College Football Rankings: The 25 Most Annoying Figures in NCAA Football History
Collage Football Rankings: Most Annoying Edition
College football rankings can center on just about anything: players, coaches, programs, fans, etc.
Taking it to the next extreme, weโve decided to rank the 25 most annoying figures in college football history. They can be players, coaches, administrators, fans, etc.โanyone associated with a college game.
Since โannoyingโ is a pretty subjective and fluid word, weโll try to hone in on the definition: anyone deceitful, arrogant, presumptuous, shortsighted, obnoxious, or just plain unlikable qualifies, even if their reputation was blown out of proportion by the media, fans, or cynics.
No. 25: Deion Sanders
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Deionโs showboating back during his days in Tallahassee is not enough to land Prime Time on this list.
But his involvement in the Dez Bryant fiasco last year is.
Maybe neither did anything illegal, but ultimately it cost Bryant nine games and the entire Big XII schedule.
Bryant was just a college kid enamored by the glitz and glamor of an NFL legend. Sanders should have known better or at least advised Bryant better.
No. 24: Jimmy Clausen
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If youโre going to declare college choice by arriving on campus in a stretch Hummer limo a few hours before the teamโs annual spring scrimmage, you better perform.
While Clausen posted two seasons of great personal stats as a sophomore and junior, he didnโt produce that many wins for the Irish. In games that he started, Notre Dame lost more than they won. ย
And getting punched in the face outside of a bar so you have to play a game against Stanford with a black eye? Thatโs not exactly along the same distinguished lines of Joe Montana, Joe Theismann, and Johnny Lujack.ย
No. 23: Mike Garrett
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The Trojans have had six Heisman Trophy winners during their storied history. So it would take a lot for the man who won the first to fall from favor with the USC fans.
But Mike Garrett, the 1965 Heisman winner and schoolโs Athletic Director from 1993 to 2010, may have.
Not only was he at the helm when the O.J. Mayo basketball scandal hit USC, but it was on his watch that the USC dynasty was taken to the woodshed by the NCAA.
And if that wasnโt enough, heโs the one who replaced Pete Carroll with Lane Kiffin, who should be an honorable mention on this list.ย
.jpg?w=256 "Big 12 Sorsby Gambling Basketball")
No. 22: Sebastian Janikowski
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To many, kickers are like young children: they should be seen and not heard.
They only play a handful of snaps and donโt get their uniforms dirty.
Thatโs why Sebastian Janikowski lands on this list.
The Seminoles were national championship contenders in 1998 and 1999, posting a 23-2 record and back-to-back BCS Championship Games.
But their kicker repeatedly nudged his way into the headlines by repeatedly being arrested for getting into fights.ย
No. 21: Terrelle Pryor
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Pryorโs involvement in the recent tattoo scandal is certainly a blemish on his career. And if he leaves Columbus next year without a national championship, the suspension he and his teammates drew will always leave Buckeye fans wondering โwhat if.โ
But because Pryor made the whole world wait with bated breath while he decided where to attend college, he helped make it easier for players like JaDaveon Clowney to consume ridiculous amounts of attention as HIGH SCHOOL ATHLETES.
And people still wonder how players get big heads.ย
No. 20: Richard Nixon
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You gotta know the history for this entry.
In 1969, the Texas Longhorns went undefeated and defeated second-ranked Notre Dame in the Cotton Bowl. But Joe Paternoโs Penn State Nittany Lions also went undefeated, and beat Missouri in the Orange Bowl.
Nevertheless, Texas won the AP National Championship.
Now, the Longhorns had a great national championship resume, probably better than Penn State's.
But the voters had to be unfairly influenced.
In early December, President Richard Nixon declared that the winner of the December 6 Arkansas-Texas game, which he was attending in Fayetteville, to be the National Champion.
Texas bested Arkansas 15-14 and after the game, Nixon presented Royal with a plaque declaring the Longhorns the champs.
Since many believe that Nixonโs attendance at the Texas-Arkansas game and declaration of a national champion was a political stunt to improve his popularity in the South, Tricky Dick was never a more apt nickname.ย
No. 19: Cecil Newton
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For now, we wonโt allow the sins of the father to reflect on the son; Cam was never charged or found in violation of NCAA rules regarding his pay-for-play scandal with Mississippi State.
But his father was.
Letโs assume he did โact aloneโ and Cam knew nothing about his father asking for money. His actions nearly ruined a Heisman Trophy season for his son and a National Championship season for an entire school (and they may stillโwho knows what will be revealed down the road).
No matter what, Cecil became as much of a story as Cam.
Was he going to be at the Heisman announcement? Was he going to be at the BCS Championship? ย If he wasnโt supposed to be in Glendale for the game against Oregon, why was he photographed on the field afterward?
If nothing else, he sapped a lot of the football out of the 2010 college football season.
No. 18: Les Miles
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Controversy just surrounds this guy like a black cloud.
Whether itโs his decision making on the field, his decision making off the field with recruiting, his potential departure to Michigan, or his seemingly imminent firing, he seems to be a side show every year.
A lot of that he canโt help; itโs just the nature of college football today. So maybe he alone isnโt an obnoxious or annoying person, but the baggage that surrounds Miles certainly is. Especially if you donโt care about the SEC.
No. 17: Woody Hayes
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Hayes did many great things for college football. And he put together one of the greatest runs in college football history.
But a coach who punches an opposing player (and that wasnโt the only outburst he hadโthere were plenty well-publicized ones with officials) has to be included on a list such as this.
Furthermore (and this is why LeGarrette Blount and a few other brawlers arenโt on this list), Hayes refused to evolve with the game and the times, remaining wedded to his โthree yards and a cloud of dustโ philosophy even as the college game was becoming more wide open.
He also didnโt like his players becoming involved in social issues.
No. 16: Brian Bosworth
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This should be a no-brainer, shouldnโt it?
College football players are really hard to include on this list, because for the most part, their tenure is limited to just a few years in the spotlight. Unlike head coaches or broadcasters, they move on and are quickly replaced so they donโt leave as much of a lasting imprint.
But not so with Oklahomaโs two-time Butkus winner.
First, his self-dubbed nickname, โThe Boz,โ was obnoxious.
So were the haircuts and the complaining about the NCAA. But by testing positive for steroids he completely threw away all of his on-the-field accomplishments and was revealed as something of a fraud. So his act was even more absurd.
No. 15: Tim Tebow
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Tebow may as well be the anti-Bosworth.
While at Florida, he was as buttoned up and pristine as any player in the history of sports. He did tons of charity work, reportedly remained chaste in college, didnโt get into any trouble, was an incomparable player and seemed like a genuinely great person.
Thatโs kind of why so many people didnโt like him.
Certainly there were tens of thousands of people (most of whom lived in North Florida) who loved Tebow. And I personally like him as well.
But for millions of sports fans outside Gator Nation, hearing about his picture-perfect imageโin every game he playedโgot a bit tired. So perhaps the collective members of the media, like Thom Brennaman during the 2008 National Championship Game, deserve more blame here.
But it was Tebow whom they were talking about.ย
No. 14: Joe Paterno
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I know I am walking a fine line here: first knocking Saint Tebow and now Joe Pa.
But, throughout six different decades, Paterno has given American sports fans plenty of reasons to be annoyed.
For one, during the last few years he seems more like a figurehead and not a head coach. How involved is he in the day-to-day running of the program? There is a โhangers-onโ feel to his tenure. And that sort of rubs some of the luster off his continually growing record number of wins.
As many fans (including Penn State's) feel, he should step down gracefully and let someone else take over the program.
No. 13: Bobby Bowden
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Because he recently stepped down, Bowden hasnโt been a hanger-on quite in the same way that Paterno still is.
But Paterno didnโt preside over an extremely sketchy program, either.
No one can be sure how much Bowden knew about the behind-the-scenes events that eventually earned FSU the nickname โFree Shoes University.โ
But could he really have been oblivious to it?
And he is largely responsible for the semi-annual Bowden Bowl adventures, against son Tommy, that often turned into an event that made people roll their eyes at the television screen.
The first few episodes were cut and a nice story, but after that, it got a little overplayed.
No. 12: Steve Spurrier
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Spurrier is the most unique figure in the history of college football.
Not only was he a Heisman Trophy-winning quarterback, but he later coached a Heisman Trophy-winning quarterback (Danny Wuerffel) to a National Championship.
But the whole โFunโNโGunโ approach by โthe Olโ Ball Coachโ is a bit overplayed. Furthermore, an arrogance does seem to perpetually emanate whenever he talks.
And while he does deserve endless praise for the success he achieved, his failure in the NFL, and the fact that he hasnโt won an SEC title in a decade, does bump him down a few pegs on the genius-o-meterโespecially after Urban Meyer won twice as many national titles as Spurrier in half the time.
No. 11: Lee Corso
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Corsoโs act on ESPNโs College Gameday is occasionally entertaining. Heโs got the trademark line, โnot so fast my friend.โ And he does display plenty of football knowledge when he speaks.
But the goofiness of his predictions, donning the Gator mascot head or Ohio Stateโs Brutusโ head, is less than dignifiedโespecially for a man who was a Big Ten head coach for a decade.
After a dozen or so weeks of watching that, the entire nation needs the long vacation of an offseason.ย
No. 10: Orrin Hatch
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Maybe we need a democrat on this list since Nixon is already on here. But itโs too difficult to leave off Orrin Hatch.
The senior senator from Utah has twice thrown his name into the college football world when it didnโt belong.
In 2009, he wanted the United States justice department to have hearings on the BCS. It was noble that he wanted to revamp a system that needs revamping. But considering how the Utah Utes, which happened to play in his home state, had twice finished undefeated and twice been snubbed by the BCS, politics seemed a major motive.
And if that wasnโt enough, a year later Hatch urged President Barackย Obama to invite the Boise State Broncos (another team located relatively near his home state) to the White House alongside the BCS Champion Alabama Crimson Tide.
Hatch has every right to urge change to the BCS system, but doing so from Capitol Hill seems like heโs more interested in scoring political points with his constituents than actually fixing a broken system.
No. 9: Rich Rodriguez
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People in the states of West Virginia and Michigan would probably put him on the top of this list. And while those are fairly biased perspectives, Rodriguez has become a pretty unlikable figure across the nation.
He burned bridges at Morgantown and did the same in Ann Arbor, where he earned the storied Wolverines program their first ever NCAA sanction.
When players transfer from Michigan to Ohio State (Justin Boren) because of Rodriguez and his staffโs lack of โfamily value,โ that raises plenty of questions.ย
Plus, does he really need wristbands to stand and coach on the sidelines?
No. 8: Mark May….Or Is It Lou Holtz
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Some people are Mark May fans, Lou Holtz haters. For others, itโs the other way around.
Neither is perfect and both say their share of trite, obvious statements from that halftime/postgame ESPN studio.
But Mayโs bandwagon of critics is probably a little bit heavier. He comes off as a bit more self-impressed than Holtz.
As much as any, this entry will stir the pot.ย
No. 7: Reggie Bush
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Heisman Trophy winners have a pretty varied history. There are the iconic legends who practically walk on water: Roger Staubach, Archie Griffin, Tim Tebow.
And then there are a few who havenโt quite exemplified the โtruestโ nature of the Heisman Trophy: O.J. Simpson, Cam Newton, Paul Hornung.
But only one has actually RETURNED his Heisman Trophy because of its questionable legitimacy: former Trojan star, Reggie Bush.
Even worse than that action, he never admitted to any complicity in the scandal that cost USC wins, scholarships and postseason berths, and said that returning the Heisman was not an admission of guilt.
Itโs hard to imagine a more annoying statement than that.ย
No. 6: Nick Saban
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If youโre not a fan of the Tide, what reason is there to really like Nick Saban?
He is without a doubt one of the best coaches in Americaโmaybe the best.
But he isnโt exactly the model of stability.
He left his first head coaching job at Toledo after one season, left Michigan State after five, left LSU after five more. And after the disaster in Miami, he returned to the college game (despite assuring the public he wasnโt) for Alabama.
People must be out there taking bets on how long till he leaves Tuscaloosa.
There is no rule that a coach has to stay put for X number of seasons. But as the face of a program, a head coach should project some semblance of loyalty to the players and university.
No. 5: Bobby Petrino
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Along with the previous entry on this list, Petrino is the poster boy for the opportunistic, seemingly greedy college football head coach.
Less than six months after signing a 10-year deal, he bolted Louisville for the Atlanta Falcons, only to sneak out in the middle of the night and promptly take over at Arkansas.
And since he owns an 11-13 record in the SEC, itโs hard to think heโs worth all the fuss.
No. 4: Governor Bill Clements
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There is plenty of blame to go around for what happened to the once proud SMU program that is just now rebounding after two decades of turmoil.
But former Texas Governor Bill Clements deserves as much as any and was the most highly-visible participant in college footballโs worst scandal. ย
Clements and the board of governors at SMU agreed to continue paying players, even after they promised the school and the NCAA they would stop.
That was the straw that broke the camelโs back and the NCAA crushed SMU with the first ever โDeath Penalty.โ
No. 3: Beano Cooke
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I personally enjoy Beano Cookeโs commentary on the college football landscape. So this entry is more of a representation of what I think most of the rest of the country thinks.
But then again, the reasons I like Beano, are the same reasons most people donโt.
Cooke comes off as a crotchety curmudgeon who thinks everything was better 50 years ago than it is today.
To me, thatโs endearing and often humorous, like listening to your grandpa spout off about โthe olden days.โ
But his Andy Rooney-like ramblings can certainly be off-putting to younger crowds, who find his wistful attitude for the days of Bud Wilkinson, goal posts on the goal line, and Ovaltine boring and lame.ย
No. 2: Brent Musburger
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Everyone has an announcer they canโt stand listening to.
For me, itโs Musburger.
Not only does he seem to be trying too hard with fake emotion and cherry-picked insights, but he has a habit of referring to players by their first name. For whatever reason he tries to make us think that he is friends with โTerrelleโ Pryor, or โCarsonโ Palmer.
More annoying than that little quirk, his views on steroids are out of whack.ย
No. 1: Roy Kramer
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As the commissioner of the SEC, Kramer achieved some great things. During his tenure from 1990 to 2002 he laid the groundwork for the conference to become the most dominant, and competitive one in the nation.
But if youโre not a fan of the BCS system (and I am not) than most of your disgust should be directed at Kramer.
Most people consider him โthe Father of the BCS,โ having worked towards its creation and implementation in the mid 1990s.
Enough said.ย
.jpg?w=480 "Big 12 Sorsby Gambling Basketball")
