Ranking the Best College Football Coaches Under 40 Years Old
Coaching is often an old man's game, but young whippersnappers occasionally make a significant impact on college football.
In 2017, 34-year-old Lincoln Riley oversaw an Oklahoma team that reached the College Football Playoff. And over the offseason, four sub-40 coaches accepted head-coaching positions.
Of the 16 coaches currently 39 or younger, only nine have been at their programs for more than one season. Excluding Riley, the six least experienced coaches are highlighted in a separate category. You'll find them on the next slide.
This ranking is subjective, because the context of every job is different. Coaching record was considered, but it's rare to inherit a thriving program. Performance on the recruiting trail—with leniency for any class following a December or January arrival—was also a factor.
Too Early to Rank
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Major Applewhite, Houston: Houston promoted Applewhite after Tom Herman left for Texas. The Cougars ended 7-5 with a pair of impressive wins against Arizona and South Florida, but they lost badly to Tulsa and fell short opposite Tulane.
Josh Huepel, UCF: His 40th birthday is approaching in March, but Huepel is readying for his debut as a head coach. He spent the last two years at Missouri, where he oversaw a pair of top-15 offenses.
Sean Lewis, Kent State: Upon his hiring in December, Lewis became the youngest head coach in the FBS at 31 years old. Beginning in 2012, he joined the staff of Dino Babers and followed him from Eastern Illinois to Bowling Green to Syracuse.
Billy Napier, Louisiana: Other than a stop at South Carolina State in 2005, Napier has held an FBS coaching position since 2003. He was the receivers coach at Alabama from 2013-2016 before a successful year as Arizona State's offensive coordinator in 2017.
Jonathan Smith, Oregon State: The offensive coordinator at Washington from 2014-2017, Smith helped turn the program into a national contender. An alum of Oregon State, this is Smith's first opportunity as a head coach.
Mike Sanford Jr., Western Kentucky: After excelling as an assistant at Notre Dame, Sanford headed to Western Kentucky and finished with a 6-7 record in his debut. The Hilltoppers lost several major contributors from the 2016 offense, so Sanford gets a temporary pass.
10. Scottie Montgomery, East Carolina
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Age: 39
As his 40th birthday approaches in May, Scottie Montgomery needs to start showing improvement. Through two seasons at East Carolina, his teams are a combined 6-18.
In two full recruiting cycles with Montgomery at the helm, the Pirates have finished sixth and ninth within the conference.
Should quarterback Gardner Minshew not return from a personal leave, ECU will need to break in a new starter during a season that could shape the tone of Montgomery's future.
9. Nick Rolovich, Hawaii
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Age: 38
An alum of the NFL, NFL Europe, Arena Football League and German Football League, Nick Rolovich had a fascinating playing career. His coaching days are off to an interesting start, too.
Rolovich guided the Warriors to a 7-7 record in his first season, but they dropped to 3-9 last year.
Hawaii has notched two straight top-five Mountain West recruiting classes, so there's promise of a surge in the near future. Additionally, the former quarterback—also the 2002 Hula Bowl MVP—has lifted the offense from the FBS cellar to a pair of top-80 marks.
But after a dreadful 2017 when the defense allowed the sixth-most yards per snap in the nation, improving the opposite side of the ball is Rolovich's primary task.
8. Seth Littrell, North Texas
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Age: 39
Seth Littrell called a majority of the plays for North Carolina, which flaunted the nation's most efficient offense in 2015. No offense averaged more than UNC's 7.28 yards per play.
During his first season at North Texas, the offense ranked 114th in that category. But last year, the Mean Green soared to 36th and propelled the school to its second nine-win regular season since 2003.
After having Conference USA's No. 11 recruiting class in 2017, North Texas hopped to No. 8 in the recent cycle. Better success on the trail is critical to improving a below-average defense.
For now, though, Littrell's offensive prowess buoys his ranking.
7. Jason Candle, Toledo
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Age: 38
Jason Candle has steadily worked his way up the ladder but only changed locations once. His coaching career began at Division III power Mount Union, and Candle left for Toledo in 2009 following six years at his alma mater.
Since then, he's been a slot receivers/tight ends, wide receivers, offensive coordinator and quarterback coach. After winning the 2015 Boca Raton Bowl as the interim coach, Candle accepted the full-time position and has recorded a 20-7 record in two seasons.
Toledo, which won the MAC in 2017, has stood atop the MAC recruiting rankings in both cycles under him.
Given the departure of quarterback Logan Woodside, defensive end Olasunkanmi Adeniyi and a couple key defenders, the 2018 campaign will be a test of Candle's player-development ability.
6. Mike Norvell, Memphis
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Age: 36
Following four successful years as Arizona State's offensive coordinator, Mike Norvell headed to Memphis as the replacement for now-Virginia Tech coach Justin Fuente.
Under Norvell's watch, the Tigers have finished 33rd (2016) and fourth (2017) nationally in yards per play. The 2017 squad posted a 10-3 record and ended the season ranked 25th in the AP poll.
Memphis signed the AAC's second-best recruiting haul last year before landing at seventh this cycle. Consistently attracting a top class in the AAC is the key to an ascent for Norvell.
5. Kliff Kingsbury, Texas Tech
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Age: 38
One of the best quarterbacks in Texas Tech history, Kliff Kingsbury returned to his alma mater in 2013. He'd previously called plays for Houston and Texas A&M—helping Johnny Manziel win the Heisman in 2012—and still does for the Red Raiders.
The man can coach offense. Kingsbury can be a great coordinator for a long time.
But there are legitimate questions about his ability to oversee an elite all-around program. Texas Tech wasn't a great defensive team prior to his arrival, but three of Kingsbury's five teams have bottom-30 finishes in yards per play allowed. Plus, the team is typically around sixth in Big 12 recruiting rankings and was dead last in 2018.
If a hugely experienced 2018 defense can't overcome major losses on offense, Kingsbury's seat may turn to scorching.
4. Lincoln Riley, Oklahoma
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Age: 34
Though he's only been in charge at Oklahoma for one year, Riley has shown he's a sensational offensive coach. During a five-year stretch with East Carolina, his quarterbacks threw 155 touchdowns and never posted a completion percentage below 63.1 percent.
And then Riley went to Norman, where he assumed control of a scoring attack led by Baker Mayfield. The Sooners have boasted a top-seven offense in all three seasons with Riley.
Oklahoma just signed a top-10 recruiting class nationally in Riley's first cycle as the head coach, so there's little reason to doubt his appeal.
3. P.J. Fleck, Minnesota
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Age: 37
Western Michigan finished 1-11 in P.J. Fleck's first season. Then it went 8-5. And 8-5 again. The Broncos capped a wonderful four-year transition with a 13-1 year in 2016, and that season earned Fleck an opportunity at Minnesota.
Despite the team falling from 9-4 in 2016 to 5-7 during his debut, Fleck accepted a difficult situation with the program. His recruiting prowess has already been on display by helping the program secure its first top-40 class since 2009.
If Fleck can build Minnesota like he did Western Michigan, he'll be a popular name in major searches about a half-decade from now.
2. Neal Brown, Troy
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Age: 37
From 2006-2009, Neal Brown was an assistant coach for Troy. After stops at Texas Tech and Kentucky, he returned to the Sun Belt school and turned Troy into a conference contender.
In the three years prior to his arrival, the Trojans had mustered a 14-22 record. Brown has flipped the results, guiding Troy to a 25-13 mark since 2015. The program set a new school record with 10 wins in 2016 and bested that with 11 last season.
Expect his name to surface in the 2018 coaching carousel.
1. Matt Campbell, Iowa State
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Age: 38
The only sub-40 guy with two head-coaching stops on his resume, Matt Campbell helped Toledo thrive over a four-year stretch and just guided Iowa State to its best season since 2000.
At Toledo, Campbell succeeded Tim Beckman—who led back-to-back eight-win teams—and tallied nine wins in two of his three full years. The Rockets finished first, second, fourth and second in the recruiting cycles that followed his campaigns.
Since taking over at Iowa State, he's signed a pair of classes ranked seventh in the Big 12. That doesn't sound especially impressive, but the previous regime rarely didn't finish with the conference's worst or second-worst haul.
Plus, the 2017 squad earned a pair of victories over top-five teams, went 8-5 and triumphed in the Liberty Bowl. Campbell leveraged that success into a raise, and that probably won't be the last one—whether it's at Iowa State or elsewhere.
All recruiting information via 247Sports. Stats from NCAA.com, cfbstats.com or B/R research. Quotes obtained firsthand unless otherwise noted. Follow Bleacher Report CFB Writer David Kenyon on Twitter @Kenyon19_BR.
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