Big Ten Football: The 25 Greatest Coaches in Conference History

The Big Ten Conference is one of the most historic conferences in the nation, and has had the opportunity to have among it's ranks some great coaches over the years.

After some research, I have compiled a list of coaches whom I believe are the greatest coaches in Big Ten football history.

So here we go.

No. 25 Joe Tiller

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ORLANDO, FL - DECEMBER 29: Head coach Joe Tiller of the Purdue Boilermakers looks on during the game against the Maryland Terrapins in the Champs Sports Bowl at Florida Citrus Bowl on December 29, 2006 in Orlando, Florida. Maryland won 24-7. (Photo by Do

From 1997-2008 Joe Tiller served as the head coach of the Purdue Boilermakers.  Tiller revolutionized the Big Ten with his spread offense, and produced some great quarterbacks, such as Drew Brees and Kyle Orton.

Tiller had an all time record of 87-62 with the Boilermakers and really brought them from the dumps, for a while.

No.24 Bret Bielema

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PASADENA, CA - JANUARY 01: Head coach Bret Bielema of the Wisconsin Badgers stands on the sidelines against the TCU Horned Frogs during the 97th Rose Bowl game on January 1, 2011 in Pasadena, California. (Photo by Jeff Gross/Getty Images)

Although his legacy is yet to be fully determined, Bret Bielema is a young star who has the opportunity to become even greater than he already is.

In his young career with the Badgers he has led the team to a record of 46-16 and will continue to thrive in Madison. 

No. 23 Kirk Ferentz

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TEMPE, AZ - DECEMBER 28: Head coach Kirk Ferentz of the Iowa Hawkeyes during the Insight Bowl against the Missouri Tigers at Sun Devil Stadium on December 28, 2010 in Tempe, Arizona. The Hawkeyes defeated the Tigers 27-24. (Photo by Christian Petersen/

The current coach of the Hawkeyes, Kirk Ferentz career is far from over in the big ten.  Throughout his tenure at Iowa he has had a record of 89-60 including two conference titles.

Expect big things from Ferentz, and hopefully no wrong doing is found in this recent player hospitalization. 

No. 22 Jack Mollenkopf

Jack Mollenkopf was the head coach for the Purdue Boilermakers from 1956-1969.  During his time with the Boilermakers he proved to be a very successful coach.

He composed a record of 84-39-9 and gave Purdue it's only Rose Bowl victory.  Mollenkopf will remain a legend at the University, and the athletic center is named after him.

No. 21 Fritz Crisler

Crisler was the head coach for the Michigan Wolverines from 1938-1947.  Under his watch, the University of Michigan was 71-16 and won a national title.  

Crisler was a very successful coach compiling a winning percentage of 80 percent and giving the school yet another national title. 

No. 20 Phillip King

Phillip King was a coach for the Wisconsin Badgers that did not have as many wins as many on this list, but had very few victories.  He coached Wisconsin from 1896-1902 and had a record of 58-9-1 that including three Big Ten titles.  

King is not recognized often, and should be mentioned among the greats.

No. 19 John Cooper

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9 Sep 2000: Coach John Cooper of the Ohio State Buckeyes watches the action during the game against the Arizona Wildcats at the Arizona Stadium in Tucson, Arizona. The Buckeyes defeated the Wildcats 27-17.Mandatory Credit: Harry How /Allsport

John Cooper was the head coach of the Ohio State Buckeyes from 1988-2000.  In his time with the Buckeyes, he had a record of 111-43-4.  

Cooper didn't win a national title, but won three Big Ten titles in his time with the Bucks.  It's unfortunate, that his legacy in Ohio will always be that he couldn't beat Michigan, only beating them twice.

No. 18 Forest Evashevski

Forest Evashevski is a Hawkeye great that had a record of 52-27-4 and led his team to three Big Ten titles and one national title.

Evashevski was a great coach and left before his time was up in Iowa.  It was too bad, he could have been great.

No. 17 Hayden Fry

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12 Sep 1992: Coach Hayden Fry of the Iowa Hawkeyes looks on during a game against the Iowa State Cyclones. The Iowa Hawkeyes won the game 21-7.

The head coach of the Iowa Hawkeyes from 1979-1998 was coach Hayden Fry.  Fry was a successful coach with the Buckeyes compiling an overall record of 143-89-6 while with the Hawks.

Fry led the team to three conference titles, but failed to win any of his Rose Bowl appearances.

No. 16 Lloyd Carr

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ORLANDO, FL - JANUARY 01: Head coach Lloyd Carr of the Michigan Wolverines is carried off the field after ending his coaching career with a victory over the Florida Gators in the Capital One Bowl at Florida Citrus Bowl on January 1, 2008 in Orlando, Flor

Lloyd Carr led the Michigan Wolverines from 1995-2007.  In his time with Michigan Carr was able to lead the program to a record of 122-40.

Carr was a greatly liked coach, and even brought the Wolverines back to national prevalence with a national championship

No. 15 Earle Bruce

While with the Buckeyes from 1979-1987, Earl Bruce compiled a record of 81-26.

With his time with the Bucks Bruce won 4 conference titles and had a winning record against Michigan at 5-4, something Buckeye faithful care a lot about. 

No. 14 John Wilce

John Wilce was the coach from Ohio State from 1913-1928.  Wilce had a very successful career as a Buckeye leading them to three conference titles and an all time record of 78-33-9.

Wilce was an old time coach, and is a great one.  He is a legend that deserves some credit.

No. 13 Henry Williams

Henry Williams served as the Minnesota head coach from 1900-1921.  Throughout his time with the program, he led the Golden Gophers to a record of 136-33-11.  

Although he never won a national title he did win eight Big Ten Title.  He is by far one of  the Gophers greatest coaches.

No. 12 Charlie Bachman

Although he did not coach in the Big Ten, technically, he still coached for Michigan State.  Through his years at MSU Bachman compiled a record of 70-34-10.

He was a great coach and will always be remembered.

No. 11 Clarence Munn

Clarence Munn was the head coach for the Michigan State Spartans from 1947-1953.  In his tenure as head coach, he led the Spartans to a record of 71-16-3.

Along with winning a Big Ten Title, he was able to secure 2 National Titles while with the team.  Munn is an MSU legend.

No. 10 Barry Alvarez

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ORLANDO, FL - JANUARY 2: Head coach Barry Alvarez of the Wisconsin Badgers gets the gatorade dousing on the sidelines during the Capital One Bowl against the Auburn Tigers at the Florida Citrus Bowl on January 2, 2006 in Orlando, Florida. (Photo by Doug

Barry Alvarez was the coach of the Wisconsin Badgers from 1990-2005.  With his time with the Badgers, Alvarez compiled a record of 118-73-4 while leading the Badgers to 11 bowl games including eight victories.

Alvarez was a great coach who had some great players in his time, such as Ron Dayne.  He still remains with the university as the Athletic Director.

No. 9 Jim Tressel

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NEW ORLEANS, LA - JANUARY 04: Head coach Jim Tressel of the Ohio State Buckeyes looks on against the Arkansas Razorbacks during the Allstate Sugar Bowl at the Louisiana Superdome on January 4, 2011 in New Orleans, Louisiana. (Photo by Matthew Stockman/G

Tressel has been the coach of the Ohio State Buckeyes since 2001.  Through his time with the Buckeyes he has compiled a record of 106-22.

He has had many accolades as a coach, and has been successful in bowl games.  He has led the Buckeyes to seven Big Ten Titles and a national title.  Tressel is one of the greatest Big Ten coaches of all time, and will continue building his legacy.

No. 8 Bo Schembechler

Schembechler coached the Michigan Wolverines from 1969-1989.  In that time period, he led the team to a record of 194-48-5, and to 13 Big Ten Titles.  

Only once did Michigan finish outside of the top 25 when he was there and his only downfall is that he did not win a National Title.

No. 7 Woody Hayes

Hayes was the Ohio State Buckeyes head coach from 1951-1978.  With the Buckeyes he had a record of 205-61-10 and won 13 Big Ten titles and 5 National Titles.

Hayes was a great coach and is arguable the best in Buckeye history, but there is a guy in a sweater vest who is looking to change that. 

No. 6 Bernie Bierman

Bernie Bierman was the head coach of the Minnesota Golden Gophers 1932-1941, 1945-1950.  Bernie had a terrific run as a coach compiling a record of 93-35-6.

Through his time he won six conference titles, and five national championships.  Bierman was a great coach, and is virtually unknown. 

No. 5 Robert Zuppke

Zuppke was the head coach of the Illinois Fighting Illini from 1913-1941. He has proven himself the best coach in Illini history and rightfully deserves that title. 

He had an all time record with the Illini of 131-81-12 and won four national titles.

No. 4 Duffy Daugherty

Duffy had a record of 109-65-9 in his time at Michigan State University. He was there from 1954-1972 and was the most successful coach in MSU history.

He led the Spartans to four national titles and really brought the program back to dominance in the state that was once dominated by Wolverines.

No. 3 Fielding H. Yost

Yost was the head-coach for the Michigan Wolverines from 1901-1923 and then from 1925-1926. He had a record of 165-25-10 and won six national titles.

He was a very successful coach in the early years and allowed the Wolverines to be the successful program they are today by building a great foundation.

No. 2 Amos Stagg

Amos Stagg was one of the best football coaches to ever coach the game.  He was a true Pioneer and had a great record. 

Stagg coached for the University of Chicago, which was in the Big Ten conference for a while. With Chicago, Stagg had a record of 224-112-27.

He led his teams to seven conference championships and two national titles.  He is a true legend. 

No.1 Joe Paterno

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TAMPA, FL - JANUARY 1: Coach Joe Paterno of the Penn State Nittany Lions directs play against the Florida Gators January 1, 2011 in the 25th Outback Bowl at Raymond James Stadium in Tampa, Florida. (Photo by Al Messerschmidt/Getty Images)

Joe Paterno is the greatest coach in the history of college football.  The man has been coaching for so long, many believe he coached Jesus.  

Paterno has led his Nittany Lions to 401-135-3 record in his time at Penn State and has won three conference titles.  Paterno is an icon, and deserves to be treated as one.