Ranking college football's 10 best head coaches for the 2025 season

Whittingham’s record: 167-86

Whittingham comes into his 20th season with the Utes, matching Mike Gundy as the second-longest tenured head coach at a school in the FBS, both behind only Kirk Ferentz, who has been at Iowa for 26 years.

Utah isn’t dealing with the same resources as other programs in major conferences, but Whittingham has kept the school relevant, winning at least nine games on seven occasions during a nearly decade-long stretch, building consistently talented defense and turning out NFL talent without relying on star-studded recruiting hauls.

--

9. Brian Kelly, LSU

Kelly’s record: 292-107-2 (29-11 at LSU)

Kelly has played up to the competition most of his career, including a dozen-year tenure at Notre Dame, where he won 92 games and had the Irish in the top 10 four times.

And despite some prominent nay-sayers who doubted his could repeat that success in the SEC, he won 20 games in his first two seasons with LSU, including a first-place finish in the SEC West in his debut season, and he’s 3-0 in bowl games.

Still, last season was a regression of sorts, as LSU went 9-4 and finished unranked, so the pressure is on Kelly to turn things around and not lose grip of his position going forward.

--

8. James Franklin, Penn State

Franklin’s record: 125-57 (101-42 at Penn State)

Franklin has been a picture of consistent success since his head coaching debut at Vanderbilt in 2011, and he helped revive that program, long the punching bag in the SEC, winning 9 games in each of the final two of his three seasons in Nashville.

He’s won double-digit games in six seasons at Penn State and dipped below .500 only once, during the Covid season, culminating in a 13-3 outing and Big Ten title runner-up campaign that saw the Nittany Lions advance to the semifinal round in the playoff.

--

7. Kalen DeBoer, Alabama

DeBoer’s record: 46-13 (9-4 at Alabama)

Replacing Nick Saban is just about the most thankless job in college football history, but DeBoer earned Alabama’s confidence after putting together a 67-3 record at Sioux Falls and his reputation as an offensive guru and someone who has enjoyed sustained success at every program he’s been a part of.

DeBoer enters the 2025 season with an impressive 15-3 record against top 25 ranked teams over the last five years, the third-most wins in that category over that time, trailing only Ryan Day (17) and Kirby Smart (23).

--

6. Dan Lanning, Oregon

Lanning’s record: 35-6

One of college football’s most promising, and already most successful, younger head coaches, Lanning came over from the defensive coordinator role at Georgia and had the Ducks win the Big Ten Championship in their first season in the conference in 2024.

Oregon’s 35 wins over Lanning’s short tenure, since 2022, is the third-most among all FBS schools behind Ohio State and Michigan (26) and Georgia (39), reflecting the work that Lanning has put in not only on the recruiting trail and in the transfer portal, but in translating his roster-building effort into on-field success.

--

5. Dabo Swinney, Clemson

Swinney’s record: 180-47

Clemson emerged as one of the two dynasties of the early College Football Playoff era after winning two national championships, and while his teams have fared less successfully on the field, Swinney returned to the playoff in 2024 after a four-year absence.

Turnover among his coordinators played a role in Clemson’s recent regress, but Swinney has surrounded himself with quality play-callers on both sides of the ball again -- Garrett Riley on offense and Tom Allen on defense -- to get this team back into the playoff and take it a step further.

--

4. Marcus Freeman, Notre Dame

Freeman’s record: 33-10

Things could have gone sideways after Brian Kelly’s surprise resignation, but Freeman, his defensive coordinator, not only steadied the ship, but put the Fighting Irish back on the map by taking them to the national championship game a year ago.

Freeman won 9 games in his first full season, 10 in his second, and 14 in his third. If we’re going strictly by accomplishments like that, then Notre Dame clearly edged LSU after the Kelly move. Now Freeman has to prove he can keep it going after making a big change at quarterback and playing another tough early schedule.

--

3. Steve Sarkisian, Texas

Sarkisian’s record: 84-52 (38-17 at Texas)

For years, the lamest joke in college football was whether Texas was back. Well, it is, and Steve Sarkisian is the principal reason why.

Always considered a quality offensive strategist, Sarkisian has proven that right with a signature few seasons at the helm in Texas, going to the College Football Playoff the last two years, beating Alabama on the road as a Big 12 team, getting to the SEC title game in the Longhorns’ debut in that conference, and a CFP semifinal appearance.

Sark’s recruiting prowess has matched his offensive instincts and he’s made key hires on his supporting staff, culminating in his snatching up No. 1 overall recruit Arch Manning. Few people are able to so steadily manage such a high-profile program with an impatient fan base, but Sarkisian has clearly fit the bill so far.

--

2. Ryan Day, Ohio State

Day’s record: 70-10

Despite the claim by rival Jim Harbaugh that he was “born on third base” after taking over for Urban Meyer, Day has clearly fashioned the Buckeyes in his image, leading the school to its first national championship in a decade in 2024.

Ohio State’s recruiting machine hasn’t missed a beat since Day took over for Meyer, regularly turning out top-five classes during his tenure, and his .875 win percentage in Columbus is officially the best run of any coach in the AP poll era in at least 50 games.

--

1. Kirby Smart, Georgia

Smart’s record: 105-19

Kirby Smart has lost 19 games and turned out 20 first-round NFL Draft picks, won two straight national championships, won two postseason games by the two widest margins in college football history, and is the reigning SEC champion.

Smart has made the College Football Playoff four times and his Bulldogs have finished in the AP top 10 in each of the last eight years, doubling the former school record of four seasons.

Georgia’s 11-3, SEC title season that ended with a playoff quarterfinal loss in 2024 was considered a “down year.” Most schools would kill for down years like that.

--