Top 10 College Sports Coaches Ever: Where does Mike Krzyzewski Stand?

Nov 16, 2013; University Park, PA, USA; A sign hangs inside of Beaver Stadium in honor of former head coach Joe Paterno prior to the game between the Purdue Boilermakers and the Penn State Nittany Lions. Penn State defeated Purdue 45-21. Mandatory Credit: Rich Barnes-USA TODAY Sports

Honorable Mentions

Joe Paterno

Obviously Joe Paterno has the strongest case of any of these guys to be on this list with his 409-136-3 record and 2 national championships at Penn State, but there are a few things we have to take into account. The most important fact, and yes, it’s a fact, is that Paterno didn’t even coach the team the last 15 years there. He sat on his behind and let his assistants do all the work, losing so much control of the program that Outside the Lines did a report on player arrests and things of that nature at Penn State in 2008.

This is all even before the Sandusky scandal broke. So knowing that Paterno had NOTHING to do with Penn State’s wins or getting their recruits the final 15 years of his career, his record for 409 wins is a bit of a joke.

Bobby Knight

In terms of wins, Bobby Knight is another person to have a strong case. He pulled off multiple national championships and an undefeated season at Indiana, and despite the controversy behind his dismissal, it’s hard to ignore him. It’s even harder when you consider that Coach K is his own protege.

But Knight didn’t keep up with the times. In the late 2000s at Texas Tech, the Red Raiders were never really relevant under him. As a result, there’s a 10-year stretch when he didn’t matter. That knocks him off the greatness list.

Adolph Rupp

Going 876-190 all at one school with five national championships would seem like enough to put Adolph Rupp on the list. That is an impressive stat.

But fighting integration and never winning another national championship as the sport got more integrated is a reason to be left off the list. Rupp coached another 14 years after his final national title in 1958 and never even reached another Final Four. Tubby Smith was pushed out of Kentucky in 2007 only nine years after his last Final Four. Simply put, Rupp never kept up, so he’s not on this list.

Robert Neyland

When it comes to putting southern college football on the map, Neyland was one of the early guys to do it ahead of Bryant. With five national championships at Tennessee and presiding over the last college football team to go undefeated, untied, and unscored upon in the regular season, Neyland has a strong case to be on the list.

But he didn’t do enough. Because of two stints in between coaching to serve his country, unfortunately, Neyland didn’t rack up enough stats overall to be in that Top 10, even if he’s one of the greatest. You can’t really point to a way he changed the game, and you can’t point to notable players or coaches that were successful after him outside of Bobby Dodd. His legacy just didn’t leave enough.

Anson Dorrance

In terms of dynasty, this North Carolina Women’s Soccer coach has done it better than anybody with 21 national championships in 31 years.

But it’s women’s soccer, and unlike Pat Summitt, Anson Dorrance has not yet done anything to make the sport relevant.

Eddie Robinson

Now here’s a guy who has probably the strongest case to be on the list. Eddie Robinson won 408 games at Grambling State University, and in his heyday, he was as great as any coach at the top level. Coaching for 57 years, Robinson won multiple I-AA championships and had an NFL pipeline as great as the top colleges in Division I.

The only reason Robinson is not on the list is because he stayed on too long and couldn’t keep up. Four losing seasons in the 1990s and back to back 3-8 seasons to end his career are black marks on his resume.

Tom Osborne

With more than 200 wins and three national championships, Tom Osborne’s stint at Nebraska is one that we will always remember. Perhaps even more impressive is that he did it often with unheralded walk-ons.

But Osborne’s coaching tree isn’t impressive, he’s not loaded with NFL players developed, and he didn’t take Nebraska anywhere it hadn’t already been. Taking all of those things into account, Osborne didn’t belong on the list.

Next: Coaches Who Could Eventually Make the List