job security.
9. Mike Gundy, Oklahoma State
Gundy would be higher on this list if not for two factors. One, his relationship with noted Oklahoma State power broker T. Boone Pickens and the administration as a whole has at times been strained, to put it lightly. And two, Gundy has topped rival Oklahoma just twice since being promoted to the top spot in 2005.
10. Chris Petersen, Washington
At just three seasons, Petersen has the shortest tenure at his current school of any coach on this list. Of course, it only took that long for Petersen to lead Washington to a Pac-12 Conference title and Playoff berth. Two things are unlikely: one, that UW fails to maintain this current renaissance, and two, that Petersen entertains any offers that may come his way from big-name programs looking to hire one of the best coaches in the sport.
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