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Ranking The SEC Coaches, Based On This Season

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Ranking SEC coaches midway through season (based entirely on 2019)

Connor O'Gara | 1 hour ago
 
 

It’s easy to rank coaches based on their career résumés.

We can point to national titles, conference titles, wins vs. ranked teams, etc. It’s a subjective argument, but oftentimes, it’s pretty cut and dry.

But what about ranking coaches based on how they’re performing in an individual season? That, in my opinion, is a different discussion.

It takes preseason expectations and midseason adjustments into account. And again, this is only through 7 weeks of 2019. This is based entirely on that.

So with that said, let’s rank the SEC coaches midway through the 2019 season:

14. Chad Morris, Arkansas

You don’t get to move past a loss to San Jose State like it’s nothing. Although Arkansas came into 2019 with low expectations, Morris still doesn’t have his quarterback situation figured out because neither seems to be able to fully grasp his system. The defense? Well, Arkansas just let a receiver start at quarterback and run for nearly 200 yards in a loss to a Kentucky team that was in rough shape offensively before Saturday. Perhaps “Club Dub” should’ve opened when Morris finally beats a Power 5 team at Arkansas. That’ll happen someday … right?

13. Derek Mason, Vanderbilt

Again, despite low preseason expectations, there’s no excuse for what we’ve seen from Vandy so far. Most recently losing to 1-4 UNLV by 24 points is stunningly awful. Vandy has yet to cover a spread this year. That’s saying a lot considering what the oddsmakers think of the Commodores. Despite the question marks in the secondary coming into this year, there’s no way a defensive-minded coach like Mason should be leading the No. 120 defense (2nd-worst among Power 5). Vandy looks like a team that has quit, and Mason is starting to look like a coach that could be looking for a new job at season’s end.

12. Joe Moorhead, Mississippi State

I’m a Moorhead apologist to a fault. I can admit that. Having said that, what we’ve seen from his offense so far is unacceptable. Yes, Tommy Stevens getting hurt early in the year didn’t help matters. But why Moorhead continues to roll out Stevens and not stick with Garrett Shrader is beyond me. This offense has been Kylin Hill-dependent for far too much of the season, and against a Tennessee defense that loaded the box, we saw how costly that was. Moorhead in Year 2 looks like he’s about to come up short of expectations for the 2nd consecutive year.

I understand this is all about 2019, but it’s hard to dismiss that his offense continues to struggle mightily against SEC defenses.

 

11. Jeremy Pruitt, Tennessee

Is Tennessee in jeopardy of missing out on a bowl in Year 2 of the Pruitt era despite the preseason expectations of 7-8 wins? Yes. Did the Vols lose to Georgia State and BYU to start the season? Double yes. And has Pruitt’s splashy offensive coordinator hire disappointed so far? Absolutely. But Saturday’s win over Mississippi State said a lot about where the Vols are.

That defense delivered arguably the most impressive defensive performance of the Pruitt era to date. They haven’t quit on him, which I can’t necessarily say about the 3 coaches ranked below him.

10. Jimbo Fisher, Texas A&M

We’re at the midway point of the season and the Aggies’ lone Power 5 win is … by 4 points against Arkansas? Picture if Kevin Sumlin had that kind of start. Fisher lost his featured back Jashaun Corbin, but my goodness, it’s been a disaster running the ball. That offensive line has struggled mightily and made the Aggies look extremely mediocre for most of the season. The good news for Fisher is that despite him being a $75 million man in Year 2 of that insane contract, expectations were relatively in check coming into the year because of the strength of schedule.

But a team that started in the top 15 should be much better than this, and that’s on Fisher.

9. Mark Stoops, Kentucky

Again, we’re talking relative to expectations. Up until the 4th quarter against Florida, Kentucky looked like it was going to squash the preseason narratives about that dramatic fall off the face of the Earth. And that was despite the loss of Terry Wilson.

But then Kyle Trask happened, the Cats missed a field goal and the losing streak began. That team misses Wilson badly. Well, they didn’t Saturday night thanks to Lynn Bowden. Kentucky won’t flirt with 10 wins like it hoped, but I actually think Stoops has already shown signs that he’s still capable of winning more games than people expect. And for what it’s worth, he still has a top 50 defense.

8. Matt Luke, Ole Piss

I think Luke has done a lot of things well to be Ole Piss’ coach beyond 2019. The atypical decision to hire Rich Rodriguez and Mike MacIntyre looks smart despite the 3-4 start. The Rebels pummeled the inferior SEC foes they faced and actually look like they have an offensive identity (if John Rhys Plumlee gets all the snaps).

Here’s the issue for Luke. Despite my optimism based on what we’ve seen so far — actually scoring vs. Alabama, the controversial ending vs. Cal, crushing Arkansas and Vandy — there might not be 3 wins left on that schedule. A&M and Auburn are bad matchups for how well they defend the run and LSU’s offense cannot be contained.

7. Will Muschamp, South Carolina

Ask me this question a week ago and Muschamp is probably in the 11-12 range. But after the defensive game plan he drew up to beat Georgia, how can you not be impressed? It was vastly different from the plans that failed against Mizzou or UNC. The Gamecocks didn’t give Georgia’s receivers any room and that defensive line won the battle at the line of scrimmage. Muschamp won a game that nobody (especially not me) thought he could win. Muschamp is the only coach in America who has a road win against a top 3 team this year. Not bad for someone who hadn’t beat a ranked foe since 2016.

6. Kirby Smart, Georgia

I know, I know, I know. Why have Smart ahead of Muschamp? Yes, I saw what happened Saturday. But that’s not the entire 2019 story. Smart did lead Georgia to a win against a top 10 Notre Dame team, and the Dawgs won their 2 other SEC matchups by a combined score of 73-20. The Dawgs are still in the Playoff hunt. That’s still the No. 6 defense in the country that Smart is leading. That’s the good. The bad was his team sleepwalked through its 3rd straight first half. It failed to make the right adjustments and lost in embarrassing fashion to a more prepared but less skilled South Carolina team. And there were questionable decisions made by Smart all day that proved costly.

 

That can’t happen with a team that talented. That’s on Smart.

5. Barry Odom, Missouri

I blasted Odom after the opener against Wyoming. His defense let up nearly 300 rushing yards and lost to a 6-win Mountain West team. Can you blame me? But since then? Odom made some major adjustments. His team just won its 5th consecutive game by double digits and moved into the AP Top 25. The competition will get tougher, but it’s hard not to be impressed with Odom flipping the script in such convincing fashion.

Even better? The guy who he recruited and surprised many when he came to Mizzou, Kelly Bryant, looks like one of the nation’s better quarterbacks. If Odom can continue racking up wins and shake up the SEC East picture without Cale Garrett and without knowing about the bowl ban, he’ll be a legitimate SEC Coach of the Year candidate.

4. Gus Malzahn, Auburn

I love me some New Gus. And no, I’m not selling my New Gus stock despite the offensive struggles against Florida. That Florida defense played incredibly well and Bo Nix struggled. Part of that was on Nix, and admittedly, part of that was on Malzahn for, as he said, not putting him in enough positions to succeed. But let’s reset here. Even with that loss, Auburn is a borderline top 10 team with a pair of wins against ranked foes away from Jordan-Hare. That’s not a bad first half for someone who was on every hot seat list in America entering 2019. How does Malzahn continue to rise on this list? Develop Nix and beat a team like LSU, Georgia or Alabama.

3. Ed Orgeron, LSU

Nationally, it’s time that more people respect Coach O. On the year, LSU has:

  • No. 2 AP ranking
  • 2 wins vs. Top 10
  • No. 1 offense
  • 6 games with 40-plus points

I get it. He’s a defensive-minded coach and Dave Aranda is one of the highest-paid coordinators in America. But here’s what Orgeron deserves credit for. He talked Joe Brady into coming to LSU and working with Steve Ensminger to retool the offense. That’s obviously been a smashing success. Orgeron also went out and got Joe Burrow last year and recruited weapons galore for him to work with. Another smashing success, that’s been. And hey, what about just getting a team ready to play on a given night? I mentioned earlier how Smart’s teams sleepwalked through the last 3 opening halves. LSU doesn’t sleepwalk in big games or really ever. Orgeron deserves more praise than many — and maybe even me — are giving him.

2. Dan Mullen, Florida

Once again, it’s not all just about head-to-head stuff. Even though he suffered his first loss of 2019 on Saturday, how impressive has Mullen been? With a first-time starting quarterback and an extremely inexperienced offensive line, the GayTurds continue to play well. A lot of that is on the defense, but look at what Mullen has been able to do with Kyle Trask. He has big windows to throw the ball into, he has been accurate and efficient even though he’s not as mobile as a typical Mullen quarterback. There’s no doubt that Mullen would be getting National Coach of the Year consideration if that were being decided today.

1. Nick Saban, Alabama

Just because it’s the boring default answer doesn’t make it the wrong answer. Before you say that “anybody can win at Alabama,” consider this. The Crimson Tide are No. 1 in the country. They have scored at least 47 points and had a margin of victory of at least 19 in every game. A big reason? The guy who Saban got ripped for hiring, Steve Sarkisian, is on the same page with Tua Tagovailoa. And despite plenty of key injuries in the front 7, Alabama has a top 15 scoring defense.

So far, it looks like the revenge tour is a nearly unstoppable force. As strange as this sounds, Saban deserves more credit than he’ll get for that.

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LSUDad

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A little more Midseason Awards: 

College football midseason awards: The best players, teams and moments

 

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Tulane wins on 53-yard TD strike (1:03)
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Oct 14, 2019
  • connelly_bill.png&w=160&h=160&scale=crop
    Bill ConnellyESPN Staff Writer

    We have officially reached the midway point of the 2019 college football regular season, and to commemorate the occasion -- before we forget all about what's happened so far in light of what will happen in the coming weeks -- I thought I'd offer out some awards and superlatives.

    FAKE AWARDS, REAL VOTES

     

    The 10 teams I have enjoyed following the most this year

    Each year, I find myself enjoying specific stories and writing about specific teams more than others. The list tends to change from season to season, but here's where things currently stand:

     
     
    Get the best of ESPN sent to your inboxThe ESPN Daily delivers the biggest sports news and moments every weekday.
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    • 1. LSU. The Tigers underwent the change that so many stodgy, talented teams should, and it has paid off handsomely.

    • 2. Slippery Rock. I've been following the lower levels of the sport more closely this year, experimenting with an SP+ rating for FCS and Division II in the process. The Rock is unbeaten and has one of the best offenses in D2 -- it basically consists of quarterback Roland Rivers III lobbing the ball into open spaces and having talented receivers run underneath the passes for big gains. It's simple and extremely delightful.

    • 3. Dartmouth. Buddy Teevens' Big Green have become the poster children for overall player safety and innovation around teaching defense. (They're the team with the robotic tackling dummy.) They also have maybe the best defense in FCS for the second straight year.

    • 4. Tulane. Willie Fritz has won at the juco level, at Division II, at FCS and in the Sun Belt. Now he has built a top-40 program at Tulane, and the Green Wave seem to be getting better by the week.

    • 5. SMU. For all the reasons I mention later, in my coach of the year pick.

    • 6. Iowa State. There is an energy to watching Iowa State that you don't always see, especially in home games. The Cyclones overwhelmed TCU and eventually overwhelmed West Virginia as well. They are a serious Big 12 title game contender.

    • 7. Navy. Remember this team? The option is humming once more, and the defense has rebounded massively under new coordinator Brian Newberry's control.

    • 8. Sacramento State. Former Eastern Washington assistant coach and Utah offensive coordinator Troy Taylor has engineered an immediate resurrection: The Hornets, 2-8 last season, just won at No. 6 Montana State to move to 4-2. Those two losses? Competitive ones to Fresno State and Arizona State.

    • 9. USC. What can I say? I enjoy thought experiments. "What if you took a frustrated blue blood, convinced it to install an Air Raid offense and forced it to change QBs every week because of injury?" You get a high-ceiling work in progress and a ton of close games.

    • 10. North Dakota State. Every program is asked to prove the strength of its culture at times, and NDSU, unbeaten and top-ranked with a new head coach (Matt Entz) and freshman quarterback (Trey Lance), might have the strongest culture in the entire sport.

    My 10 favorite games of the year

    At the end of the year, I will rank the top 100 games of the season. These games might not show up on that list in the same order because these aren't necessary about best. These are simply the ones I enjoyed watching the most:

    Most inexplicable win

    South Carolina 20, Georgia 17

    EDITOR'S PICKS

    I should just name this category the Will Muschamp Award. The average Muschamp season, no matter where he is coaching, tends to consist of at least one mind-numbing loss and at least one "I have no idea how they did that" win.

    SP+ gave South Carolina only a 14% chance of beating Georgia between the hedges Saturday, and the Gamecocks' postgame win expectancy -- in which I look at the key predictive stats from a given game, toss them into the air and say, "With these stats, you could have expected to win this game X percent of the time" - was only 8%. At no point before, during or after the game did it make sense that South Carolina might win. And South Carolina won.

    Most inexplicable blowout win

    Maryland 63, Syracuse 20

    There are some fun candidates here -- Hawaii's 54-3 win over Nevada, Kansas' 48-24 win over BC, Georgia State's 38-30 win over Tennessee (the fourth quarter was a total blowout, at least), or maybe college football's first 76-5 game (Ohio State over Miami-Ohio) -- but since this game, Maryland has gone just 1-3 with an upset loss to Temple, a 59-0 embarrassment at Penn State's hands, and a strange 26-point blowout loss to 1-4 Purdue. But the Terrapins still beat Syracuse by 43.

    Best crowd pop

    There is nothing that brings the goosebumps more than the double crowd pop. Lamical Perine's game clincher for Florida against Auburn produced an amazing one.

     
     

    REAL AWARDS, FAKE VOTES

    I am not an awards voter and have never really cared to be (I overthink), but if I were a voter, and if these awards were given out seven weeks into the season, here are the ballots I would cast.

     

     

    Coach of the year

    Sonny Dykes, SMU

    Honestly, you could justify giving this award to about half the head coaches in the AAC at the moment. The league has almost caught the ACC in terms of average SP+ rating, and it has taken quite a few rebounds and/or impressive builds for that to happen. Ken Niumatalolo has engineered a strong bounce-back at Navy, Willie Fritz has Tulane in the SP+ top 40 (the Green Wave have finished in the top 40 only once in the past 40 seasons), Luke Fickell has Cincinnati peaking, etc.

    We're going to give this to Dykes, though. The Mustangs are 6-0 for the first time since 1982, when Eric Dickerson and Craig James were lining up in the backfield. They got themselves ranked for the first time since 1986, and despite the letdowns that inevitably pop up, they managed to scramble for a win in their first ranked game since 1986, an overtime comeback over Tulsa.

    This is all made more impressive when you remember what happened after 1986: SMU received the NCAA's death penalty. The Mustangs didn't field a team in the 1987 and 1988 seasons, and let's just say the death penalty worked.

     
     

    The Mustangs didn't reach a bowl again until June Jones got them to one in 2009, and they still have yet to win more than eight games in a season since 1984.

    SMU went 5-7 with a No. 93 SP+ ranking in Dykes' first season last year, then lost starting quarterback Ben Hicks to transfer. Even after they added Texas transfer Shane Buechele as a replacement, there was only so much reason for optimism. But here we are.

    Frank Broyles award (best assistant coach)

    Andy Avalos, Oregon defensive coordinator

    The top defense in FBS, per SP+, currently belongs to a team that averaged a No. 66 ranking in defensive SP+ over the past five seasons and bottomed out at 106th only three years ago.

    Avalos, a former Boise State player and defensive coordinator, replaced Jim Leavitt, who had done a pretty solid job just to get Oregon back into the top 50. He has not wasted time making something truly formidable and exciting in Eugene. Veterans have combined with young recent products of improved recruiting, and the Ducks are in the top 10 in success rate, isolated points per play (my go-to explosiveness measure) and havoc rate (tackles for loss, passes defensed and forced fumbles divided by total plays).

    Though Oklahoma's Alex Grinch has received a ton of justifiably good press for turning the Sooners' defense into a top-30 unit, Avalos should still be at the top of voters' list for thus far turning Oregon into a top-1 unit.

    Heisman (and Maxwell, and Walter Camp, and anything else that goes to the "Most Outstanding Player")

    Actually, let's be honest: These are almost certainly going to a quarterback. So let's consolidate this with the next category ...

    Davey O'Brien, Johnny Unitas, etc. (best quarterback)

    Joe Burrow, LSU

    Oklahoma's Jalen Hurts, Alabama's Tua Tagovailoa and Ohio State's Justin Fields are almost equally deserving of this award, and maybe someone will fully separate himself in this race moving forward. But for now, I choose to break what is basically a four-way tie by giving it to the guy with the highest degree of (historic) difficulty.

    Stodgy old defense-and-field-position, manball-dominant LSU currently has the second-best offense in the country, per SP+, and it has gotten there by throwing the football. We're used to OU's great QBs, and Alabama and Ohio State have been only a half-step behind the Sooners in that regard, but LSU has been more known in recent years for being dragged down by the QB position. And Burrow is out here on pace for more than 4,500 passing yards and 50 touchdowns! At LSU! So he gets the nod.

     

    Doak Walker (best running back)

    Jonathan Taylor, Wisconsin

    Thirty-three players have rushed at least 100 times so far in 2019. Of those, 17 have averaged at least 5 yards per carry, and of those, only four have generated at least a 50% success rate (percentage of carries gaining at least 50% of necessary yardage on first down, 70% on second, or 100% on third/fourth).

    Ohio State's J.K. Dobbins is at 50%, Minnesota's Rodney Smith and SMU's Xavier Jones are at 53%, and Taylor towers over the pack at 57%. He could threaten 2,000 yards if Wisconsin plays 14 games, and that's without playing all that much in the second half of games yet.

    Fred Biletnikoff (best wide receiver)

    Omar Bayless, Arkansas State

    This might seem like a hipster curveball, and it probably is, but check this out: 31 players have been targeted at least 55 times so far this year. Of those, only nine have registered a catch rate of 68% or higher, and of those, only three have averaged more than 13 yards per catch: Indiana's Whop Philyor at 13.5, Wake Forest's Sage Surratt at 15.5 ... and Bayless at 19.2.

    Bayless has produced by far the best combination of efficiency and explosiveness this season: He has gained at least 132 receiving yards in five of six games (despite Arkansas State dealing with QB injuries), and he deserves recognition for it.

    John Mackey (best tight end)

    Jacob Breeland, Oregon

    To be honest, there hasn't been a pantheon-level tight end performance so far, but Breeland has probably produced the best combination of reliability (81% catch rate, 65% success rate), explosiveness (15.6 yards per catch) and pure quantity (fourth-most receptions for a TE). Unfortunately, Breeland left Friday's win over Colorado with what looked like a pretty bad leg injury. Cross your fingers.

    Dave Rimington (best center)

    Matt Hennessy, Temple

    I'm not going to claim to be a center expert, but Hennessy has long been a favorite of the graders over at Pro Football Focus, and that has continued well into 2019. He doesn't allow pass pressure, and he has had a large hand in Temple's run game powering a top-50 success rate.

    John Outland (best interior lineman)

    James Lynch, Baylor

    After last year's draft run on defensive tackles, we haven't seen quite as many standout big men. But Lynch has been the engine for a Baylor defense that ranks sixth in rushing SP+ and in the top 10 in front-seven havoc rate. He has recorded 11.5 tackles for loss (third in FBS), seven in just the past two games, and he's a massive reason the Bears are surprisingly undefeated.

    Chuck Bednarik/Bronko Nagurski/Lott Impact Trophy (best defender)

    It's the same guy you'll find in the category below ...

    Ted Hendricks (best defensive end)

    Oluwole Betiku Jr., Illinois

    Only two defensive linemen have made at least 17 tackles, nine TFLs, seven sacks and nine run stuffs: Ohio State's Chase Young and Betiku, a transfer from USC. But Betiku has moretackles, TFLs and stuffs, and he has made plays with far less talent around him. If Illinois is making a good defensive play, Betiku is probably the reason.

     

    Dick Butkus (best linebacker)

    Evan Weaver, California

    My explanation for this one will be short and sweet: At some point in the third or fourth quarter of a given Cal game, you will pause and think to yourself, "Wait, has Weaver made every damn tackle for Cal in this game?" He hasn't, but it sure seems as if he has.

    Jim Thorpe (best defensive back)

    Tie: Patrick Surtain and Trevon Diggs, Alabama

    I can't choose between the two. Despite a painfully young front seven, Alabama's defense still ranks 14th in defensive SP+, and despite a merely OK pass rush, the Crimson Tide are 10th in passing SP+.

    InbredGumps opponents have completed only 50% of their passes to the sideline (no matter the depth), with three interceptions, four TDs and just 11.5 yards per completion. After last season's title-game breakdowns against Clemson, Surtain and Diggs have done everything they can to prove they're up to the task this time around. And it's not too long until they play LSU and we get to find out just how ready they are.

    Lou Groza (best kicker)

    Brandon Talton, Nevada

    Remember the freshman walk-on who beat Purdue with a series of bombs and got a scholarship after the game? He still hasn't missed a field goal attempt. He's 12-for-12 overall and 3-for-3 on kicks of longer than 40 yards.

    Ray Guy (best punter)

    Max Duffy, Kentucky

    I explained why last week: "Duffy is averaging 51.2 yards per punt, with a 49.3 net average. We are living in a golden age of punting, friends, and Duffy is our new king." He didn't have a great game against Arkansas on Saturday, and his averages are now 50.4 and 47.7, respectively. I'll forgive him.

    Paul Hornung (most versatile player)

    Henry Ruggs III, Alabama

    Ruggs is averaging 21.9 yards per reception, 28.7 yards per kick return and, technically, 75 yards per (one) rush. If Nick Saban asked him to pass or play cornerback, he'd probably be awesome at that too.

    And with that, let's gear up as the season now really begins.

SMU is 6-0 and ranked for the first time since receiving the death penalty from the NCAA. Tom Pennington/Getty Images Despite not playing much in the second half because of blowout wins, it's possible Wisconsin's Jonathan Taylor could rush for 2,000 yards this season. Jeff Hanisch/USA TODAY Sports Linebacker Evan Weaver doesn't make every Cal tackle. It just seems like it. Kevin Abele/Icon Sportswire

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