College Football 2011: Forecasting the Future of CFB's Winningest Active Coaches
When you hear the words "winningest" and "college football," the three names that immediately pop into your head are Bear Bryant, Joe Paterno and Bobby Bowden.
But only one of those coaches, Paterno, fits the description of being an active coach.
And as you all know, Joe Pa is not just the winningest active college football coach, he is the winningest coach in college football history, too.
Yet, he shouldn't get too comfortable (though he shouldn't be too nervous either), because there are a number of coaches looking to dethrone Paterno as the college football win king.
While it may be too late for some to overtake the Penn State legend, let's take at the top winningest active coaches in CFB and forecast their futures anyway.
10. Mike Price (UTEP)
1 of 10
Wins: 123 (Washington State and UTEP)
The 64-year-old Mike Price racked up 83 wins at Washington State before taking over briefly at Alabama (where he never actually coached a game) and then winding up at UTEP in 2004.
Though he does have 123 wins at the FBS level, that may be deceptive.
Price went just 83-78 at Washington State and is 40-45 at UTEP, meaning he has a dead even .500 win percentage as a major college football coach.
In fact, he hasn't won more than eight games in a single season at UTEP and has won six or fewer in each season since 2006.
Forecast: Five more season, 30 more wins, 153 career wins
Price turns 65 in April, and I don't see him having much more than five years left.
And even if he does stay at UTEP that long, he's averaged less than six wins per season there, so he probably isn't going to get more than an additional 30 wins.
9. Bob Stoops (Oklahoma)
2 of 10
Wins: 129 (Oklahoma)
Despite being just 49-years-old, Bob Stoops has already racked up an incredibly impressive 129 career wins, all of which have come at Oklahoma.
In 12 seasons as the head coach of the Sooners, Stoops has averaged 10 wins per season, including six seasons of 12-plus wins.
He has built Oklahoma football into one of the nations top programs, as evidenced by his appearances in eight BCS bowl games.
In 2000, Stoops also won a national championship in just his second season at the school.
Forecast: 12 more seasons, 125 more wins, 254 career wins
Unless something unforeseen happens, Stoops likely will have a spot at Oklahoma as long as he wants it.
There's no reason to think he can't keep this hot streak going.
8. Nick Saban (Alabama)
3 of 10
Wins: 129 (Toledo, Michigan State, LSU, Alabama)
In four separate college coaching stints, Nick Saban has totaled 129 wins and has gotten progressively better at each and every stop.
And during his latest stint at Alabama, he's won an eye-popping 43 games in four seasons, including a whopping 36 victories over the past three seasons with a national title mixed in there.
Though Saban's already 59-years-old, he's in the right place, with the right program and the right players.
Alabama is absolutely loaded with recruits and resources, so Saban could very well finish his career there.
If he does, it'll be hard to imagine what kind of ridiculous numbers he racks up in Tuscaloosa.
Forecast: Eight more seasons, 88 more wins, 217 career wins
Saban's already entering his fifth season at Alabama, and he hasn't spent more than five seasons at any school he's been at.
But I think Saban's finally found a home, and he'll retire after winning another national title or two by the end of the decade.
.jpg?w=256 "Ohio State Team Doctor")
7. Dennis Erickson (Arizona State)
4 of 10
Wins: 141 (Wyoming, Washington State, Miami, Oregon State, Idaho, Arizona State)
While at Miami for six seasons from 1989-1994, Dennis Erickson's Hurricanes won an astounding 63 games, including two national championships.
He's cooled off considerably since then, having gone 31-17 at Oregon State and just 25-24 at his latest stop, Arizona State.
Though Erickson seems to be on the right track there, the Sun Devils still have won just 15 games over the past three seasons.
Not to mention Erickson is already 63-year- old, and thus, is a lot closer to the end of his career than the beginning.
Forecast: Five more seasons, 30 more wins, 171 career wins
Erickson's gotta get something done in 2011, as Arizona State hasn't won more than six games since 2007.
If he doesn't, he could be on the hot seat there, wind up getting the boot and eventually make his way to another school or his rocking chair.
6. Bill Snyder (Kansas State)
5 of 10
Wins: 149 wins (Kansas State)
From 1989 to 2005, Bill Snyder was the head coach at Kansas State, and a damn good one, too.
He led the Wildcats to nine seasons of 10-plus wins, including six seasons with 11 victories.
Then, after a brief hiatus from the program, Snyder returned to Kansas State in 2009 to take over a struggling football team.
But those struggles have largely continued, as the Wildcats have won just 13 games in two seasons since Snyder's return and look like they'll be nothing more than a middle-of-the-road Big 12 team for the foreseeable future.
And considering that Snyder is already 71-years-old, I wouldn't bet on him lasting more than another few seasons there.
Forecast: Two more seasons, 14 more wins, 163 career wins
The clock is ticking on the reunion between Snyder and the Kansas State football program.
If he can't produce in 2011, look for the school to start the transition to a new head coach.
5. Gary Pinkel (Missouri)
6 of 10
Wins: 150 (Toledo, Missouri)
One of the more underrated college football coaches out there, Gary Pinkel has slowly built up quite the program at Missouri.
After compiling a very nice 73-37-3 record at Toledo, Pinkel has led the Tigers to a 77-49 mark since 2001, including 40 total wins over the last four seasons.
He's averaged 7.7 wins per season at Missouri, but that number has jumped to 10 per season since 2007.
I'd look for Pinkel to find a happy medium between those two numbers the rest of the way, which could easily be five-plus more seasons considering that he's just 58-years\-old.
Forecast: Seven more seasons, 65 more wins, 215 career wins
If recent history tells us anything, it's that Pinkel's Tigers will stay in that 8-10 win range in the upcoming seasons.
That's not a bad way for Pinkel to both improve his resume and keep Missouri football fans happy.
4. Steve Spurrier (South Carolina)
7 of 10
Wins: 186 (Duke, Florida, South Carolina)
They call Steve Spurrier "the old ball coach" for a reason—the man can flatout coach.
After a pretty forgetful stint at Duke, Spurrier tore the house down at Florida, going 122-27-1 and never–I repeat, never—winning less than nine games in a season there.
Wow.
He's since moved on to SEC rival South Carolina, where he's averaged a little more than seven wins per season in six seasons there.
That number isn't great, but Spurrier continues to land stellar recruiting classes and has the Gamecocks as the SEC East favorite in 2011.
Forecast: Seven more seasons, 68 more wins, 254 career wins
Spurrier is 65-years-old, and it would be surprising to see him pull a Joe Paterno and coach for 20 more years.
I'll give him somewhere in the range of six to eight more seasons, depending on how well South Carolina performs with their incredible recruiting classes all coming together.
3. Frank Beamer (Virginia Tech)
8 of 10
Wins: 198 (Virginia Tech)
Since 1987, Frank Beamer has been patrolling the sidelines for Virginia Tech, and after a rough start, the Hokies have consistently been a top-20 program during Beamer's tenure.
He has 12 seasons of double digit wins and hasn't won less than 10 games in a season since 2003.
But Beamer has been a head coach since 1981 and is 64-years-old, so you have to wonder how much longer he's going to continue at Va. Tech.
My guess is that he'll be there as long as the school continues to win and his health holds up.
Forecast: Five more seasons, 55 more wins, 253 career wins
Other than a national championship, Beamer has pretty much accomplished anything and everything at Virginia Tech.
If he can get that coveted title, it might be time to call it quits.
2. Mack Brown (Texas)
9 of 10
Wins: 213 (Tulane, North Carolina, Texas)
After a few years at Tulane and a 10-year stint at North Carolina (69-46 there), Mack Brown made his way to Texas.
And everyone will remember him for what he's accomplished with the Longhorns.
Since taking over in Austin, the school has only one season (2010) with less than nine wins and even racked up nine straight double-digit win seasons from 2001-09, with a national title back in 2005.
Despite all that he's accomplished at Texas, Mack Brown still hasn't turned 60-years-old yet.
If he can get the Longhorns back to their 2009 form, then Brown can also guarantee himself a job for as long as he wants it.
Forecast: Six years, 55 wins, 268 career wins
I'm not sure that Texas is going to revert back to their winning days of the past decade, so Brown might be in a bit of trouble there.
Then again, the Longhorns could embark on another ridiculous winning streak, and I would be completely wrong.
1. Joe Paterno (Penn State)
10 of 10
Wins: 401 (Penn State)
Where would college football be without Joe Paterno?
The man who is synonymous with Nittany Lion football has been at the school since 1966, which is 22-years before I even had a spot on this Earth.
We all know about Paterno's insane stats: the national titles (two), the BCS bowls, the wins (401) and the record 401-135-3.
But Joe Pa can't really be summed up in words and he can't continue to coach forever either.
This may be the last season we see the winningest coach in CFB history patrolling the sidelines for Penn State.
Forecast: Two more seasons, 17 more wins, 418 career wins
He's gotta retire at some point, right?
.jpg?w=480 "Ohio State Team Doctor")
