The 5 Smartest College Football Coaches in the Nation

College football coaching requires an enormous amount of mental strength and focus, so most programs probably want the smartest coach they can get to lead their team.

Though, not every coach that is successful is necessarily smart.

Les Miles has done very well with the LSU Tigers, but his clock management (and perhaps his affinity for eating grass) seems to indicate that he's not the sharpest tool in the shed.

Still, unless you can get the kind of talent Miles gets at LSU, you probably need a clever coach to be successful.

So, what exactly makes a smart coach?

Here is my list of the five most intelligent coaches in NCAA football.

Nick Saban, Alabama Crimson Tide

Nick Saban has moved around an unbelievable amount in his coaching career.

Once he became a head coach, he bounced around from the Michigan State Spartans to the LSU Tigers, and then to the NFL with the Miami Dolphins before reaching his current job with the Alabama Crimson Tide.

It seems that Saban may have found the perfect landing spot in Tuscaloosa. He joined a program that had an enormous amount of history but was in a drought, and he used the many resources at his disposal to build a powerhouse.

Moreover, with his $32 million contract he is one of the highest-paid coaches in college football, and in 2008, Forbes Magazine named him the most powerful coach in sports.

With the Crimson Tide bringing home their second BCS Championship in the last three years this season, he may be the most powerful man in Alabama. He seems to have made a very wise decision on where to finally settle in.

Mike Leach, Washington State Cougars

Mike Leach may not have handled the Adam James situation with much prudence, but he's still a very smart man.

He earned a Juris Doctor from Pepperdine and a Master of Sports Science degree from the United States Sports Academy before diving into the world of coaching. As the offensive coordinator for the Kentucky Wildcats and Oklahoma Sooners (under Bob Stoops), the "Mad Scientist" became famous for cultivating potent offenses using the famed "air raid" scheme he helped co-create.

As a head coach, he built up a Texas Tech Red Raiders program that had been insignificant for decades. The Red Raiders finished in the AP Top 25 five times between 2004 and his last season in 2009, something they had only done twice in the previous 26 years.

Now, he has moved on from his lawsuits and the other fallout from the James situation to take a job with the Washington State Cougars. Whether you like Leach or not, you can't deny he's an offensive genius.

And if I were a Cougar fan, I'd be excited about him coming to town.

Urban Meyer, Ohio State Buckeyes

Urban Meyer has worked for a number of teams in his short coaching career, and each time, he has overseen a huge turnaround in a short period of time.

In his first year as head coach, he coached the Bowling Green Falcons to an 8-3 season just a year after they had finished 2-9. He moved on to the Utah Utes (who were 5-6 the year before he got there), where he led them to a Fiesta Bowl victory and a top-five finish in just his second season.

He had an excellent sophomore year with the Florida Gators as well, as he led them to a BCS National Championship that season. The Gators were just 7-5 in his predecessor Ron Zook's last year.

The way he can turn a program around and get the most out of his players shows that Meyer is one of the greatest minds in college football.

Undoubtedly, Ohio State Buckeyes fans are hoping he can revive them just as quickly after their very disappointing 6-7 season in 2011.

Frank Beamer, Virginia Tech Hokies

With Joe Paterno's tenure with the Penn State Nittany Lions finally ending, Frank Beamer is now the winningest active coach in college football.

Frank Beamer built a powerhouse out of a Virginia Tech Hokies football program that had no history whatsoever before he got there. Beamer's coaching acumen is clear from the way he has found success.

With what we now call "Beamerball," he saw the advantage of focusing on (and playing starters on) special teams when few other coaches did, and he has been extremely successful at recruiting players that fit his system.

He can't bring many five-star athletes to Blacksburg, but he does the most with the talent he can get.

Moreover, Beamer had his chances to leave Virginia Tech for greener pastures, but he never did. By making the wise decision to stay with his alma mater, he ensured that he will always be a Hokie legend.

Chris Petersen, Boise State Broncos

It seemed like Dan Hawkins was making a perfectly good decision when he bolted from the Boise State Broncos to take the head coaching job with the Colorado Buffaloes.

Well, Hawkins has since been fired from Colorado, and the man who replaced him in Boise really helped take that program to the next level.

Chris Petersen's ability to coach in big games is unquestionable.

Starting with the epic 2007 Fiesta Bowl, when he took down the Oklahoma Sooners with well-timed hook and lateral and statue of liberty plays, he has since coached the Broncos to victories in a number of big games.

Boise State defeated top-15 ranked Oregon Ducks teams in consecutive seasons in 2008 and 2009, then beat a top-10 Virginia Tech Hokies team in the 2010 opener. They debuted this season with yet another impressive victory, this time over the SEC East champion Georgia Bulldogs.

Whether you like or dislike Petersen and/or Boise State, you can't deny that his team is always prepared for and plays best in these marquee matchups.

He's unarguably one of the smartest and best coaches in big-game situations.