Picking college football’s best head coaching jobs by conference

Mario Cristobal, Oregon football (Photo by Alika Jenner/Getty Images)
Mario Cristobal, Oregon football (Photo by Alika Jenner/Getty Images) /
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Oregon is clearly the class of the Pac-12. (Photo by Thearon W. Henderson/Getty Images)
Oregon is clearly the class of the Pac-12. (Photo by Thearon W. Henderson/Getty Images) /

Pac-12: Oregon

Could the best coaching gig in the Pac-12 belong to an upstart, ascendant program like Utah? Or could it belong to a perennial powerhouse like USC? What about a well-endowed and successful program like Washington?

It’s hard to turn away from the Nike-led resources and winning ways of Eugene, Oregon in this discussion. Have you seen the locker rooms at Autzen Stadium? The Pac-12 is down now compared to years past, but no league program makes a splash on the national stage like the Ducks.

With an assistant coaching budget of nearly $5 million and as a beacon of West Coast recruiting, Oregon is the Pac-12’s best destination for head coaches. There’s a reason that a coach like Mario Cristobal would jump from Nick Saban’s staff at Alabama to come be Oregon’s co-offensive coordinator. Even Willie Taggart even turned in one lackluster 7-5 year into a job at Florida State. Fans expect a lot at Oregon, but the head coach has many tools at his disposal to deliver.