Where Do National Championship Coaches Come From?

Looking at data from 1980, we find that from 1980 through 1986 all the coaches that won national titles had no previous head coaching experience. Some of those names are the biggest names in college football history, including Joe Paterno, Barry Switzer, LaVell Edwards, and Vince Dooley. In 1987, Jimmy Johnson started a trend reversal when he became the first coach with prior head coaching experience to win a national title since 1979 when Bear Bryant won his sixth and final championship at Alabama.

Larry Coker did not have previous head coaching experience.

Since 1987, 21 different coaches have won national titles, and of those coaches, 15 have had previous head coaching experience. From 1997 to 2001, five of the six coaches who won national titles did not have previous head coaching experience prior to being appointed head coach of their team. These coaches are Tom Osborne, Lloyd Carr, Phillip Fulmer, Bob Stoops, and Larry Coker. The lone exception was Bobby Bowden in 1999. All coaches to win a national title since 2002 have had previous head coaching experience, and only five coaches without previous head coaching experience have appeared in the BCS National Championship Game, including Bob Stoops, Phillip Fulmer, Larry Coker, Frank Solich, and Chip Kelly. Larry Coker was the last coach to win a national title without having previous head coaching experience in 2001. 


Though previous head coaching experience is preferable, especially in a day and age where coaches are highly unlikely to stay at a school for more than ten years, it is possible to find a highly qualified assistant that will create success at a program such as Stoops, Fulmer, Carr, and more recently, Oregon's Kelly.


A total of 27 coaches have won a national title since 1980. Of those 27, we found the coaching backgrounds of 25 of them.  Of those 25 coaches, 15 had offensive backgrounds and 10 had defensive backgrounds. 


1980 - Vince Dooley, no prior head coaching experience
1981 - Danny Ford, Clemson, no prior head coaching experience, offensive assistant
1982, 1986 - Joe Paterno, Penn State, no prior head coaching experience, offensive assistant
1983 - Howard Schnellenberger, Miami, Fla., no prior head coaching experience, offensive coordinator
1984 - LaVell Edwards, BYU, no prior head coaching experience, offensive coordinator
1985 - Barry Switzer, Oklahoma, no prior head coaching experience, offensive coordinator
1987 - Jimmy Johnson, Miami, Fla., prior head coaching experience, defensive coordinator
1988 - Lou Holtz, Notre Dame, prior head coaching experience
1989, 1991 - Dennis Erickson, Miami, Fla., prior head coaching experience, offensive coordinator
1990 - Bill McCartney, Colorado, no prior college head coaching experience, defensive coordinator
1990 - Bobby Ross, Georgia Tech, prior head coaching experience, defensive coordinator
1991 - Don James, Washington, prior head coaching experience, defensive coordinator
1992 - Gene Stallings, Alabama, prior head coaching experience, defensive coordinator
1993, 1999 - Bobby Bowden, Florida St., prior head coaching experience, offensive coordinator
1994, 1995, 1997 - Tom Osborne, Nebraska, no prior head coaching experience, offensive coordinator
1996 - Steve Spurrier, Florida, prior head coaching experience, offensive coordinator
1997 - Lloyd Carr, Michigan, no prior head coaching experience, defensive coordinator
1998 - Phillip Fulmer, Tennessee, no prior head coaching experience, offensive coordinator
2000 - Bob Stoops, Oklahoma, no prior head coaching experience, defensive coordinator
2001 - Larry Coker, Miami, Fla., no prior head coaching experience, offensive coordinator
2002 - Jim Tressel, Ohio St., prior head coaching experience, offensive coordinator
2003, 2009 - Nick Saban, LSU, prior head coaching experience, defensive coordinator
2003, 2004 - Pete Carroll, USC, prior head coaching experience, defensive coordinator
2005 - Mack Brown, Texas, prior head coaching experience, offensive coordinator
2006, 2008 - Urban Meyer, Florida, prior head coaching experience, offensive coordinator
2007 - Les Miles, LSU, prior head coaching experience, offensive coordinator
2010 - Gene Chizik, Auburn, prior head coaching experience, defensive coordinator