College Football: 25 greatest head coaches of the 21st century

Best college football coaches of 21st century: 18. Mark Richt

• Georgia Bulldogs (2001-15)
• Miami Hurricanes (2016-18)

Another coach who has built two programs, Mark Richt did a lot for both Georgia and Miami. In 15 seasons at Georgia, Richt and the team made a bowl game every time. They were often ranked in the top 10 in the country. His bowl record was decent, but it could have been better. On the bright side, he went 2-1 in Sugar Bowls.

Georgia’s best season under Richt ended being ranked second in the AP Poll with a Sugar Bowl victory in 2007. However, they were still not the best team in the SEC, as LSU won the BCS championship.

Richt’s harshest criticism was the he could never get his team over the hump. For teams that were so competitive and talented, they never won a championship. His teams were always good, but they were rarely great, and they were never elite.

It might be a bad sign that Kirby Smart got the Bulldogs to a championship game so early in his career when Richt could never do it, but Smart did inherit a great program. Richt had to rebuild UGA and Smart just had to reload.

Richt inevitably went home to Miami for three seasons. He certainly turned the program around quickly, but the same criticisms remained. Miami had a chance to make it to the College Football Playoff in 2017, but the Hurricanes lost their three final games of the season.

Richt retired after the 2018 NCAA season with a 171-64 record, a 10-7 record in bowl games and 10 or more wins in 10 of his 18 seasons as head coach. He could never get his team over the hump, but his teams were almost always relevant.