Summer is almost over, which means the start of the college football season is finally upon us.
Which teams will be competitive on a year-to-year basis is a somewhat fluid situation, but mainly depends on the man in charge of the program. Here are the 10 best coaches in college football entering the 2016 season.
10. Bill Snyder, Kansas State: 193–101–1 Record, 2 Big 12 Titles
OK, on the surface, there are some coaches out there who’ve had more success in recent years (David Cutcliffe, Brian Kelly, Kirk Ferentz, or even Bobby Petrino come to mind) than Snyder, but what Snyder has done overall since coming to once-laughable KSU in 1989 (minus his three-year hiatus from 2006–08) is incredible. Consider this: His 193 wins are just 57 behind the cumulative total of the other 22 head coaches in K-State’s history dating back to 1912. Besides that, the team had just two winning seasons in the prior 34 years before his arrival 27 years ago. (Snyder has 16 himself.)
9. Gary Patterson, Texas Christian: 143–47 Record, 6 Conference Titles
When the Horned Frogs joined the Big 12 in 2012, it was thought that Patterson’s string of four straight 10-plus-win seasons and presence on the national stage would come to an end. It did for a pair of seasons, but he’s quickly adjusted to the higher level of competition and now has back-to-back 10-plus-win seasons as TCU has taken the major conference by storm, placing second last year after winning it in 2014. Patterson has led the Horned Frogs to 14 bowl games—while playing in three different conferences—since taking over as head coach in 2000.
8. David Shaw, Stanford: 54–14 Record, 3 Pac-12 Titles
Shaw may have inherited an up-and-coming Stanford program (from former Cardinal coach Jim Harbaugh) five years ago that was loaded with talent (like Andrew Luck), but he’s kept the line moving. The Cardinals have won at least 11 games in four of his five seasons—while making three Rose Bowl trips—and with star running back/wide receiver/kick returner Christian McCaffrey back for his junior season, he should have a fifth in 2016.
