Top 10 Candidates for College Football Coach of the Year

It's not easy being a coach. Just ask the now departed Charlie Weis.

These guys show up each week with a game plan and hope to high heaven that things go exactly as they are drawn up—if they do, gold. If they don't, well, be sure to duck on your way out of the stadium.

However, each year brings forth a batch of coaches who defy the odds and find their way through to a season so fruitful, that you have to give them their props on a job well done.

This season's crop has some familiar names but also a few that may not be quite as vaunted as the others—the top 10 candidates for coach of the year are....

1) Urban Meyer: University of Florida Gators (12-0)

It seems almost too easy a task to go undefeated when you have a guy like Tim Tebow on your team.

After all, he's a Heisman winner and may very well leave the game of college football as one of the best ever.

That said, Urban Meyer still managed to bottle the egos and the swagger, that can be so disruptive to a team that holds the current title of national champions, in check long enough to see his team go undefeated in 2009—there was no lapse in focus for the Gators.

All that likely stands between them and another shot at the Sears Trophy, his third in four seasons, is a date with Alabama on December 5th.

Notable 2009 Stats/Victories:

Average Points Allowed/Game: 9.8

Average Margin of Defeat: 26.7 ppg

Total W/L Record of Opposition: 86-55

Most Impressive Win of the Season: A 13-3 victory at LSU.

2) Nick Saban: University of Alabama Crimson Tide (12-0)

Even though Nick Saban entered the 2009 season with a more favorable schedule than last season, there were a few who thought that he might not make it to another 10 win season.

Saban, prior to this year, had never accumulated 10 wins in back-to back seasons. Nor had he won a game at Auburn's Jordan-Hare Stadium as a head coach—it was the only SEC venue that had denied him a 'w'.

Well, not only has Nick Saban gotten both those monkeys off his back, his stride has gotten longer and more confident as his tested Tide march into their rematch with Florida.

Prior to last season, the Tide looked like it was just another average team searching for the identity that was so prevalent when Bear Bryant roamed the field.

It might be blasphemy to mention Nick Saban in the same sentence as the Bear until he gets that national title for Bama, but the swagger and the confidence has definitely returned and that is all due to Saban.

Notable 2009 Stats/Victories:

Average Points Allowed/Game: 10.8

Average Margin of Defeat: 20.9 ppg

Total W/L Record of Opposition: 76-53

Most Impressive Win of the Season: A 26-21 come from behind victory over Auburn in the "Iron Bowl".

3) Brian Kelly: University of Cincinnati Bearcats (11-0)

Brian Kelly isn't the sexiest name in college football. He is head coach of the Big East's current Cinderella, the Cincinnati Bearcats, and nothing more.

Prior to the current media blitz that has his name being bandied around as the next coach at Notre Dame, it might have been hard for many to tell you his name at all—he's just this unassuming guy with an undefeated team.

That said, in his last three season's, he's managed to take the Bearcats from mediocrity to relevancy as his arrival has netted a Big East Championship as well as a BCS Bowl appearance.

If he ends this season on an undefeated note, look for him to elevate his name and his stature even higher in the college football world—once diamonds are found, they are hardly left for naught.

Notable 2009 Stats/Victories:

Average Points Allowed/Game: 18.6

Average Margin of Defeat: 20.8 ppg

Total W/L Record of Opposition: 57-55

Most Impressive Win of the Season: A 34-17 drubbing of the, then smoking, South Florida Bulls on the road.

4) Kevin Sumlin, University of Houston Cougars (10-2)

In just his second full season at the helm, Kevin Sumlin has the college football world scrambling to find out just how good his Houston Cougars are when it comes to facing big-time competition.

Since the Cougars play in Conference-USA, they don't meet the level of competition that is so readily accessible in the Big 12, the SEC, and the Pac-10. They are relegated to playing the kinds of teams that are usually really good or truly awful.

So, when the little team that could waltzed into Boone-Pickens Stadium to take on the, then No. 5, Oklahoma State Cowboys no one gave them much of a chance.

All the Cougars did was stifle the Robinson Trio for the first half while they racked up a comfortable 24-7 lead—how's that for the little team from Houston?

Sumlin may not be mentioned by too many as a Coach of the Year candidate, but, he should be.

Notable 2009 Stats/Victories:

Average Points Allowed/Game: 28.0

Average Margin of Defeat: 16.9 ppg

Total W/L Record of Opposition: 58-73

Most Impressive Win of the Season: A 45-35 road win over the Oklahoma State Cowboys.

5) Paul Johnson, Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets (10-2)

They said a gimmicky offense like the triple-option could never work in a real conference with real defenses.

Someone forgot to tell that to Paul Johnson.

Johnson has been successful at every stop in his coaching career and this stop at Georgia Tech has not been any different as he has raised the bar back to a respectable level in Atlanta and brought some rich talent onto the fields at Bobby Dodd in only his second-year.

The Yellow Jackets have, again, run all over the ACC and will now play for the championship on Saturday.

The triple-option can't work? Hmmmm, I guess it can.

Notable 2009 Stats/Victories:

Average Points Allowed/Game: 24.1

Average Margin of Defeat: 10.9 ppg

Total W/L Record of Opposition: 81-61

Average Rush Yards Per Game: 305

Most Impressive Win of the Season: A 28-23 victory over the, then No. 4 ranked, Virginia Tech Hokies.

6) Kirk Ferentz: University of Iowa Hawkeyes (10-2)

At some point this season, you began to get the feeling that people were a little miffed at Iowa. I mean, seriously, how were they winning all those games?

They weren't doing any one thing in a spectacular fashion. They didn't have that one guy who was blowing everyone out of the water with all his talent.

They weren't even dominating the competition.

As a matter of fact, in the realm of college football, Iowa was just plain boring.

Well, the only opinion that likely mattered to Kirk Ferentz and his Iowa team was their own—they had rattled off nine straight wins before anyone started to realize that they were contenders.

Talk about being under the radar.

The Hawkeyes are no longer a threat to the BCS but what they were able to accomplish this season is no less impressive or relevant.

Notable 2009 Stats/Victories:

Average Points Allowed/Game: 15.5

Average Margin of Defeat: 7.6 ppg

Total W/L Record of Opposition: 78-50

Most Impressive Win of the Season: A 21-10 road win in Happy Valley against, then No. 5, Penn State.

7) Gary Patterson: TCU Horned Frogs (12-0)

Gary Patterson's name isn't new to anyone. His Horned Frogs have been making some serious BCS noise for quite some time now.

However, it hasn't been until this season that everything has come together.

This team is as dangerous on defense as it is on offense and I challenge any squad, no matter your conference, to bring it to them on a Saturday—they are not average and they are not skeered of any team in the FBS.

The fact that Patterson isn't in a BCS conference right now is a bit of a laugher as I am certain he would be just as successful—provided he could take his stellar staff of assistants along for the ride.

Big names at TCU: Zero.

TCU is more about team than talent and that is exactly what makes them so darned impressive to watch.

Notable 2009 Stats/Victories:

Average Points Allowed/Game: 12.4

Average Margin of Defeat: 28.3 ppg

Total W/L Record of Opposition: 69-61

Most Impressive Win of the Season: A 38-7 drubbing of BYU in Provo.

8) Mack Brown: University of Texas Longhorns (12-0)

Already named the Big 12 Coach of the Year, for obvious reasons I'm sure, Mack Brown should be just as solid a candidate for National Coach of the Year.

Some might say that the Longhorns have not blown anyone away with their performances this season—lackluster showings against Texas A&M and a Sam Bradford-less Oklahoma haven't helped.

However, the point is this: the Longhorns sit 12-0 with a solid shot at a National Championship. The rest is just semantics.

Mack Brown has his team focused and firing on all cylinders, despite how unimpressed some may be with their overall output.

Oh yeah, and he's got another Heisman candidate to boot as Colt McCoy is playing like a man possessed with a will to win before he closes the curtains on his UT career.

Notable 2009 Stats/Victories:

Average Points Allowed/Game: 15.4

Average Margin of Defeat: 27.6 ppg

Total W/L Record of Opposition: 83-61

Most Impressive Win of the Season: A 41-14 dismantling of Oklahoma State.

9) Jim Harbaugh: Stanford University Cardinals (8-4)

If you are wondering why or how Jim Harbaugh makes this list, I only have one number to give you: 2001.

2001 is the last time a Stanford team had more than five wins in a season—Ty Willingham led the Cardinal to a 9-3 record.

Jim Harbaugh came in with big ideas and major plans for a Stanford program that is bigger on smarts than shoulder pads.

If you think the Cardinals are just another flash in the pan Pac-10 team, tell that to Toby Gerhardt. He seems to have forgotten his place as he has traipsed and embarrassed the opposition to the tune of 1,736 yards rushing this season.

Imagine that, a Pac-10 team that can play a little defense and not rely on the passing game for it's offense—Harbaugh brought a plan alright, a pretty good one at that.

Notable 2009 Stats/Victories:

Average Points Allowed/Game: 26.2

Average Margin of Defeat: 10.0 ppg

Total W/L Record of Opposition: 64-61

Most Impressive Win of the Season: A 55-21 woodshed beating of USC in L.A. Their largest margin of victory there since 1957 when they beat the Trojans by 28.

10) Chris Petersen: Boise State Broncos (12-0)

You know why no one really believes in Boise? Because they play in the WAC and have what many consider to be an easy road to an undefeated season—every single year.

Case in point: During Chris Petersen's tenure, this is his fourth year at Boise, the Broncos have had three undefeated seasons—minus bowl games.

The popular opinion has become that Boise can't play big boy ball and that hurts them come BCS bid time.

However, it's irrelevant what you think of Boise's road to the WAC Championship. The fact is, the Broncos have beat whomever they have played and that makes them a dangerous proposition for any team come bowl time. Period.

The reason for that dominance and the ensuing fear that has to come with it, is the steady hand and coaching of Chris Petersen.

If you think he's afraid of the big bad BCS, think again.

The Broncos might not be the perfect make-up of a powerhouse team but, take a look at the BCS rankings, and then decide who the joke is truly on.

Notable 2009 Stats/Victories:

Average Points Allowed/Game: 18.6

Average Margin of Defeat: 25.8 ppg

Total W/L Record of Opposition: 67-71

Most Impressive Win of the Season: A 19-8 win over Oregon in Boise.

Honorable Mentions

11) Randy Shannon had the Miami Hurricanes in the mix at one point in the season and with the maturation of Jacory Harris, things are looking up for the Canes.

12) Bo Pellini took the Nebraska Cornhuskers to new heights this season behind the stellar play of their defensive line and the "never die" play of Roy Helu, Jr.

13) Skip Holtz has the East Carolina Pirates soaring to heights only seen during the tenure of Steve Logan as he has his team bowl eligible for it's second year in a row.

14) Butch Jones has Central Michigan enjoying it's first 10 win season under Jones and is dominating the competition in the process.

15) Chip Kelly hasn't allowed the Oregon Ducks to miss a beat in his first season—rebounding nicely from the 19-8 loss suffered at the hands of Boise State.