The College Football News 2019 midseason ranking of all the head coaches.
How good were all the head coaches over the first half of the year?
With a nod to the coaching staffs as a whole – it’s not just about the head man, but he’s the one dealing with the pressure – here’s our midseason ranking of all the head coaches and the jobs they’ve done so far.
The criteria? It’s loose, but it’s based on whose teams are playing the best – and worst – with the talent levels they have to work with. Who has dealt with the most adversity, whose teams are playing the sharpest, and whose teams just haven’t shown up so far?
One quick note. These are NOT rankings of how good the head coaches are overall. This is about who has done the best job at the midseason – think of this as a referendum on all the teams and their first halves of the season.
College Football News Midseason Head Coach Rankings
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Best Win and Worst Loss are defined by the competition, not necessarily the final scores.
2019 CFN Midseason Head Coach Rankings
120-101 | 81-100 | 61-80 | 60-41 | 40-26 | 25-11 | Top 10
THE BRUTAL START: The coaches who had a really, really, really rough first half of the season
130. Nunzio Campanile (0-2)/Chris Ash (1-3), Rutgers
Best Win: Rutgers 48, UMass 21
Worst Loss: Maryland 48, Rutgers 7
Midseason Thought: Ash was the first coach to be fired. Campanile was left with an empty cupboard in an unfair situation.
129. Chip Kelly, UCLA (1-5)
Best Win: UCLA 67, Washington State 63
Worst Loss: Oregon State 48, UCLA 31
Midseason Thought: This really, really, really, really, really, really isn’t working.
128. Dana Holgorsen, Houston (2-4)
Best Win: Houston 45, North Texas 25
Worst Loss: Tulane 38, Houston 31
Midseason Thought: This couldn’t have gone much worse. The Cougars lost in painful fashion to Tulane for a 1-3 start, the star QB took the rest of the year off, there are (unfounded) accusations on social media of tanking – which make NO sense, but it’s all part of the narrative – and now it seems like a lost year for a team that was supposed to have the talent to win the AAC.
127. Tom Arth, Akron (0-6)
Best Game: UAB 31, Akron 20
Worst Loss: UMass 37, Akron 29
Midseason Thought: It’s been a weeeeee bit of a struggle so far in his first year. When you’re losing to UMass and haven’t won a game, it’s been a rough ride.
126. Steve Campbell, South Alabama (1-5)
Best Win: South Alabama 37, Jackson State 14
Worst Loss: ULM 30, South Alabama 17
Midseason Thought: The USA offense isn’t doing anything in Campbell’s second year – the Jaguars should be better than 0-2 in Sun Belt play. There’s only been one close game against an FBS team.
125. Derek Mason, Vanderbilt (1-5)
Best Win: Vanderbilt 24, Northern Illinois 18
Worst Loss: UNLV 34, Vanderbilt 10
Midseason Thought: It’s not like the Commodores have Alabama’s talent, but … come on. This is still an SEC team, and it’s getting rolled. The first four losses were fine, but the blowout gack to UNLV was inexcusable.
124. Geoff Collins, Georgia Tech (1-5)
Best Win: Georgia Tech 14, USF 10
Worst Loss: Citadel 27, Georgia Tech 24
Midseason Thought: Grade on a curve because of the total shift in offensive styles, but the defense is just as big a problem. How does this program lose to a Citadel team that runs the option?
123. Tony Sanchez, UNLV (2-4)
Best Win: UNLV 34, Vanderbilt 10
Worst Loss: Arkansas State 43, UNLV 17
Midseason Thought: Just as it seemed like there was no chance for Sanchez to survive another miserable season, his team shows up and rocks Vanderbilt. It’s been a fight with blowout loss after blowout loss.
122. Pat Fitzgerald, Northwestern (1-4)
Best Win: Northwestern 30, UNLV 14
Worst Loss: Nebraska 13, Northwestern 10
Midseason Thought: The Cats are supposed to be a whole lot better and stronger than this, and there’s no excuse for a putrid offense that can’t seem to complete a forward pass. The O is spoiling a decent year from the D.
121. Bobby Wilder, Old Dominion (1-5)
Best Win: Old Dominion 24, Norfolk State 21
Worst Loss: WKU 30, Old Dominion 3
Midseason Thought: The godfather of the program isn’t having any luck with no offense and no wins over any FBS teams. The schedule hasn’t been that bad.
2019 CFN Midseason Head Coach Rankings
120-101 | 81-100 | 61-80 | 60-41 | 40-26 | 25-11 | Top 10
NEXT: The coaches who struggled and/or didn’t have a whole lot of luck
WILL THERE EVER BE A RAINBOW: The coaches who struggled and/or didn’t have a whole lot of luck
120. Lovie Smith, Illinois (2-4)
Best Win: Illinois 31, UConn 23
Worst Loss: Eastern Michigan 34, Illinois 31
Midseason Thought: It’s yet another year, another rebuild, and another team with an elite defensive head coach that can’t play a lick of defense.
119. Frank Solich, Ohio (2-4)
Best Win: Ohio 21, Buffalo 20
Worst Loss: Louisiana 45, Ohio 25
Midseason Thought: One of the biggest disappointments of the midseason, the Bobcats aren’t doing enough defensively and the offense isn’t taking over games. There’s time to turn his around, but this isn’t looking like the dominant force in the MAC East it’s supposed to be.
118. Walt Bell, UMass (1-6)
Best Win: UMass 37, Akron 29
Worst Loss: Southern Illinois 45, UMass 20
Midseason Thought: It’s a total teardown, rebuild, and redo for Bell in his first year. The defense is a nightmare.
117. Mike Leach, Washington State (3-3)
Best Win: Washington State 31, Houston 24
Worst Loss: UCLA 67, Washington State 63
Midseason Thought: If the players are “fat, dumb and entitled,” that’s 100% on the multi-millionaire head man who brought them in and whose job it is to coach them up. The offense has been fun, but 0-3 in the Pac-12 doesn’t work.
116. Randy Edsall, UConn (1-5)
Best Win: UConn 24, Wagner 21
Worst Loss: Tulane 49, UConn 7
Midseason Thought: To be fair, UConn wasn’t supposed to win in any of its five losses, but still, the team has barely been competitive against the FBS teams.
115. Scot Loeffler, Bowling Green (2-4)
Best Win: Bowling Green 20, Toledo 7
Worst Loss: Kent State 62, Bowling Green 20
Midseason Thought: Just when it seemed like this might be the second-worst team in the country – just ahead of Akron – kaboom. Loeffler’s team shocked Toledo. The offense has been a total clunker, and that’s what Loeffler was supposed to bring right away.
114. Mike Bloomgren, Rice (0-6)
Best Game: Army 14, Rice 7
Worst Loss: UAB 35, Rice 20
Midseason Thought: The Owls really are playing better in Bloomgren’s second year, but there’s no offense whatsoever … and no wins.
113. Chad Morris, Arkansas (2-4)
Best Win: Arkansas 55, Colorado State 34
Worst Loss: San Jose State 31, Arkansas 24
Midseason Thought: The problem isn’t that the Hogs keep losing – okay, that’s part of the issue – it’s that the offense isn’t clicking. At the very least under Morris, the team is supposed to be fun-bad, and it keeps losing close games because the O won’t go.
112. Dino Babers, Syracuse (3-3)
Best Win: Syracuse 52, Western Michigan 33
Worst Loss: Maryland 63, Syracuse 20
Midseason Thought: The offense doesn’t have it, the defense doesn’t have it, but at 3-3 there’s still hope. At some point, the Orange have to beat someone that’s good. 2018 can’t be an aberration.
111. Joe Moorhead, Mississippi State (3-3)
Best Win: Mississippi State 28, Kentucky 13
Worst Loss: Tennessee 20, Mississippi State 10
Midseason Thought: Where’s the offensive wizardry from Moorhead’s days at Fordham and Penn State? The O is flat, the D is a shadow of its former self, and after losing to Tennessee the season might have just taken a bad turn.
110. Seth Littrell, North Texas (2-4)
Best Win: North Texas 45, UTSA 3
Worst Loss: Southern Miss 45, North Texas 27
Midseason Thought: The Mean Green were supposed to have the offense to keep up the pace and make up for the absence of a solid defense … nope. It’s going to be a battle just to go bowling.
109. Jeremy Pruitt, Tennessee (2-4)
Best Win: Tennessee 20, Mississippi State 10
Worst Loss: Georgia State 38, Tennessee 39
Midseason Thought: On the hottest of hot seats, Pruitt got a big performance out of his team in the win over Mississippi State. It’s about being competitive and giving the base hope, and that win did that … and now comes Alabama. He’s doing what he can, but you don’t overcome losing to Georgia State and BYU.
108. Thomas Hammock, Northern Illinois (2-4)
Best Win: Northern Illinois 39, Ohio 36
Worst Loss: Ball State 27, Northern Illinois 20
Midseason Thought: The new head man can’t get the running game going, it’s been a struggle to score, and until the win over Ohio, the season looked like it was going into the abyss. It’s going to be a fight just go get to a bowl game.
107. Doug Martin, New Mexico State (0-7)
Best Game: New Mexico 55, New Mexico State 52
Worst Loss: Liberty 20, New Mexico State 13
Midseason Thought: Life as an independent is really, really, really hard. Martin’s team is the paycheck game for most opponents, but it didn’t have any luck against the teams its own size, either.
106. Mark Dantonio, Michigan State (4-3)
Best Win: Michigan State 40, Indiana 31
Worst Loss: Arizona State 10, Michigan State 7
Midseason Thought: He has yet to come up with that patented brilliant curveball gameplan to screw up an Ohio State or a Wisconsin – the Spartans got annihilated in both games. The offense is better than the 2018 version, but the defense has taken a downward turn over the last few weeks. And, of course, there’s the team’s 12 men on the field gaffe in the loss to Arizona State. It’s been a wildly disappointing first half for a team that was expected by a sneaky-good player in the Big Ten chase.
105. Dana Dimel, UTEP (1-4)
Best Win: UTEP 36, Houston Baptist 34
Worst Loss: UTSA 26, UTEP 16
Midseason Thought: It’s impossible to turn this aircraft carrier around, but at least UTEP is more competitive – especially defensively – under Dimel in his second year.
104. Mike Locksley, Maryland (3-3)
Best Win: Maryland 63, Syracuse 20
Worst Loss: Purdue 40, Maryland 17
Midseason Thought: The team has no consistency, the offense only sometimes works, and the only win in the last month came against Temple. It’s possible Locksley’s Terps will be underdogs the rest of the way.
103. Frank Wilson, UTSA (2-4)
Best Win: UTSA 26, UTEP 16
Worst Loss: North Texas 45, UTSA 3
Midseason Thought: The program is supposed to be hitting its stride at this point in Wilson’s era, and it’s having a hard time getting going offensively.
102. Bob Davie, New Mexico (2-4)
Best Win: New Mexico 55, New Mexico State 52
Worst Loss: San Jose State 32, New Mexico 21
Midseason Thought: The season has had its problems with Davie’s health scare early on, but the team isn’t producing on either side. It has three losses to teams that probably won’t go bowling.
101. Kalani Sitake, BYU (2-4)
Best Win: BYU 30, USC 27
Worst Loss: USF 27, BYU 23
Midseason Thought: The schedule eases up, but that’s not the point. Sitake lost to Utah, the team is on a three-game losing streak, and now it’s losing on the road to bad teams. A bowl game isn’t a mortal lock – the team has to start winning some of the close games to get there.
2019 CFN Midseason Head Coach Rankings
130-121 | 81-100 | 61-80 | 60-41 | 40-26 | 25-11 | Top 10
NEXT: A disappointing first half, but a few nice moments
THERE WAS A LITTLE FUN, BUT … A disappointing first half, but a few nice moments
100. Stave Addazio, Boston College (3-2)
Best Win: Boston College 35 Virginia Tech 28
Worst Loss: Kansas 48, Boston College 24
Midseason Thought: Who loses to Kansas at home by 24 points? It’s been a rough run with close ACC losses, not enough defense, and … who loses to Kansas at home by 24 points?
99. Charlie Strong, USF (3-3)
Best Win: USF 27, BYU 23
Worst Loss: Georgia Tech 14, USF 10
Midseason Thought: Strong has six games to prove that he’s the guy who can take the program out of the doldrums and make it an AAC player. It doesn’t help that the team is struggling when UCF is still so good.
98. Jeff Brohm, Purdue (2-4)
Best Win: Purdue 40, Maryland 10
Worst Loss: Nevada 34, Purdue 31
Midseason Thought: The Nevada loss was a total gag, and the offense didn’t show up against TCU and Penn State. Even with the injuries to QB Elijah Sindelar and WR Rondale Moore, the offense is supposed to be more consistent than this.
97. Will Healy, Charlotte (2-4)
Best Win: Charlotte 52, UMass 17
Worst Loss: FIU 48, Charlotte 23
Midseason Thought: It’s going to take a while for the new head man to make this work, but he has talent there. Watch out for the 49ers to make a move in the second half as the schedule eases up.
96. Butch Davis, FIU (3-3)
Best Win: FIU 48, Charlotte 23
Worst Loss: WKU 20, FIU 14
Midseason Thought: The Golden Panthers have yet to play a Power Five team, and it’s supposed to be a whole lot better than 3-3. They’re too inconsistent defensively.
95. Chad Lunsford, Georgia Southern (2-3)
Best Win: Georgia Southern 20, South Alabama 17
Worst Loss: Louisiana 37, Georgia Southern 24
Midseason Thought: The offense isn’t quite working like it’s supposed to, but 2-3 is about right with this schedule. The Sun Belt killers, though, are in the second half.
94. Neal Brown, West Virginia (3-3)
Best Win: West Virginia 44, NC State 27
Worst Loss: Missouri 38, West Virginia 7
Midseason Thought: Give it a little while. Dana Holgorsen didn’t leave the cupboard bare, but it’s a rebuilding job with Brown without the defensive parts in place. He hasn’t been able to work his magic quite yet.
93. Chuck Martin, Miami University (2-4)
Best Win: Miami University 34, Buffalo 20
Worst Loss: Western Michigan 38, Miami University 16
Midseason Thought: The offense is among the worst in the nation, the defense is struggling, and there’s nothing the team can count on. The schedule eases up, though. The second half of the year is huge for Martin.
92. Scott Frost, Nebraska (4-3)
Best Win: Nebraska 13, Northwestern 10
Worst Loss: Minnesota 34, Nebraska 7
Midseason Thought: Two ways to look at this. 1) Nebraska is still 4-3 and can make a whole lot of noise in the second half. Or 2) NO, no, no. No excuses. This was supposed to be when it all started to kick in under Frost, and it’s just not. To be fair, he doesn’t have the guys yet – this isn’t the quick fix many might want.
91. Chip Lindsey, Troy (2-3)
Best Win: Troy 35, Akron 7
Worst Loss: Southern Miss 47, Troy 42
Midseason Thought: Where’s the defense? The new head coach’s only win is over an Akron team that might be the worst in college football, and the D hasn’t been able do enough in close shootouts.
90. Lance Leipold, Buffalo (2-4)
Best Win: Buffalo 38, Temple 22
Worst Loss: Liberty 35, Buffalo 17
Midseason Thought: It’s been a fight to repeat the 2018 success with a depleted team. The offense has to score 20 or it doesn’t win – it can’t seem to score more than 20.
89. Mike Houston, East Carolina (3-3)
Best Win: East Carolina 24, Old Dominion 21
Worst Loss: Navy 42, East Carolina 10
Midseason Thought: Houston has won the games he has supposed to, and lost the ones he was supposed to. The first year head man can’t get the O going, but the D has been fine.
88. Jake Spavital, Texas State (2-4)
Best Win: Texas State 37, Georgia State 34
Worst Loss: ULM 24, Texas State 14
Midseason Thought: The first year head man is trying to get the offense going, and he’s having mixed results. It’s going to take a while, but the Bobcats are putting up good fights.
87. Chris Creighton, Eastern Michigan (3-3)
Best Win: Eastern Michigan 34, Illinois 31
Worst Loss: Central Michigan 42, Eastern Michigan 16
Midseason Thought: It’s been an okay start to set up for a possible run to a bowl, but there’s no offensive consistency and the 0-2 MAC start ins’t okay.
86. Jason Candle, Toledo (4-2)
Best Win: Toledo 28, BYU 21
Worst Loss: Bowling Green 20, Toledo 7
Midseason Thought: The Rockets were supposed to own the MAC, and they still might, but the loss to a miserable Bowling Green team was unacceptable. There’s no excuse not to rock over the second half of the year.
85. Mike Bobo, Colorado State (2-5)
Best Win: Colorado State 35, New Mexico 21
Worst Loss: Toledo 41, Colorado State 35
Midseason Thought: The schedule has been sneaky-tough so far, and Bobo lost his starting quarterback, but the offense is fine and the team continues to battle.
84. Tim Lester, Western Michigan (4-3)
Best Win: Western Michigan 57, Georgia State 10
Worst Loss: Toledo 31, Western Michigan 24
Midseason Thought: Can the team win two games in a row? It keeps alternating wins and losses, and it’s up to the D. Allow 17 points or fewer and win, allow more and lose. In a bad year for the MAC, Lester’s team has to take it.
83. Philip Montgomery, Tulsa (2-4)
Best Win: Tulsa 24, Wyoming 21
Worst Loss: Navy 45, Tusla 21
Midseason Thought: Tulsa has a BRUTALLY unfair schedule to kick off the second half of the year, and Montgomery has to figure out how to beat one of the good teams. There aren’t any bad losses so far, and the win over Wyoming was great, but the offense had better improve fast.
82. Matt Viator, ULM (3-3)
Best Win: ULM 30, South Alabama 17
Worst Loss: Iowa State 72, ULM 20
Midseason Thought: The Warhawks got rocked by the good teams, beat the bad teams, and have done what they’re supposed to. Viator has the program in place to potentially go bowling.
81. Rick Stockstill, Middle Tennessee (2-4)
Best Win: Middle Tennessee 24, Marshall 13
Worst Loss: Florida Atlantic 28, Middle Tennessee 13
Midseason Thought: The definition of scuffling, Stockstill hasn’t been able to get his offense going consistently enough to overcome a questionable defense. The schedule eases up, but it’s going to be a battle just to become bowl eligible a year after playing for the Conference USA title.
2019 CFN Midseason Head Coach Rankings
130-121 | 120-101 | 61-80 | 60-41 | 40-26 | 25-11 | Top 10
NEXT: It wasn’t a perfect first half, but …
HOPE SPRINGS ETERNAL: It was a bumpy first half, but there’s just enough to be ready for a pivot
80. Matt Luke, Ole Miss (3-4)
Best Win: Ole Miss 31, Arkansas 17
Worst Loss: Memphis 15, Ole Miss 10
Midseason Thought: Luke is in an interesting spot. The Rebels appear to be the 12th-best team in the SEC – ahead of Vanderbilt and Arkansas – and OC Rich Rodriguez’s offense is starting to find its groove, but the defense has to be a whole lot better to finish with a winning season.
79. Manny Diaz, Miami (3-3)
Best Win: Miami 17, Virginia 9
Worst Loss: Virginia Tech 42, Miami 35
Midseason Thought: Everything appeared to be in place for the Hurricanes to be the ACC’s second-best team – and a serious threat to win 11 games without Clemson on the slate. Nope. The win over Virginia might have saved the season, but the Canes have been a major disappointment.
78. Les Miles, Kansas (2-4)
Best Win: Kansas 48, Boston College 24
Worst Loss: Coastal Carolina 12, Kansas 7
Midseason Thought: Miles at least has made Kansas interesting thanks to the stunning win over Boston College. It’s going to be a long, long road back overall, though. At the very least, he has given the program a shot of life.
77. Dave Doeren, NC State (4-2)
Best Win: NC State 16, Syracuse 10
Worst Loss: West Virginia 44, NC State 27
Midseason Thought: It’s been a struggle. The Wolfpack might be 4-2, but they’re having a really, really hard time getting the O going. A strong ACC bowl tie is there for the taking, but the rebuilt defensive parts have to improve.
76. Willie Taggart, Florida State (3-3)
Best Win: Virginia 31, Florida State 24
Worst Loss: Florida State 31, NC State 31
Midseason Thought: Of course, it’s Florida State, and the program is supposed to be a whole lot stronger than 3-3. However, considering all the negativity and problems, Taggart has managed to pull the team out of the nosedive with a few nice wins. However, the team not being – supposedly – hydrated enough in the loss to Boise State wasn’t okay.
75. Gary Patterson, TCU (3-2)
Best Win: TCU 34, Purdue 13
Worst Loss: SMU 41, TCU 38
Midseason Thought: He’s always going to be deep in the mix for the honor of being the best coach going – if all things were equal – but this year his team hasn’t been able to bounce back from the mediocre 2018. The glitches haven’t been fixed like they normally are following a down season.
74. Jeff Tedford, Fresno State (2-3)
Best Win: Fresno State 30, New Mexico State 17
Worst Loss: Air Force 43, Fresno State 24
Midseason Thought: Tedford didn’t all of a sudden become a mediocre head coach – this is what a rebuild looks like. The Bulldogs lost heartbreakers to USC and Minnesota, but with two weeks off, the defense should’ve had an answer for Air Force.
73. Hugh Freeze, Liberty (4-2)
Best Win: Liberty 36, Buffalo 17
Worst Loss: Louisiana 35, Liberty 14
Midseason Thought: The guy was coaching from a hospital bed for a few weeks … what was he supposed to do? The Flames have gone on a four-game winning streak beating the weak and the sad, but that’s what they’re supposed to do. There’s a real, live chance shot at a ten-win season if it can get a bowl bid and win it.
72. Blake Anderson, Arkansas State (2-3)
Best Win: Arkansas State 50, Troy 43
Worst Loss: Georgia State 52, Arkansas State 38
Midseason Thought: Talk about dealing with adversity, he suffered the loss of his wife just as the season got started, and on the field, his starting quarterback got hurt. He and his team fought through the tough first half.
71. Jamey Chadwell, Coastal Carolina (3-3)
Best Win: Coastal Carolina 12, Kansas 7
Worst Loss: Eastern Michigan 30, Coastal Carolina 23
Midseason Thought: In his second year, Chadwell has enough in place to go bowling. The schedule in the second half isn’t easy, but he has to find more consistency out of his offense.
70. Doc Holliday, Marshall (3-3)
Best Win: Marshall 33, Ohio 31
Worst Loss: Middle Tennessee 24, Marshall 13
Midseason Thought: The team is fine, but the defense hasn’t been able to make up for a sputtering offense. There’s no real problem for a team that finds ways to win, but it should be 4-2 – the Middle Tennessee loss hurts.
69. Justin Fuente, Virginia Tech (4-2)
Best Win: Virginia Tech 42, Miami 35
Worst Loss: Boston College 35, Virginia Tech 28
Midseason Thought: Fuente got the win he needed against Miami, but it’s been a rough start to the season. The Hokies shouldn’t have been blown out by Duke, and they lost to Boston College, but they’re 4-2 and the offense is starting to perk up just a bit.
68. Jonathan Smith, Oregon State (2-4)
Best Win: Oregon State 48, UCLA 31
Worst Loss: Hawaii 31, Oregon State 28
Midseason Thought: It might not be a great record, but Smith’s Beavers are more competitive, there’s hope that this can turn around in the near future, and the offense has been fantastic. The defense …
67. Mike Neu, Ball State (3-3)
Best Win: Ball State 29, Eastern Michigan 23
Worst Loss: Florida Atlantic 41, Ball State 31
Midseason Thought: It hasn’t been a bad run so far with a 2-0 MAC start helped by a good-enough defense that’s starting to win close games. It’s slow, but the change appears to be happening.
66. Mark Stoops, Kentucky (3-3)
Best Win: Kentucky 38, Toledo 24
Worst Loss: South Carolina 24, Kentucky 7
Midseason Thought: The magic isn’t there like there was last season, but give Stoops and his staff credit for keeping the ship afloat after losing QB Terry Wilson. It’s going to be a battle, though, to go bowling.
65. Jim McElwain, Central Michigan (4-3)
Best Win: Central Michigan 42, Eastern Michigan 16
Worst Loss: Western Michigan, 31, Central Michigan 15
Midseason Thought: The new head man lost his two main players in the backfield to injuries, and yet the team kept fighting with a good battle in a loss to Miami. The offense has picked it up again, and now it looks like CMU will go bowling.
64. Jeff Monken, Army (3-3)
Best Win: Army 31, UTSA 13
Worst Loss: WKU 17, Army 8
Midseason Thought: Almost no one has done more to coach the heck out of a team and its style than Monken, but the O stalled just enough to be off to a disappointing 3-3 start. There’s no good win so far.
63. Jay Norvell, Nevada (4-2)
Best Win: Nevada 34, Purdue 31
Worst Loss: Hawaii 54, Nevada 3
Midseason Thought: It’s been a strange season for a team with little defense and an offense that’s trying to work out the kinks. It hasn’t been pretty, but 4-2 is 4-2 is 4-2. Don’t look past that.
62. Jay Hopson, Southern Miss (4-2)
Best Win: Southern Miss 34, North Texas 23
Worst Loss: Mississippi State 38, Southern Miss 15
Midseason Thought: USM is what it’s supposed to be. Hopson was expected to be 4-2 at best at this point, and he’s done his part with the win over North Texas to set up what should be a big second half of the year.
61. Josh Heupel, UCF (4-2)
Best Win: UCF 45, Stanford 27
Worst Loss: Pitt 35, UCF 34
Midseason Thought: Heupel was down to – if you want to somehow count McKenzie Milton – his No. 4 quarterback, and the machine was still working. It took a gimmicky play for Pitt to get by the Knights, and a nasty performance from Cincinnati at home to get by UCF – Heupel is doing more than fine.
2019 CFN Midseason Head Coach Rankings
130-121 | 120-101 | 81-100 | 60-41 | 40-26 | 25-11 | Top 10
NEXT: A good first half, but ready for a bigger second half
SETTING THE STAGE: A good first half, but ready for a make-or-break second half
60. Jimbo Fisher, Texas A&M (3-3)
Best Win: Texas A&M 31, Arkansas 27
Worst Loss: Auburn 28, Texas A&M 20
Midseason Thought: Oh sure … see how you do against Clemson, Alabama and Auburn. Fisher didn’t come up with anything special, though, in any of those three games, and both sets of Tigers have appeared to be gettable. He gets a free pass on that, but 31-27 against Arkansas?
59. Billy Napier, Louisiana (4-2)
Best Win: Louisiana 37, Georgia Southern 24
Worst Loss: Appalachian State 17, Louisiana 7
Midseason Thought: Napier is one of the rising star young head coaches with a good offensive style and a defense that’s getting the job done. The two losses – Mississippi State and Appalachian State – are more than fine.
58. Bronco Mendenhall, Virginia (4-2)
Best Win: Miami 17, Virginia 9
Worst Loss: Virginia 31, Florida State 24
Midseason Thought: Just when it seemed like the Cavaliers were going to take their season to another level, the O line stopped blocking well enough. Mendenhall is still doing a strong job, buuuuuuut … in a down ACC, it’ll be a major disappointment if the Cavaliers aren’t in the conference title game.
57. Shawn Elliott, Georgia State (4-2)
Best Win: Georgia State 38, Tennessee 30
Worst Loss: Texas State 37, Georgia State 34
Midseason Thought: The Panthers beat Tennessee. Stop there, and it’s been a fun season. After some issues in weird road losses to Western Michigan and Texas State, Elliott got his team back on track with two big Sun Belt wins. He’s going to take the team bowling.
56. Mel Tucker, Colorado (3-3)
Best Win: Colorado 34, Arizona State 31
Worst Loss: Air Force 30, Colorado 23
Midseason Thought: It’s been a wildly uneven start to the Tucker era, but the team is fun, it’s shown the ability to explode, and given time, he looks like a coach who has the upside to turn Colorado into a major player. However, for a defensive head coach … it’s time for the Buffs to play some D.
55. Mike Gundy, Oklahoma State (4-2)
Best Win: Oklahoma State 26, Kansas State 13
Worst Loss: Texas Tech 45, Oklahoma State 35
Midseason Thought: It’s just SO maddening. It’s been 14.5 years in Gundy’s tenure – a defense would be nice. The offense just keeps on humming with the replacement parts always able to step in and rock, but the D just isn’t there in the biggest of games.
54. Matt Wells, Texas Tech (3-3)
Best Win: Texas Tech 45, Oklahoma State 35
Worst Loss: Arizona 28, Texas Tech 14
Midseason Thought: Last year, team loses QB Alan Bowman to an injury, offense sputters, team crashes, Kliff Kingsbury gets an NFL gig. This year, team loses Bowman to injury, team looks like it’s about to crash, and … it beats Oklahoma State. Wells has to land this thing and get to a bowl, this is going to take a year or so to work.
53. Lane Kiffin, Florida Atlantic (4-2)
Best Win: Florida Atlantic 28, Middle Tennessee 13
Worst Loss: UCF 48, Florida Atlantic 14
Midseason Thought: It’s not the 2017 team, but Kiffin has rebuild enough to get the offense rolling again. No pun intended, but FAU has picked a lane – rock the mediocre teams, and take the paychecks against the good ones. He has the team set up for a second Conference USA title – or close to it – in three years.
52. Will Muschamp, South Carolina (3-3)
Best Win: South Carolina 20, Georgia 17 OT
Worst Loss: North Carolina 24, South Carolina 20
Midseason Thought: All things considered – like, losing QB Jake Bentley early and relying on a third-stringer in Athens – Muschamp isn’t doing a horrible job. With a brutal schedule that still has a slew of problems ahead, the win over Georgia finally gave the base a little hope.
51. Kevin Sumlin, Arizona (4-2)
Best Win: Arizona 28, Texas Tech 14
Worst Loss: Hawaii 45, Arizona 38
Midseason Thought: At the very least, Sumlin has set up the team for what should be an interesting second half. He’s had to navigate through a few key injuries, and the D has had its hiccups, but at 4-2, at least Year Two looks like a lock to be more successful … maybe. The schedule gets harder.
50. Chris Petersen, Washington (5-2)
Best Win: Washington 28, USC 14
Worst Loss: Stanford 23, Washington 13
Midseason Thought: This was supposed to be a rebuilding year with just about everyone lost on defense, but that hasn’t been a problem. Jacob Eason has been great in place of Jake Browning, too. However … there’s no excuse to lose that Stanford game against a team decimated by injuries.
49. Chris Klieman, Kansas State (3-2)
Best Win: Kansas State 31, Mississippi State 24
Worst Loss: Baylor 31, Kansas State 12
Midseason Thought: There’s still a lot of work to do, and the team isn’t exactly rolling like it’s supposed to, but that’ll come. The offense has to figure something out in a hurry to keep up in the Big 12, but win over Mississippi State on the road showed off the potential what Klieman and his staff can do.
48. Mike Norvell, Memphis (5-1)
Best Win: Memphis 15, Ole Miss 10
Worst Loss: Temple 30, Memphis 28
Midseason Thought: Norvell lost his top RB Patrick Taylor early, but the offense keeps on producing, and the defense has improved a bit. Now it’s time to see what Norvell can really do with the AAC there for the taking and all the big games in the second half at home.
47. David Shaw, Stanford (3-3)
Best Win: Stanford 23, Washington 13
Worst Loss: USC 45, Stanford 20
Midseason Thought: There’s no running game, the offense is a problem overall, and every game is a grind, but the Cardinal were crushed by injuries from the start, QB KJ Costello has been hurt, and the O line depth is a deep as a puddle. Pulling off the win over Washington has to be among Shaw’s best-coached games.
46. Kyle Whittingham, Utah (5-1)
Best Win: Utah 38, Washington State 13
Worst Loss: USC 30, Utah 23
Midseason Thought: The expectation of 6-0 was more than reasonable. Oregon’s the best team in the Pac-12, but Utah is right there in the No. 2 slot – at least it’s supposed to be. As it turned out, the first half of the schedule was against a light breeze of teams, and USC. The ONE game the Utes had to have, they couldn’t pull it off in LA.
45. Kirk Ferentz, Iowa (4-2)
Best Win: Iowa 18, Iowa State 17
Worst Loss: Michigan 10, Iowa 3
Midseason Thought: Yeah, Ferentz got the win over Iowa State, and that’s always going to make the base happy, but he also got Michigan playing its sloppy best, and he got Penn State in his house. 4-2 is fine. It was a good first half for the coaching staff, but the O stalled just when it needed to do anything over the last two weeks.
44. Jim Harbaugh, Michigan (5-1)
Best Win: Michigan 10, Iowa 3
Worst Loss: Wisconsin 35, Michigan 14
Midseason Thought: Ask the average sports fan on the street what Michigan’s record is. Harbaugh is on a hot seat, the team is trash, it’s out of the College Football Playoff hunt, he can’t win the big one … and all might be sort of true in a way. But Michigan is 5-1, and it’s still in a position to do big things. It’s all there for the taking, but the team had better start playing much, much, much better in a big hurry.
43. Bill Clark, UAB (5-1)
Best Win: UAB 33, UTSA 14
Worst Loss: WKU 20, UAB 13
Midseason Thought: On the one hand, this was supposed to be a total rebuilding year and UAB is 5-1. On the other … UAB has played NO ONE. Give credit to a You Are What Your Record Is sort of way.
42. Skip Holtz, Louisiana Tech (5-1)
Best Win: Louisiana Tech 43, FIU 31
Worst Loss: Texas 45, Louisiana Tech 14
Midseason Thought: The Bulldogs haven’t beaten anyone, but they’re getting the job done against the teams on the slate. The offense is perking up, and the D overcame the rebuild fast.
41. Tom Herman, Texas (4-2)
Best Win: Texas 36, Oklahoma State 30
Worst Loss: LSU 45, Texas 38
Midseason Thought: It’s way, way too unfair, but Herman and his team had one job – at least split against LSU and Oklahoma. They didn’t, and now Texas is out of the College Football Playoff chase by mid-October. There were a few nice wins, but the inability to fix the leaky defense was a killer in the two losses.
2019 CFN Midseason Head Coach Rankings
130-121 | 120-101 | 81-100 | 61-80 | 40-26 | 25-11 | Top 10
NEXT: In their own way, the first half was solid. Not sensational, but …
SURVIVE AND ADVANCE: There were some big bumps and rocky moments, but …
40. Clay Helton, USC (3-3)
Best Win: USC 30, Utah 27
Worst Loss: BYU 30 USC 27 OT
Midseason Thought: Okay, okay, OKAY, but hear me out.
It’s USC, and it’s supposed to win the national title every year no matter what – or at least, be in the mix for it – but under the harshest of pressures, Helton has kept the season alive. He’s had to deal with the world wanting Urban Meyer, a parade of backup quarterbacks, and an absolutely brutal schedule.
It hasn”t been pretty, but he got the win over Utah to stay alive in the Pac-12 race, and he’s doing it with a young team that should be dangerous next year. He might be on a hot seat, and no, 3-3 isn’t okay, but you try beating Stanford, Utah, Washington and Notre Dame with third-string quarterbacks.
39. Kirby Smart, Georgia (5-1)
Best Win: Georgia 23, Notre Dame 17
Worst Loss: South Carolina 20, Georgia 17 OT
Midseason Thought: Smart has a team full of NFL talent that’s good enough to not just get into the College Football Playoff, but win it … again, on talent. But the Bulldogs aren’t playing nearly well enough to get there. There’s an honest chance the South Carolina loss was a blip, but the first half struggles are a problem, and the sharpness just isn’t there to an offense with so much potential.
38. Mack Brown, North Carolina (3-3)
Best Win: North Carolina 28, Miami 25
Worst Loss: Appalachian State 34, North Carolina 31
Midseason Thought: Grade Brown on a bit of a curve. The 3-3 record is good compared to last season, and there are a few nice wins to get excited about, but the losses to Wake Forest and Appalachian State pushed the program right back into the world of struggling in close games. Whatever … Brown has made UNC a thing again.
37. Mario Cristobal, Oregon (5-1)
Best Win: Oregon 17, Cal 7
Worst Loss: Auburn 27, Oregon 21
Midseason Thought: It’s way harsh and totally unfair, but Cristobal and his staff needed to figure out how to close out Auburn. Oregon played better, the team looked faster, and it did everything right, right up until Bo Nix won the game for the Tigers. Yeah, beating up a bunch of mediocre-to-solid teams since then has been nice, but the chance was there to take the season by the horns, and the Ducks didn’t.
36. Pat Narduzzi, Pitt (4-2)
Best Win: Pitt 35, UCF 34
Worst Loss: Virginia 30, Pitt 14
Midseason Thought: It’s time to give it up – Narduzzi is doing a better job than he normally gets credit for. There might have been some questioning over a field goal issue in the loss to Penn State, but at least his Panthers provided a push. The offense is inconsistent, but the D is playing well, and don’t be stunned if the team is back in the ACC Championship.
35. Sean Lewis, Kent State (3-3)
Best Win: Kent State 62, Bowling Green 20
Worst Loss: Wisconsin 48, Kent State 0
Midseason Thought: Is the whole FlashFast thing starting to work? So Kent State lost to Arizona State, Auburn and Wisconsin … it won the three games it had a shot at winning. In his second year, Lewis is doing the impossible and starting to improve the program.
34. Dabo Swinney, Clemson (6-0)
Best Win: Clemson 24, Texas A&M 10
Worst Game: Clemson 21, North Carolina 20
Midseason Thought: PLEASE don’t get into a twist over this ranking. This isn’t a list of the best coaches – of course Dabo is in the top three, if not No. 1 – and he did need to reload an all-timer of a defensive line. But come on … it’s been an underwhelming 6-0 start with this much national-title talent.
33. Tyson Helton, WKU (4-2)
Best Win: WKU 17, Army 8
Worst Loss: Central Arkansas 35, WKU 28
Midseason Thought: Let’s just blow off that opening day loss to an FCS team – Central Arkansas – for a moment. Helton and DC Clayton White have done wonders creating one of the Group of Five’s best defenses, but the offense will soon have to start scoring more than 21 points a game.
32. Troy Calhoun, Air Force (4-2)
Best Win: Air Force 30, Colorado 23
Worst Loss: Navy 34, Air Force 25
Midseason Thought: Air Force is looking like Air Force again. The offense has its swagger back, the defense is good enough, and despite the losses to Boise State and Navy on the road, wins over Colorado and Fresno State made this a strong first half for Calhoun.
31. Gary Andersen, Utah State (3-2)
Best Win: Utah State 23, San Diego State 17
Worst Loss: Wake Forest 38, Utah State 35
Midseason Thought: Andersen had a tough act to follow, and he has the Aggies deep in the mix for the Mountain West title. The offense isn’t quite as explosive as it was under Matt Wells, but there’s no faulting the opening day shootout loss to Wake Forest, or the blowout to LSU. The win at SDSU is what matters.
30. Tom Allen, Indiana (4-2)
Best Win: Indiana 34, Ball State 24
Worst Loss: Michigan State 40, Indiana 31
Midseason Thought: It’s still Indiana, and it’s not time to get too crazy, but Allen has put together a team that’s at least giving the base hope. That doesn’t mean the Hoosiers can beat the Ohio States of the world, but Allen has given IU fans can at least go into almost every other game thinking there’s a chance.
29. Rod Carey, Temple (5-1)
Best Win: Temple 30, Memphis 28
Worst Loss: Buffalo 38, Temple 22
Midseason Thought: If it wasn’t for the strange loss at Buffalo, Temple would be deep in the mix for the Group of Five’s New Year’s Six spot. As is, with the win over Memphis, Carey has the win that might just prove the program is ready to take a bigger step forward.
28. Rocky Long, San Diego State (5-1)
Best Win: San Diego State 26, Wyoming 22
Worst Loss: Utah State 23, San Diego State 17
Midseason Thought: The home loss to Utah State isn’t a killer, but it’s one of those Long had to have. As is, it’s yet another great season so far for the Aztecs – great D, just enough O, lots of wins. He continues to be fantastic.
27. Barry Odom, Missouri (5-1)
Best Win: Missouri 34, South Carolina 14
Worst Loss: Wyoming 37, Missouri 31
Midseason Thought: The Wyoming loss is a shame – Mizzou would be getting a whole lot of national love right now if it could’ve stopped the Cowboy running game. With nothing to play for – at least at the moment, unless the NCAA lifts its ridiculous sanctions – the Tigers have still rolled at will through a mediocre slate. Odom has his team playing at a high level.
26. Matt Campbell, Iowa State (4-2)
Best Win: Iowa State 49, TCU 24
Worst Loss: Baylor 23, Iowa State 21
Midseason Thought: Campbell lost RB David Montgomery to the NFL and had to replace a few other key parts, and the team just keeps on humming. Remember, it’s hardly a given that Iowa State football is good, and it’s three points away from being 6-0.
2019 CFN Midseason Head Coach Rankings
130-121 | 120-101 | 81-100 | 61-80 | 60-41 | 25-11 | Top 10
NEXT: It was a good, solid first half, or for some, a really, really surprising one
YOU’RE HAPPY AT THE MIDSEASON: It was a good, solid first half, or for some, a really, really surprising one
25. Brian Kelly, Notre Dame (5-1)
Best Win: Notre Dame 30, USC 27
Worst Loss: Georgia 23, Notre Dame 17
Midseason Thought: So the Irish lost at Georgia. Forget what South Carolina did, that’s about as forgivable as it gets. The Irish might have struggled against USC, and it needed to turn it on in the second half to get by Virginia, but 5-1 is right where the expectations were at this point. Coming of the College Football Playoff season, and after losing a ton of star parts, Kelly reloaded and has a team that has 11-1 potential.
24. Craig Bohl, Wyoming (4-2)
Best Win: Wyoming 37, Missouri 31
Worst Loss: Tulsa 24, Wyoming 21
Midseason Thought: There’s no passing game, and the defense lost just about everyone of note, and the Cowboys were still able to get by Missouri and be in a position to get a decent bowl bid.
23. Brent Brennan, San Jose State (3-3)
Best Win: San Jose State 31, Arkansas 24
Worst Loss: Tulsa 34, San Jose State 16
Midseason Thought: San Jose State isn’t easy. It’s constantly a problem to get anything consistently working, but Brennan has doubled the win total from his first two seasons, and now he has a team that isn’t an easy out. The Spartans are improving, and there’s even the chance to dream about going … bowling?!
22. David Cutcliffe, Duke (4-2)
Best Win: Duke 45 Virginia Tech 10
Worst Loss: Pitt 33, Duke 30
Midseason Thought: The guy lost Danny Dimes and his offense actually got better. Daniel Jones is obviously doing just fine, but Cutcliffe continues to work his magic with a team that shouldn’t be in the ACC title chase, but is.
21. Justin Wilcox, Cal (4-2)
Best Win: Cal 20, Washington 19
Worst Loss: Arizona State 24, Cal 17
Midseason Thought: One of the rising superstars in the coaching world, Wilcox has been able to put together an amazing defense that’s good enough to win a Pac-12 title, but that offense … no. Even so, the Bears have a reputation now of being one of the leagues toughest teams to deal with.
20. Herm Edwards, Arizona State (5-1)
Best Win: Arizona State 24, Cal 17
Worst Loss: Colorado 34, Arizona State 31
Midseason Thought: Can we all say it now? You were right, Arizona State. The hiring of Edwards was highly questionable, but he’s been brilliant. He started the year with a freshman QB, lost WR N’Keal Harry to the NFL, and had to go on the road to face two of the nation’s tougher-coached teams in Michigan State and Cal, and he just keeps on getting the job done.
19. Ken Niumatalolo, Navy (4-1)
Best Win: Navy 34, Air Force 25
Worst Loss: Memphis 35, Navy 23
Midseason Thought: Well welcome back, Navy. We missed you in that 3-10 disaster of last season. The option offense is explosive again, the defense is solid, and Niumatalolo has once again shown why he’s really, really good at this coaching thing. Navy looks like Navy again.
18. Luke Fickell, Cincinnati (5-1)
Best Win: Cincinnati 27, UCF 24
Worst Loss: Ohio State 42, Cincinnati 0
Midseason Thought: 2018 obviously wasn’t a fluke. There’s no knocking the Bearcats for getting shut down by Ohio State, and at 5-1 with wins over UCLA, UCF and Houston, they’re in the hunt for the New Year’s Six slot. Fickell has also put himself in the mix for a big-time job opening this offseason.
17. Dave Clawson, Wake Forest (5-1)
Best Win: Wake Forest 24, North Carolina 18
Worst Loss: Louisville 62, Wake Forest 59
Midseason Thought: It needs to keep being mentioned that Clawson continues to win without top-level talent to win one of the nation’s most fun offenses. Of course the players are getting it done, but it’s not insane to consider the Demon Deacons in the fight to be the ACC’s second-best team. More than that on a national scale, they’re a whole lot of fun.
16. Bryan Harsin, Boise State (6-0)
Best Win: Boise State 36, Florida State 31
Worst Game: Boise State 14, Marshall 7
Midseason Thought: Harsin took his team and his freshman quarterback into Tallahassee against a jacked up Florida State squad that needed the win … and it was ugly. But the Broncos adjusted, hydrated better than the other side, and pulled out a thriller. Now the team has the Group of Five’s New Year’s Six bowl for the taking if it can win out.
15. Dan Mullen, Florida (6-1)
Best Win: Florida 24, Auburn 13
Worst Loss: LSU 42, Florida 28
Midseason Thought: It’s not a flashy team, it doesn’t have the Heisman-caliber quarterback, it struggled against Kentucky, it struggled against Miami, and … it beat Auburn, and slugged it out toe-to-toe with LSU in Death Valley for around 52 minutes. Several of Mullen’s NFL defensive talents have been banged up, QB Feleipe Franks was lost for the year in Week 3, and yet the Gators are still right there in the hunt for the SEC East title.
14. James Franklin, Penn State (6-0)
Best Win: Penn State 17, Iowa 12
Worst Game: Penn State 17, Pitt 10
Midseason Thought: Quick … name a Penn State player. There are no obvious superstars with one name status like Tua, or Jalen, or Burrow, but it’s a rock-solid team that just keeps on winning. The O has to produce more against the good teams, but Franklin is 6-0, and Michigan State and Michigan aren’t. And it seems like the team is just scratching the surface.
13. PJ Fleck, Minnesota (6-0)
Best Win: Minnesota 34, Nebraska 7
Worst Game: Minnesota 28, South Dakota State 21
Midseason Thought: Minnesota could’ve started out 0-3 just as easily as 3-0, but it didn’t. It’s getting better and better as the season has gone on, the throttling of Nebraska was great, and now Fleck has the Gophers in a great position to get to 8-0 before Penn State comes to town.
12. Nick Rolovich, Hawaii (4-2)
Best Win: Hawaii 45, Arizona 38
Worst Loss: Boise State 59, Hawaii 37
Midseason Thought: Wait … Hawaii is playing … DEFENSE? Rolovich’s club did more than just hang with the three Pac-12 teams on the slate, it beat two of them – Arizona and Oregon State. It went on the road and rocked Nevada, and the losses at Washington and Boise State are more than fine. Hawaii could be 2-4 right now and no one would say boo – Rolovich had a strong first half.
11. Eliah Drinkwitz, Appalachian State (5-0)
Best Win: Appalachian State 34, North Carolina 31
Worst Game: Appalachian State 56, Charlotte 41
Midseason Thought: Drinkwitz stepped in for Scott Satterfield and he kept it all going. With the wins over North Carolina and Louisiana on the road, the Mountaineers got the wins they needed to potentially be the first Sun Belt team to get a New Year’s Six bowl game.
2019 CFN Midseason Head Coach Rankings
130-121 | 120-101 | 81-100 | 61-80 | 60-41 | 40-26 | Top 10
NEXT: The coaches who enjoyed the best first half of the 2019 college football season
CRUSHING IT: The coaches who did the best jobs in the first half of the 2019 college football season
10. Nick Saban, Alabama (6-0)
Best Win: Alabama 47, Texas A&M 28
Worst Game: Alabama 47, South Carolina 23
Midseason Thought: It’s Alabama. It’s supposed to be 6-0 with barely a yawn. Ask Clemson how much fight it takes to play at the highest of levels each week. Ask Georgia how it’s going with all the NFL talent on its roster.
The defense needs to be a whole lot better when the lights finally come on – the schedule hasn’t been that bad so far – but overall, Bama is 6-0 at the midway point, and the machine keeps rolling along. That’s nothing to take for granted.
9. Willie Fritz, Tulane (5-1)
Best Win: Tulane 42, Army 33
Worst Loss: Auburn 24, Tulane 6
Midseason Thought: The fake late against Houston – followed up by the game-winning touchdown pass – were enough to make Fritz a Coach of the Year in the social media world, but it’s more than that. The Green Wave are looking and playing like possible American Athletic Conference champs – or at least in the mix – but the big boys are coming up.
8. Scott Satterfield, Louisville (4-2)
Best Win: Louisville 62, Wake Forest 59
Worst Loss: Florida State 35, Louisville 24
Midseason Thought: Talk about a total program-changer, Louisville got itself a star. Remember how bad the Cardinals were last year and how hopeless the defense was? Now they’re 4-2, they just handed Wake Forest its first loss, and yeah … they might go bowling. It’s been just half a season, but it’s looking like a brilliant hire.
7. Sonny Dykes, SMU (6-0)
Best Win: SMU 41, TCU 38
Worst Game: SMU 37, Arkansas State 30
Midseason Thought: Well isn’t this a slice of something. SMU fans who still have to hear the words death and penalty at least a few times a week have a fun team that’s blowing up on offense for a program that hasn’t played this well in decades. The schedule gets nastier, but Dykes in Year Two has put together a team good enough to be in the mix for the AAC title and a New Year’s Six game.
6. Matt Rhule, Baylor (6-0)
Week 7: Baylor 23, Iowa State 21
Worst Game: Baylor 21, Rice 13
Midseason Thought: Rhule keeps showing why the NFL was so hot for his services. He’s been able to do a total overhaul of the program and its style, winning with defense, limited mistakes, and the mental toughness to come through in tight game after tight game. From 1-11, to 7-6, to an undefeated start – he and his staff have been fantastic this year.
5. Gus Malzahn, Auburn (5-1)
Best Win: Auburn 27, Oregon 21
Worst Loss: Florida 24, Auburn 13
Midseason Thought: There’s a chance that Oregon really is one of the four best teams in college football, and to start the season, Malzahn made the call to start a true freshman quarterback against a team with a guy who’d probably have been the New York Giant starting QB had he left early. Bo Nix wasn’t perfect, but he beat Justin Herbert.
Malzahn might always be one loss away from a hot seat list, but 5-1 after facing Oregon, Texas A&M, Mississippi State, Tulane – yeah, this year Tulane – and Florida on the slate? Ol’ Gus is doing alright.
4. Ryan Day, Ohio State (6-0)
Best Win: Ohio State 34, Michigan State 10
Worst Game: Ohio State 45, Florida Atlantic 21
Midseason Thought: It’s being glossed over because he made it look so easy, but think about just how much pressure was and is on Day. He has more NFL talent on his roster than the rest of the Big Ten combined, and he’s at Ohio State, where it’s unacceptable to win by anything less than a gajillion. His team has been nothing short of perfect so far.
3. Lincoln Riley, Oklahoma (6-0)
Best Win: Oklahoma 34, Texas 27
Worst Game: Oklahoma 45, Kansas 20
Midseason Thought: Remember, in the 2018 Alabama spring game, Jalen Hurts – to be kind – struggled throwing the ball. It was a bad day, and obviously it was an aberration, but don’t just assume it was a given that the Oklahoma offense was going to lose its second straight Heisman-winning, No. 1 overall draft pick quarterback and be just as good. It’s even better so far under Hurts, and the hiring of coordinator Alex Grinch has given the Sooners a real, live defense.
Also remember that 1) Oklahoma lost last year’s Red River Showdown game against Texas, and 2) this is the first time Oklahoma has been 6-0 to start a season since 2011.
2. Ed Orgeron, LSU (6-0)
Best Win: LSU 42, Florida 28
Worst Game: LSU 66, Vanderbilt 38
Midseason Thought: Before last season, Orgeron was No. 1 on just about every hot seat list. LSU was going to lose to Miami, it wasn’t going to handle the tough schedule, he failed before at USC (sort of, not really) and Ole Miss, and now he has a killer team with an unstoppable attack. The D needs to play up to its talent level at some point, but 42 points or more in each of the first six games?! No team in college football has two better wins than at Texas and against Florida.
1. Paul Chryst, Wisconsin (6-0)
Best Win: Wisconsin 35, Michigan 14
Worst Game: Wisconsin 24, Northwestern 15
Midseason Thought: Four shutouts in six games. You have to go back to the 1962 Minnesota Golden Gophers for the last time that happened in the Big Ten.
No. 1 in total defense. No. 1 in time of possession. No. 1 in pass defense. No. 1 in third down conversions. No. 1 in run defense. No. 1 in scoring defense. No. 5 in fewest penalties.
Name a team that has two wins on the resumé like Michigan and Michigan State that has been closer to being perfect in all phases? There wasn’t been so much as a blip in the wipeout paycheck games against Kent State and Central Michigan, and this is college football’s only team that has yet to trail in any game.
The road games are coming – five of the first six were in Camp Randall – but over the first half of the season, no team was better coached.
2019 CFN Midseason Head Coach Rankings
130-121 | 120-101 | 81-100 | 61-80 | 60-41 | 40-26 | 25-11
