Top 10 College Football Coaches Who Could Succeed in the NFL

Dec 30, 2014; Nashville, TN, USA; Notre Dame Fighting Irish head coach Brian Kelly prior to the game against the LSU Tigers in the Music City Bowl at LP Field. Mandatory Credit: Christopher Hanewinckel-USA TODAY Sports

Coaches going from college to the NFL rarely have success, but some do make it. Here are the Top 10 college football coaches who would succeed in the NFL.

You have probably heard the perception 1,000 times by now. College football coaches rarely make it as NFL head coaches.

But here’s the part they don’t tell you: coaches in general rarely make it as NFL head coaches. It is not like college coaches are fired more often than other coaches. It is rare for coaches not to be fired in the NFL.

There are certain coaches from college, though, who would be much more likely to succeed at the NFL level. Who are they?

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The overwhelming factor in NFL success is the type of talent you have around you. It’s a players’ game much more than the college game. But being an X’s and O’s guru is also important.

The type of system you run is important as well. Obviously, more pro-style focused coaches are more likely to succeed at the next level. Paul Johnson clearly will not make it running the triple-option.

As we bring you the list of coaches most likely to succeed in the NFL, we are factoring in coaches who coached last year. That obviously eliminates Jim Harbaugh, who would clearly be the most likely to succeed at the NFL level given that he has proven it.

But we are not eliminating coaches who might have failed at the NFL level before. Perhaps they were in the wrong situation and have since thrived in college.

So knowing that so many exterior factors are in play, here are the Top 10 college football coaches ranked based on how they would succeed at the NFL level.

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