Coaches Research Hub
Search any coach, jump to the record answer, then verify it with year-by-year rows, ranked-game splits, school impact, and comparisons.
Answer Pages
Fast answers, deeper profiles.
Current Research Window
Search coach records, career wins, win percentage, and rankings from the same filtered universe as the discovery visuals below. Start from the recommended sample, then tighten the field around identity, school, time span, or quality.
19
Coaches in view
1786 indexed coaches available
176
Coach-seasons
12392 total coach-season rows
1/1
Page position
19 coaches in the current filtered result set
Summary and Filtering
Coach search stays primary, then school, archetype, time span, and quality sharpen the rankings. The recommended starting point is 3+ seasons.
Primary Discovery
Start with career shape or flip to identity. Either way, the chart, the coach summary, the outlier list, and the table context all stay synchronized.
Start with the simplest question: who paired real strength with a repeatable week-to-week shape?
Jimmy Johnson
Volatility: 10.60 • Average SRS: 13.82
69.9% win rate • 27.7 peak SRS
Hover or focus a point to isolate it. Click a coach to carry that selection into the results table.
Average SRS reads overall strength. Volatility is the spread of season-to-season SRS, so lower values mean a steadier profile.
Career shape lens
This is the clearest first-pass view for peak versus stability. It is the best place to start browsing.
Jimmy Johnson coached 10 seasons, won 69.9%, and posted an average SRS of 13.8. Best season: 1987 Miami. The profile was balanced with a highly volatile profile. 2 stints shaped the career arc.
These callouts update with the active discovery mode and filtered coach set.
Highest peak
Les Miles
Single-season ceiling leader in the current filtered set.
Most consistent elite coach
Jimmy Johnson
High average strength without the season-to-season swing.
Steadiest floor
Cliff Speegle
Lowest volatility in the view. Lower is more stable.
Keep the ceiling board in view, but as a support module for the active lens, not the main destination.
1. Les Miles
2011
2. Jimmy Johnson
1987
3. Mike Gundy
2011
4. Pappy Waldorf
1949
5. Jim Lookabaugh
1945
Supporting Insights
These are shortcuts into the same table below. Performance leads the stack, while stability and longevity stay visible without competing with the main chart.
Performance
The fastest path into peak and results leaders.
Single-season ceiling leaders.
1. Les Miles
2011 LSU (13-1)
2. Jimmy Johnson
1987 Miami (12-0)
3. Mike Gundy
2011 Oklahoma State (12-1)
4. Pappy Waldorf
1949 California (10-1)
5. Jim Lookabaugh
1945 Oklahoma State (9-0)
Who won the most across a meaningful sample.
1. Jimmy Johnson
1987 Miami (12-0)
2. Les Miles
2011 LSU (13-1)
3. Mike Gundy
2011 Oklahoma State (12-1)
4. Pappy Waldorf
1949 California (10-1)
5. Jim Lookabaugh
1945 Oklahoma State (9-0)
Coaches who stacked elite endings.
1. Pappy Waldorf
1949 California (10-1)
2. Les Miles
2011 LSU (13-1)
3. Jimmy Johnson
1987 Miami (12-0)
4. Mike Gundy
2011 Oklahoma State (12-1)
5. Jim Lookabaugh
1945 Oklahoma State (9-0)
Stability
Who stays in control year after year.
Low SRS volatility among winning coaches with a real sample.
1. Pappy Waldorf
1949 California (10-1)
2. Mike Gundy
2011 Oklahoma State (12-1)
3. Les Miles
2011 LSU (13-1)
4. Jimmy Johnson
1987 Miami (12-0)
Longevity
Long arcs, big samples, and durable careers.
Big careers and long arcs.
1. Paul Davis
1963 Mississippi State (7-2-2)
2. Pappy Waldorf
1949 California (10-1)
3. Mike Gundy
2011 Oklahoma State (12-1)
4. Les Miles
2011 LSU (13-1)
5. James Pixlee
1936 George Washington (7-1-1)
Results Table
19 filtered coaches in view. Lower rank numbers are better. Lower volatility means more stable. Lower SP Def numbers are better on the identity chart.
| Compare | |||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Jimmy Johnson 81-34-3 • 1979-1988 | Miami, Oklahoma State | 10 | 118 | 81 | 34 | 69.9% | 13.8 | 27.7 1987 peak | 10.6 | 34.0 | 18.4 | #1 | 4 | Balanced Peak Dominator | |
Les Miles 145-73 • 2001-2020 | Kansas, LSU +1 | 18 | 218 | 145 | 73 | 66.5% | 12.4 | 29.9 2011 peak | 10.6 | 35.5 | 19.7 | #1 | 5 | Balanced Peak Dominator | |
Pappy Waldorf 157-89-19 • 1929-1956 | California, Kansas State +2 | 28 | 265 | 157 | 89 | 62.8% | 11.1 | 26.9 1949 peak | 7.6 | — | — | #3 | 6 | Balanced Peak Dominator | |
Mike Gundy 170-99 • 2005-2025 | Oklahoma State | 21 | 269 | 170 | 99 | 63.2% | 9.9 | 27.6 2011 peak | 9.3 | 36.2 | 24.0 | #3 | 2 | Offense-First Peak Dominator | |
Jim Lookabaugh 58-41-6 • 1939-1949 | Oklahoma State | 11 | 105 | 58 | 41 | 58.1% | 1.9 | 19.9 1945 peak | 8.9 | — | — | #5 | 1 | Balanced Volatile Builder | |
Jim Stanley 35-31-2 • 1973-1978 | Oklahoma State | 6 | 68 | 35 | 31 | 52.9% | 12.6 | 19.1 1973 peak | 6.7 | 32.2 | 18.9 | #14 | 0 | Balanced — | |
Pat Jones 62-60-3 • 1984-1994 | Oklahoma State | 11 | 125 | 62 | 60 | 50.8% | 1.9 | 17.4 1988 peak | 9.2 | 27.5 | 25.7 | #7 | 1 | Balanced Longevity Coach | |
Dave Smith 22-20-2 • 1972-1975 | Oklahoma State, SMU | 4 | 44 | 22 | 20 | 52.3% | 7.0 | 15.3 1972 peak | 5.1 | 28.5 | 24.5 | — | 0 | Balanced Consistent Winner | |
Floyd Gass 13-18-1 • 1969-1971 | Oklahoma State | 3 | 32 | 13 | 18 | 42.2% | 8.2 | 16.5 1969 peak | 6.2 | 29.9 | 29.1 | — | 0 | Offense-First Offense-First | |
Paul Davis 31-34-3 • 1908-1966 | Dickinson (PA), Mississippi State +1 | 7 | 68 | 31 | 34 | 47.8% | 5.2 | 15.4 1963 peak | 6.2 | — | — | — | 0 | Balanced Longevity Coach | |
Cliff Speegle 36-42-3 • 1955-1962 | Oklahoma State | 8 | 81 | 36 | 42 | 46.3% | 2.1 | 10.0 1958 peak | 3.9 | — | — | #19 | 0 | Balanced Program Stabilizer | |
Ted Cox 35-33-2 • 1932-1938 | Oklahoma State, Tulane | 7 | 70 | 35 | 33 | 51.4% | -1.9 | 13.5 1934 peak | 12.2 | — | — | — | 0 | Balanced — | |
Jennings Whitworth 22-27-2 • 1950-1954 | Oklahoma State | 5 | 51 | 22 | 27 | 45.1% | 0.7 | 6.9 1953 peak | 5.4 | — | — | — | 0 | Balanced — | |
James Pixlee 36-26-8 • 1919-1937 | George Washington, Oklahoma State | 8 | 70 | 36 | 26 | 57.1% | -4.3 | 6.4 1936 peak | 9.2 | — | — | — | 0 | Balanced Volatile Builder | |
Bob Simmons 30-38 • 1995-2000 | Oklahoma State | 6 | 68 | 30 | 38 | 44.1% | -0.3 | 7.1 1998 peak | 4.9 | 30.8 | 31.3 | #24 | 0 | Offense-First Offense-First | |
Phil Cutchin 19-38-2 • 1963-1968 | Oklahoma State | 6 | 59 | 19 | 38 | 33.9% | 1.8 | 4.7 1968 peak | 4.1 | — | — | — | 0 | Balanced — | |
John Maulbetsch 32-41-8 • 1920-1928 | Oklahoma State, Phillips | 9 | 81 | 32 | 41 | 44.4% | -6.7 | 5.9 1926 peak | 12.2 | — | — | — | 0 | Balanced — | |
Albert Exendine 13-25-5 • 1923-1935 | Oklahoma State, Washington State | 5 | 43 | 13 | 25 | 36.0% | -3.4 | 2.9 1925 peak | 6.0 | — | — | — | 0 | Balanced Longevity Coach | |
John Griffith 10-13-2 • 1909-1916 | Iowa, Oklahoma State | 3 | 25 | 10 | 13 | 44.0% | -10.3 | -1.4 1909 peak | 8.3 | — | — | — | 0 | Balanced — |
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