Ranking college football’s top 25 head coaches for 2022

There are plenty of really good coaches in college football and heading into the 2022 season, these are my top 25. Did I miss anyone?

Week 0 kicked off the 2022 college football season but it was simply an appetizer for what we’re going to get in Week 1. The main course will be delicious.

We’re going to get games like Ohio State vs. Notre Dame, Georgia vs. Oregon, Arkansas vs. Cincinnati, Utah at Florida, and Florida State at LSU. There’s plenty to look forward to this week and if you’re anything like me, you’re going to be glued to your screen from Thursday until Monday night when Clemson and Georgia Tech cap off the weekend.

Every day and time slot will feature teams with great players and top-notch coaches, but there’s always going to be a debate about who is best.

Let’s take a look at who I believe are the top 25 coaches in college football ahead of the 2022 season.

I was very close to including Dave Clawson in the top 25 and he probably deserves a spot, but he just missed the cut. He could very well be in the 20-25 range by the end of the season, depending on how the Demon Deacons do — especially without Sam Hartman for a bit. But winning at Wake Forest isn’t easy and Clawson continues to be one of the nation’s most underrated coaches with a 51-48 record in Winston-Salem, including a career-best 11-3 season last year.

Another coach who just missed the cut, PJ Fleck has built his career from the ground up. He took over a really bad Western Michigan program in 2013, going 1-11 in his first year before recording a 29-11 record over the next three seasons. He quickly became the hottest coaching candidate in the Group of Five and Minnesota snatched him up. He’s 35-23 in five seasons with the Gophers but has just two seasons with nine-plus wins. There’s still room for growth.