Paul Finebaum Names the Top Two SEC Football Head Coaches Without Hesitation

Originally posted on Athlon Sports | By Jaron Spor | Last updated Jun 16, 2025 11:13 AM ET

The 2025 college football season is just over two months away. With the offseason still in full swing, various rankings and polls are being released by top college football analysts.

On his show, "The Paul Finebaum Show," ESPN's Paul Finebaum was asked to create a tier-one list of SEC coaches.

He was asked to identify four coaches for this tier, but found it challenging. Finebaum confidently named two coaches he believed deserved a spot. However, he mentioned that after those two, it becomes more difficult to choose, leading him to identify four other coaches who also have a strong case for inclusion in the tier.

For Finebaum, the two coaches he considers certain selections are those who have consistently reached the College Football Playoff in recent years.

"It starts with Kirby Smart," Finebaum said. "It moves toward Steve Sarkisian."

Finebaum expressed uncertainty about who the next coaches will be but mentioned that there would likely be support for Ole Miss' Lane Kiffin, LSU's Brian Kelly, Alabama's Kalen DeBoer and possibly Tennessee's Josh Heupel. However, he indicated that he isn't sure if Heupel would immediately fit into that top tier.

He said that aside from recent performances, Heupel may not be rated very highly by the public. After some consideration, he concluded that he would rank DeBoer as his third-best coach.

If we assess coaches based on their win percentage at their current schools, the rankings would be as follows:

1. Kirby Smart: 84.7%
2. Brian Kelly: 72.5%
3. Josh Heupel: 71.2%
4. Lane Kiffin: 71%
5. Kalen DeBoer: 69.2%
6. Steve Sarkisian: 69.1%

All of these coaches have achieved success, with five of the six having made it to the College Football Playoff; Kiffin is the only one who hasn't. However, neither Kelly nor DeBoer has reached the playoffs with their current teams. Both aim to change that in 2025.

This article first appeared on Athlon Sports and was syndicated with permission.

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