College Football: Ranking 10 best head coaches from past 5 seasons

3. Lincoln Riley (Oklahoma)

In 2017, Lincoln Riley and Oklahoma showed the country that they were a top-five team in all of college football. After easily winning their home opener, not only did the Sooners go into Columbus and defeat No. 2 Ohio State, they beat the Buckeyes by more than two touchdowns.

Oklahoma would win all of their first four games scoring 31 points or more in each of those games. However, Riley and his team dealt with adversity losing to Iowa State at home by a score of 38-31. Oklahoma would bounce back in a big way in the following weeks.

After a close win over Texas in the Red River Showdown, Riley and his team put up 42 or more points in the next two games to give them three straight victories. The Sooners would be tested again as they face No. 11 Oklahoma State and No. 8 ranked TCU in consecutive weeks. Against the Cowboys on the road, it was a back-and-forth high-scoring affair. The Sooners would prevail with a 62-52 victory over Oklahoma State.

In the following week, Oklahoma would face top-10 ranked TCU in a battle to determine who would win the Big 12. Even though it was the Sooners’ lowest-scoring output in their final four games, Riley led his team to a convincing 38-20 victory. Oklahoma was on its way to having a great season.

Oklahoma’s offense would keep roaring as they scored 41 and 59 points in wins against Kansas and West Virginia, respectively. In the Big 12 Championship Game, the No. 2 Sooners faced No. 10 TCU again. In that game, the Sooners dominated the Horned Frogs, defeating them by a score of 41-17 to not only become the Big 12 champions but to earn a spot in the College Football Playoff.

The Sooners would play the Bulldogs of Georgia in the Rose Bowl of their semifinal game. In yet again another back-and-forth high-scoring affair that lasted two overtimes, the Sooners played the first Rose Bowl in history that went into extra frames. A field goal that was blocked by Georgia and unfortunately denied Oklahoma the opportunity to play for the national title.

Riley had an amazing first season as the head coach of Oklahoma. He not only won 12 games, but he also led his team to a Big 12 title and a playoff appearance. The Sooners ended the season ranked No. 3 and they defeated four top-10 teams.

The 2018 season was similar in many ways to the previous year but also a little different. The Sooners played well early on winning their first five games but none of those victories were against ranked opponents. Oklahoma struggled in some games as well as needing overtime to defeat Army at home. In their first game against a ranked opponent in No. 19 Texas, both teams combined for just shy of 100 points and the Longhorns ended up winning by a field goal.

Oklahoma needed to win out if they wanted another Big 12 championship and they responded.

Oklahoma put up 51 or more points in five of their next six games that all resulted in victories. None of the six wins were against ranked opponents with the exception of their last regular season game when they traveled to play No. 12 West Virginia and in a game that combined for 115 points, Oklahoma won 59-56. The Sooners would play the Longhorns with a chance at redeeming an earlier loss to Texas.

In the Big 12 title game, Riley had his team prepared to take on the Longhorns. Unlike the last time these two teams met, Oklahoma’s defense stepped up and held the Texas offense to 29 points. The Sooners offense put up 39 points on the Longhorns to give Riley his second consecutive Big 12 title. The win over No. 9 Texas once again put Oklahoma in the playoff.

In the Orange Bowl between Alabama and Oklahoma, the Crimson Tide dominated early jumping out to 28-0 lead. Riley and his team fought back to make the game respectable but the Sooners — for the second straight year — fell short of the title game. Oklahoma finished the season ranked No. 4 and once again won 12 games and captured the Big 12 title.

The 2019 season was supposed to be the year that Riley would rise up and win the national championship. He had his best start to a season as his team jumped out to a 7-0 record that included a win over No. 11 Texas. Then, on the road against Kansas State, Oklahoma tried to dig itself out of an early deficit but was unable to avoid the surprising upset as the Wildcats pulled off the upset. That loss didn’t necessarily stall the momentum that Riley and his team were experiencing, but it put doubt in their ability to compete for a national title.

Oklahoma would win its next four games including two wins both on the road over No. 13 Baylor and No. 21 Oklahoma State to put them in the Big 12 championship once again.

The Sooners faced Baylor again as, like last time they met which the game was decided by a field goal, the conference championship game went into overtime. Riley would lead his team to victory again. The Sooners would face LSU in the Peach Bowl as a playoff semifinal.

Unlike before, Riley and his team were not competitive in their playoff game. LSU dominated early and ran away with the game with a 63-28 victory. The season was not a failure but just like the previous two seasons as Oklahoma won 12 games, won the Big 12 championship, but failed to make it to the national title game.

Riley just completed his third year as the head coach of the Sooners. To sum up his accomplishments in the short period of time as the head coach of the Oklahoma, he has won the Big 12 three times, won at least 12 games every season and has taken the Sooners to the College Football Playoff in three straight years.

He has a very bright future and he could possibly be up there with Nick Saban and Dabo Swinney when it’s all said and done.

Point breakdown for Riley

• 0 National Championships: 0 points
• 3 College Football Playoff appearances: 120 points
• 3 regular-season conference titles: 90 points
• 3 division titles*: 60 points (Big 12 doesn’t have divisions but because Oklahoma won their conference championship game, they also get division reward points as well)
• 0 bowl wins: 0 points
• 3 bowl appearances: 15 points
• 3 seasons with 10 or more wins: 15 points

Total coaching points: 300

Coaching highlights over the past five seasons

• Led the Sooners to three consecutive playoff appearances
• 3 Big 12 titles (2017-2019)
• 3 straight 12-win seasons