Since my goal is to avoid as much controversy as possible, I decided I would go ahead and rank the Big 12 football coaches going into the 2025 season. What could possibly go wrong, right? No one is going to be upset by this, I promise.
My goal was to combine a coach’s track record at his current program, but incorporate his entire career, and factor in the history and the expectations that exist at his program. So without further ado, here are the rankings for Big 12 football coaches from No. 16 to No. 1.
No. 16 Scott Satterfield, Cincinnati
Satterfield did win at App State, but he was under .500 at Louisville and then somehow got the Cincinnati job, which remains a perplexing hire. And at Cincinnati, he’s 8-16 overall and 4-14 in the Big 12, after taking over the program from Luke Fickell. Satterfield needs to show signs of improvement in 2025.
No. 15 Scott Frost, UCF
Yes, he has a 13-0 season under his belt. In the AAC. The Nebraska tenure was such a debacle, defined by close loss after close loss after close loss. Now, Frost is back home, but he has to navigate the Big 12. We will find out if he’s up for the challenge.
No. 14 Brent Brennan, Arizona
Brennan had some success at San Jose State, turning around a dormant program. But frankly not enough to necessarily justify getting the Arizona job. Then he gets the gig, and bombs out in Year 1, despite returning quality talent, notably at the skill positions. He’s 38-56 as a head coach and has a lot on the line going into 2025.
No. 13 Joey McGuire, Texas Tech
Joey McGuire has steadily turned around Texas Tech, but he’s only three years into being a head coach at the college level. And while there’s been steady improvement (23-16 overall), there is still a lot to prove. Heck, his career will arguably be defined by this 2025 team and season we are heading into.
No. 12 Sonny Dykes, TCU
Sonny Dykes has played for a National Championship, but let’s not forget that season, as great as it was, was largely with Gary Patterson’s players. Otherwise, 2023 was a mess of a season. 2024 was a good bounce back, but when you factor in a bad tenure at Cal and an above average run at SMU, I’m comfortable with where Dykes is on this list.
No. 11 Dave Aranda, Baylor
Aranda has won a Big 12 Championship, but otherwise his program has come up short of expectations, and has had two really bad seasons where he went 2-7 in Big 12 play in 2020 and 2023. Aranda nearly lost his job last season before ripping off six-straight wins. He’s a .500 head coach (31-30), and is heading into a crucial season in 2025.
No. 10 Kenny Dillingham, Arizona State
Kenny Dillingham did as good a job in 2024 as any coach in the country, but he’s only two years into his coaching career. My guess is he will skyrocket up this list over time, but his youth is a factor here that holds him back.
Related: Every Big 12 Starting Quarterback Ranked by 247Sports
No. 9 Deion Sanders, Colorado
Deion Sanders turned Jackson State into a winner, moved to Colorado, and went from 1-8 in the Pac-12 to 7-2 in the Big 12. He’s done it at multiple levels as a head coach, which gives him a slight edge over Dillingham on my list. Plus, his quick adaption to the transfer portal has been something that other coaches were much slower to follow.
No. 8 Kilani Sitake, BYU
Kilani Sitake has done an admirable job at BYU, which comes with natural challenges that other programs don’t have to deal with. He’s won at least nine games since he took over the gig in 2016, and had arguably his best coaching job in 2024, leading BYU to 11 wins in Year 2 in the Big 12. But now as BYU gets more NIL resources, the expectations will be increasing as well.
No. 7 Rich Rodriguez, West Virginia
While he will be forever remembered by casual fans for his bombing out at Michigan, along with a subpar tenure at Arizona, RichRod got WVU to heights it hasn’t come close to since he was there 20 years ago, including a near National Championship trip. He rebuilt himself in recent years, led Jacksonville State to a 27-10 record and now he’s got his second shot at West Virginia.
No. 6 Willie Fritz, Houston
Whether it’s Central Missouri, Sam Houston State, Georgia Southern or Tulane, Willie Fritz is a winner. He started to show signs of this at Houston during the second half of the season, and history would suggest, if given the right support, he will turn Houston into a winner as well. His track record, history and a Cotton Bowl win is impressive and puts him at No. 6 on this list.
No. 5 Chris Klieman, Kansas State
Chris Klieman went from FCS Champion to seamlessly replacing Bill Snyder at Kansas State. He’s won a Big 12 Championship, but has seen slight regression each of the past two seasons. This is a big year for Klieman, as the Cats will be a trendy pick to win the Big 12. While Klieman has a Big 12 Championship, while those ahead of his don’t, he took over a much more desirable situation than the other four, hence why he comes in behind them on this list.
No. 4 Mike Gundy, Oklahoma State
Mike Gundy might have been higher before the debacle of a 2024 season. But he’s still Mike Gundy and took Oklahoma State from an afterthought as a football program to a team that nearly reached a National Championship Game, and has played for multiple Big 12 Championships this decade. Gundy’s longevity is worth something as well and he still deserves a Top 4 slot.
Related: To Compete With the SEC, Mike Gundy Turns to the SEC
No. 3 Kyle Whittingham, Utah
Last year didn’t go as planned, by Kyle Whittingham has led this team to success in the Mountain West, the Pac-12, and I believe he will do the same in the Big 12. He’s one of the longest-tenured coaches in college football and has build a program that is sustainable over the long haul with great line play, and smart, overachievers at most of the key skill positions. And it’s worked. Five Pac-12 Title Games and multiple Rose Bowl appearances solidify Whittingham near the top.
No. 2 Lance Leipold, Kansas
For those new Big 12 fans, it might be hard to understand just how absolutely awful KU football was before Lance Leipold arrived. Every Big 12 team in the 2010’s put down KU as a win. Heck, they won five conference games during the entire decade. This was the worst program in the Power 5, and it wasn’t even close. Leipold has made this team competitive with the best of the best in the Big 12. And while 2024 came up short of expectations, it can’t be understated just how impressive this turnaround has been at KU.
No. 1 Matt Campbell, Iowa State
What more can you say about Matt Campbell? Iowa State was a perennial doormat for the majority of its football history. Then, enter Matt Campbell, following a successful career at Toledo, makes the jump to Ames and changes the trajectory for Iowa State football. He’s played for two Big 12 Championships this decade, and has built a five-star culture that is tops in the Big 12. Iowa State is now a program that expects, at the very least, to be competitive in the Big 12 every season. That was unfathomable before Campbell’s arrival.
