Overrated Coaches

In the spirit of balance, I wanted to take a look at some of the most overrated coaches, currently coaching, in no particular order:

1. Tyrone Willingham - Even though I think he was treated poorly by ND (though I don't think it was for racial reasons), his steady slide into mediocrity at ND and his abyssmal start at Washington makes me wonder if that 8-0 start was really a fluke. Aside from the Stanford game, each game in that start was very close, and could've potentially gone either way. That, or Bob Davie was a better recruiter than anyone gave him credit for. By 2004, when he should've had some of his own recruits, Ty limped to a 6-6 record. Perhaps this is unfair, and he would've had as similar success as Charlie Weis has had this year. I'll give him a couple more years at UW, but I think Ty got over-hyped, and couldn't live up to the expectations.

2. Jim Tressel, Ohio State - Yes, he won the NC his second year in with a lot of luck. But with all the scandals surrounding his old program at Youngstown State, and continuing scandals at tOSU, it makes you wonder how much of his success was done fairly. Mix that in with the inability to play offensive football (until the second half of this season), and his NC was won mostly with Cooper's recruits and a fella named Maurice Clarett (see scandals mentioned above), and it makes me wonder how good Mr. Tressel is. Still, he beats Michigan, so his job is secure, unlike his predecessor.

3. Tommy Bowden, Clemson - Doesn't he still just have a job cause he can beat his dad? Every year, Clemson has high hopes that are dashed by mid-season, then the Tigers somehow manage to pull out some unlikely victories down the stretch and just achieve bowl eligibility. I know the ACC is tough, but it's not like this is only the past couple of years. Perhaps Clemson's expectations are unrealistic, but Clemson lost to DUKE last year. That can get a IAA coach fired.

4. Al Groh, Virginia - See above. Hired with so many expectations, Virginia is, year in, year out, a schizoid team that loses games it shouldn't, but wins just enough to keep their coach his job. Just because he was a mediocre coach in the NFL doesn't make him a messiah to the college game (notable exception - Pete Carroll.) 4-5 losses a year is not the promised land.

5. Bob Petrino, Lousiville - Yeah, he did good things in the CUSA, with players John L. Smith recruited. Welcome to the Big East, and a loss to South Florida. While the Bulls seem to be a better team this year, the team that many (even myself) expected to make a big splash in the Big East, maybe even enough to continue to justify its BCS slot, has fallen flat. While WVU remains the team to beat in the Big East, Louisville struggled with an awful Kentucky, lost to South Florida badly, and lost that close game to WVU. While the Big East is a BCS conference, it doesn't necessarily provide tougher competition than CUSA, and Lousiville certainly isn't fulfilling anyone's expectations. Note to ADs: if you go coach hunting this season, leave Bobby out of it, okay?

Close calls, but I need more time to sort them out: Urban Meyer, Mike Stoops, George O'Leary, Dan Hawkins (looked so good last year, but lost his lock on the WAC this year)

Off this list, due to performances this year: Karl Dorrell, Larry Coker