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Power ranking Big 12 football head coaches ahead of 2022 season

By Connor Muldowney

Sep 18, 2021; Paradise, Nevada, USA; Iowa State Cyclones head coach Matt Campbell is pictured during a game against the UNLV Rebels at Allegiant Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Stephen R. Sylvanie-USA TODAY Sports
Sep 18, 2021; Paradise, Nevada, USA; Iowa State Cyclones head coach Matt Campbell is pictured during a game against the UNLV Rebels at Allegiant Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Stephen R. Sylvanie-USA TODAY Sports /
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Nov 20, 2021; Morgantown, West Virginia, USA; West Virginia Mountaineers head coach Neal Brown yells along the sidelines during the fourth quarter against the Texas Longhorns at Mountaineer Field at Milan Puskar Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Ben Queen-USA TODAY Sports
Nov 20, 2021; Morgantown, West Virginia, USA; West Virginia Mountaineers head coach Neal Brown yells along the sidelines during the fourth quarter against the Texas Longhorns at Mountaineer Field at Milan Puskar Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Ben Queen-USA TODAY Sports /

Some might be surprised to see Neal Brown this high and you could probably make an argument for anyone from Nos. 7-10 to be above him after a mediocre start to his West Virginia career, but I’m not going to harshly judge a coach for finishing fifth in the Big 12 in back-to-back seasons, making two straight bowl games.

Brown did a heck of a job at Troy, winning 10-plus games in three straight seasons with the Trojans before getting hired at West Virginia. He hasn’t quite found his footing yet and this is a make-or-break season for him. He needs to finish in the top half of the standings.

Texas fans aren’t even sure what to think of Steve Sarkisian right now and him being in the top five in these power rankings just goes to show that the quality of head coaches isn’t at an all-time high.

Sarkisian is the prime example that college football is full of second chances. He went 34-29 at Washington and was hired at USC where he went 12-6 and was relieved of his duties halfway through his second season because of off-field issues. He joined Nick Saban at Alabama in what people now describe as a rehab for broken coaches and then took a job with the Atlanta Falcons a year later.

He returned to Alabama in 2019 and then Texas hired him to replace Tom Herman, going 5-7 in his first year. He is an excellent recruiter but if he misses a bowl in 2022, he could be in trouble.

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