By Patrick Weider
1) Ryan Day, Ohio State
After losing to Michigan on November 30th, I am sure no one would have ranked him the best coach in the Big Ten, but after winning four games in the CFB Playoffs and winning the National Championship he gets the top spot. It is hard to argue with his results outside the Michigan game because he is 70-10 in six years as Head Coach of the Buckeyes. Now 1-4 against Michigan is unacceptable for Ohio State fans, but winning a National Championship should give him some leeway.
https://twitter.com/tSilverBulletin/status/1887602914887135361
2) Dan Lanning, Oregon
Dan Lanning is 35-6 in three years as Head Coach of Oregon. Coming off a 13-0 season and winning the Big Ten Oregon showed they belonged in the Big Ten in their first year. Now losing to Ohio State in the Rose Bowl was disappointing, but Lanning has shown he can build an elite program and his Ducks will be back next year.
https://twitter.com/Rivals/status/1887301507076575653
3) James Franklin, Penn State
James Franklin has largely led Penn State to a good, but not great program under his guidance. In 11 years of being Penn State’s Head Coach, he has six seasons of 10 or more wins. Last year, they went 13-3 and won two College Football Playoff games, before eventually losing to Notre Dame in the Orange Bowl. Franklin brings back a good team and they could be ranked as a top two or three team next season.
4) Bret Bielema, Illinois
Bret Bielema has done a nice job at Illinois after he struggled previously in Arkansas. Before that, he did a nice job in Wisconsin. Last year he went 10-3, including beating South Carolina in the bowl game. Bielema is also bringing back a talented group and they could compete for a Big Ten Title next year and has Illinois in the best place they’ve been in a long time.
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https://twitter.com/GourdieReport/status/1887573539139842310
5) Curt Cignetti, Indiana
Curt Cignetti went into Indiana and turned everything around in year one, leading Indiana to the College Football Playoffs. Cignetti has turned around every program he has been at previously, and is one of the top program-builders in the country. He should be able to maintain a solid program overall, it just might be hard to win 11 games again next season.
https://twitter.com/B1Gfootball/status/1887258256520724684
6) Kirk Ferentz, Iowa
Kirk Ferentz is the senior head coach in the Big Ten, and he has been head coach of Iowa since 1999. Last year he went 8-5, but the previous season he won 10 games. Ferentz’s record is 204-124 and Iowa hasn’t had a losing season since 2012. He’s a good coach and always seems to get the most out of his team.
7) Matt Rhule, Nebraska
Matt Rhule has long been considered one of the better coaches in College Football. He has been successful at Temple and Baylor, rebuilding their programs in just three years each. Last year Nebraska went 7-6 and won their 1st bowl game since 2015. Nebraska is a team on the rise in the Big Ten.
https://twitter.com/blvckshirts/status/1886233490175221934
8) Lincoln Riley, USC
Lincoln Riley has struggled at USC. Riley has regressed from 11 to eight and then seven wins last year at USC. He has found no consistency at USC as he enters his 4th season at USC. He needs to find a way to get back to nine or 10 wins or he might be out of a job next season.
https://twitter.com/SSchraderOn3/status/1888329337084289519
9) PJ Fleck, Minnesota
PJ Fleck has done a good job building an identity of a tough and physical program. Last year, Minnesota went 8-5, an improvement after a 2023 season with six wins. Fleck is 58-39 and has Minnesota as a consistent program year in and year out.
10) Greg Schiano, Rutgers
Greg Schiano has led Rutgers from a Big Ten doormat with year-over-year growth, reaching seven wins in back-to-back seasons. He has built a consistent program, even though he has not gotten over the top and won many big games yet.
11) Sherrone Moore, Michigan
Sherrone Moore is hard to judge so far because he was put in a terrible position last year. He was promoted to Head Coach after Jim Harbaugh left to go to the NFL but lost most of his staff and most of the team who won the National Championship game the previous year. Moore went 8-5 last year but ended the season by upsetting Ohio State and Alabama in a bowl game. If he gets Michigan to 10 wins next year, then Moore will quickly climb up this list.
12) Luke Fickell, Wisconsin
A couple of years ago I would have had Luke Fickell much higher after his impressive run coaching at Cincinnati, but at Wisconsin, he has not able to sustain the success. Fickell dropped from seven wins in year one to five last year. The other issue is the move to the spread offense was an abject failure as Fickell fired offensive coordinator Phil Longo. This is a big year for Fickell to prove he can get Wisconsin back to 8–9-win territory.
13) Jedd Fisch, Washington
Jedd Fisch did a good job turning around Arizona. He went from one win to five, and finally to 10 wins his last year before jumping to Washington. Fisch’s situation is similar to Moore’s because Washington was rebuilding after losing everyone from the National Championship team the year before. In year one at Washington, he won six games. It will not surprise me if they jump up to nine or 10 wins next year, then Fisch would rise on this list.
https://twitter.com/UWHuskiesWire/status/1888558514257158148
14) Mike Locksley Maryland
Mike Locksley has done a good job at Maryland because Maryland is not an easy job to win at. He has gone 33-41 at Maryland, but he had back-to-back 8-win seasons the previous two seasons until they dropped back to 4-8 last year. This year is a big year for Locksley as he needs to win six games and make a bowl and keep a strong 2025 recruiting class in College Park.
15) Jonathan Smith Michigan State
I’m not sure what to think and where to put Jonathan Smith. I have always enjoyed watching his teams in Oregon State as he built a good, physical program there. In year one at Michigan State, they went 5-7. I think they will be better next year, but how much better is the question? With a good year he would climb up the list.
https://twitter.com/SWiltfong_/status/1888027760402022849
16) Barry Odom, Purdue
Barry Odom was solid at Missouri finishing his career as 25-25. After spending a few years as Arkansas’s Defensive Coordinator, he went to UNLV as Head Coach and helped turn the program around by winning nine and 10 wins. Now he gets another chance to turn around another bad program in Purdue. Year one they could struggle as Odom is trying to turn around the program.
17) David Braun, Northwestern
David Braun got the job after Pat Fitzgerald was fired after a scandal involving players when he was promoted from his defensive coordinator position. He went 8-5 in the 1st year and then last season they fell back to 4-8. Braun and Northwestern might struggle in the Big Ten with several good teams joining the league and the struggles of recruiting athletes to Northwestern.
18) DeShaun Foster, UCLA
DeShaun Foster went 5-7 in his 1st year as head coach. UCLA might struggle going forward as they have not gained much traction in the Big Ten and Foster might have a hard time getting them beyond making a bowl game.
