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SEC Football: Power ranking the head coaches ahead of 2022 season

By Connor Muldowney

INDIANAPOLIS, INDIANA - JANUARY 10: Head coach Kirby Smart of the Georgia Bulldogs holds up the National Championship trophy after the Georgia Bulldogs defeated the Alabama Crimson Tide 33-18 in the 2022 CFP National Championship Game at Lucas Oil Stadium on January 10, 2022 in Indianapolis, Indiana. (Photo by Kevin C. Cox/Getty Images)
INDIANAPOLIS, INDIANA - JANUARY 10: Head coach Kirby Smart of the Georgia Bulldogs holds up the National Championship trophy after the Georgia Bulldogs defeated the Alabama Crimson Tide 33-18 in the 2022 CFP National Championship Game at Lucas Oil Stadium on January 10, 2022 in Indianapolis, Indiana. (Photo by Kevin C. Cox/Getty Images) /
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Chuck Cook-USA TODAY Sports
Chuck Cook-USA TODAY Sports /

Mark Stoops is consistently on “most underrated” lists, and deservedly so. Heck, some might argue that I’m underrating him by listing him as the sixth-best coach in a loaded conference, but I think this is just about right.

Kentucky isn’t the easiest football program to win at and he’s done a great job, going 59-53 over nine seasons. He is also coming off his second 10-win season with the Wildcats. Can he build on that or will Kentucky take a slight step back like the last time he won 10 games?

If you’re not a fan of Lane Kiffin, chances are you root for Mississippi State. Kiffin is one of the most colorful characters in college football and he’s also one of the best coaches.

Through two seasons with the Rebels, he’s 15-8, including a 10-win season a year ago which doesn’t come around often at Ole Miss. The former Nick Saban disciple is building this program as the self-proclaimed “Portal King” and if he can continue to add elite talent that way, I don’t see how he doesn’t win an SEC title soon.

Jimbo Fisher gets stuck earning respect for his days at Florida State when he won a national title, but he has yet to win 10 games in a single season since joining Texas A&M which is hardly worth a top-three spot in these rankings.

Sure, he’s a heck of a recruiting, landing the No. 1 class of all time for 2022, but he needs to translate that into double-digit win seasons and title contention soon.

Fisher did just beat Saban and Alabama for the first time last season and his now-hated rival and former mentor will be the true test once again.

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