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Frank Solich and the Five Most Underrated Coaches Since 2000

Ohio’s Frank Solich did not get much respect as deserved, who else falls in the same boat?

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Jan 3
Jan 3

By Mike Huesmann

In the wake of Nick Saban retiring, there is mostly universal consensus that he is the greatest college coach ever. We know since 2000 that Saban is the best, and most would say that Urban Meyer and Kirby Smart follow at two and three, though that order is up for debate, or will be soon. This led me down the thought of good coaches who never quite got recognized as they should have or had that acclaim disappear after a brief period.

To make this list, a coach had to spend a minimum of five years at a particular school in the time since 2000 and they have to be retired. We will see a mix of P4 and G5 Head Coaches and guys who had multiple head jobs versus a singular one. With that, here are the five most underrated coaches since 2000.

Frank Solich, Ohio

2005-2020, Record: 115-82

Solich was run out of Nebraska far too early. He was 58-19 there in six years and played for a national title. He was expected to keep things going after Osborne and Nebraska still hasn’t reached that level nearly 30 years later. Solich then went to Ohio and had one of the more impressive runs in recent memory. In 16 seasons with the Bobcats, he won 115 games, four MAC East titles, and went to 11 bowl games. His defenses were salty, disciplined, and got after it.

I will be curious in the coming years if the Bobcats can keep it going with him gone. Frank didn’t get as much publicity at Ohio but his long-term success was impressive. He is the all-time winningest MAC coach.

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Mark Mangino, Kansas

2002-2009, Record: 50-48

The overall record deceives how good Mangino was at KU. His predecessor, Terry Allen, never had a winning season in five tries. Mangino came in, went 2-10 in year one, then was steadily upwards after that. Culminating in a phenomenal 12-1 season in 2007 that included an Orange Bowl win over Virginia Tech. Take away that first season and 48-38 looks quite good considering in the previous five seasons the Jayhawks went 21-35 and in the 11 following years, 2010 to 2021 they went an abysmal 23-118. In the end, a vengeful Lew Perkins got his way and ousted Mangino, Jayhawk fans never forgave him for it.

Joe Tiller, Purdue

1997-2008, Record: 87-62

The late Joe Tiller roamed the sidelines at Purdue for 12 seasons and only had two losing records. No Purdue coach since has been that consistent, not even Jeff Brohm. Tiller brought the Boilers to their last Rose Bowl appearance, with Drew Brees taking the snaps. This was one of 10 bowl appearances in his time there. Prior to Tiller’s arrival in 1997, Purdue hadn’t won six games since 1984 and had two winning seasons in 15, with one of those winning seasons was a bizarre 5-4-2 record before overtime was implemented.

Since Tiller’s tenure, Purdue has had a string of failures with the exception of Brohm. Danny Hope would go 22-27, Darrell Hazell set a new low in futility with a 9-33 record, even Brohm would go 36-34 and not have a career-winning record until his final season there, lastly, Ryan Walters went 4-8 in his maiden season. RIP Joe, the Boilermakers haven’t been the same without you. Please listen below to the great words and tribute Nick Saban gave to Tiller and playing against him while at Michigan State.

Chris Ault, Nevada

1976-2012 (3 separate stints), Record: 234-108-1 (95-56 in FBS)

Search The University of Nevada in the dictionary and Chris Ault’s picture probably shows up. From 1976 to 2012, Ault coached three separate stints for the Wolfpack which covered all but nine seasons in that span. Nevada was an FCS power (1-AA at the time) under him before making the jump up to FBS as a member of the WAC, later joining the MWC where they reside today.

Since Ault left, only Jay Norvell has been decent, with Brian Polian and Kevin Wilson not succeeding. I have been vocal in my support for new coach Jeff Choate but time will tell.

Ault also made a lasting impact on the game by virtue of his inventing an entirely new offensive concept and formation. When Ault invented the pistol concept, he probably didn’t know it would last so long, be meshed with shotgun and traditional ideas, and be something that was used so frequently. Very few men can claim that type of ownership over a formation or alignment in the game.

In short, tell your kids and young coaches to read about and study this guy. He was a legend in his own time. Today he is a member of the College Football Playoff Committee.

Paul Johnson, Georgia Southern, Navy, and Georgia Tech

1997-2018, Record: 189-100 (127-90 in FBS)

I waffled on this one and asked myself if Paul Johnson was underrated, in the end, I decided he was and gave him the last spot over Pat Hill of Fresno State. We may never see a coach do what Johnson did again. Run the triple option successfully at multiple schools in the FBS. New cut blocking rules, in the name of safety, make it untenable to run the offense, which is the under the radar reason its proponents wanted it enacted.

Johnson was elite at Georgia Southern, FCS at the time, before going to the Naval Academy for six successful seasons, finally ending up at Georgia Tech where he won 82 games in 11 years. No one since has come close to being competitive for the Jackets. Geoff Collins was awful and the jury is still out in Brent Key. It is not an easy place to win with all the competition for recruits nearby, being in the heart of SEC land, and having difficult academic standards. Johnson knew he had to win by being different and I’m surprised more coaches don’t utilize their own version of that concept. 

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