All of us at Crystal Ball Run are doing our best to make the offseason as bearable as possible, which is never easy, for college football fans.
So .we’ve taken on the task of ranking coaching jobs within the major conferences. Here is what we think about the:
And now it’s time for the Big East (yes, we still consider it a major conference). For the sake of this exercise, let’s go ahead and include the future members of the Big East to make this a little more interesting, and throw out Pittsburgh and Syracuse since this is probably their last season before heading to the ACC.
If you are wandering where those two would rank, I would put Pittsburgh at three and Syracuse at four.
1. Louisville
It’s amazing how much the Big East landscape has changed. A decade ago you would have a pretty good argument for the top spot between Miami, Virginia Tech, Syracuse and West Virginia.
Louisville sort of wins by default as the league has been gutted, and it is nothing more than a glorified Conference USA.
Louisville has been the home of Howard Schnellenberger, Bobby Petrino and now Charlie Strong, who is making the Cardinals a strong program once again. Since Louisville could be a future target for the Big 12 or ACC, that gives it an edge over everyone else in the Big East.
2. Boise State
Boise is out in the middle of nowhere and has no business being in the Big East, but the Broncos have become a regular Top 25 program with two BCS bowl wins on their resume.
Veteran coach Chris Petersen has turned down some pretty choice jobs openings that would have paid a hefty salary to stay at Boise. So there’s something special taking place on that blue turf.
Boise also has a dedicated, rabid (and annoying) fan base that is not found at many other Big East programs.
3. Connecticut
The Huskies at No. 3?
This is how bad the selections are in the Big East. But UConn has made a financial commitment to facilities and the school has the academic reputation that could result in a future invite from say the Big Ten or ACC.
Randy Edsall built the program into a conference champ and now Paul Pasqualoni is trying to keep it credible.
4. Houston
Kevin Sumlin parlayed this job into a better gig at Texas A&M, but Houston remains an afterthought to many Texas high school recruits. However, the state is loaded with talent so Houston has a built-in advantage over many in the Big East.
The Cougars have a solid history of winning, and Houston should compete for Big East championships. Tony Levine looks like a good fit to replace Sumlin, and it wouldn’t surprise me if he stays around if he’s successful.
But the Houston program will likely be a stepping-stone program for most coaches.
5. UCF
With UCF finally getting an invite to the Big East has elevated the Knights well above South Florida for best jobs.
UCF has already done a decent job of attracting leftover players from talent-rich Florida, and George O’Leary should be able to keep even more top talent.
UCF has the location, but it will always have a lukewarm fan base so it loses points with many coaches. Now if you are near the end of your career (like O’Leary) then going to Orlando is not such a bad idea.
6. San Diego State
San Diego State is the oddest of fits for the Big East, and it’s unclear if joining a new conference will have a positive or negative impact.
But San Diego is a beautiful location and there are enough talented players in California to go around.
The biggest negative to this job is coaching in decaying Qualcomm Stadium.
7. Cincinnati
Cincinnati coaches have parlayed this job into signature positions at Michigan State and Notre Dame. Now Butch Jones has drawn some interest, but he appears to be committed to the Bearcats.
Cincinnati has a knowledgeable and loyal fan base, and they love night games at Nippert Stadium.
Jones has done a solid job of recruiting Ohio and the Cincinnati area, but he’ll almost always lose the best players to Ohio State.
8. Rutgers
Greg Schiano’s miracle work at Rutgers wasn’t complete, but the lure of the NFL was just too much. But he should be credited with making the Scarlet Knights a respectable program and a decent coaching job.
New York and New Jersey don’t offer the elite talent that Rutgers really needs, but the coaches have managed to hold onto some of the best from the region in recent years.
Rutgers will always be a third- or fourth-class citizen in the NYC market, which seems to be a big reason why the Scarlet Knights are always mentioned in expansion talks.
9. South Florida
Skip Holtz took over the South Florida job because he felt it was a sleeping giant in the Big East. What he has learned, much like his predecessor, is that the Bulls remain a mediocre program that has a few memorable upsets on their resume.
USF actually has a solid following, but they lack serious football chops. The Bulls play in an NFL stadium, which is never good for a college program and the fans treat it like Cubs fans treat a game at Wrigley Field – as one large bar.
Maybe I should rethink the USF job.
10. SMU
You have to give a tip of the cap to the job June Jones has done in four seasons with the Mustangs, which was still reeling from the death penalty in the 1980s.
SMU is fresh off three consecutive bowl appearances, and the excitement has returned to the program. However, Jones was ready to bolt for Arizona State until the Sun Devils backed out of the deal.
At the end of the day, though, SMU is like a Division II team in the state of Texas.
11. Navy
Navy has tradition and plays in one of the best games annually against Army; however, it’s always tough recruiting in top-notch talent. The Midshipmen also have nice fan support and one of the nicest campuses in beautiful Annapolis, Md.
Ken Niumatalolo has done an outstanding job, but after years of being extremely competitive last year proved how tenuous the Navy job can really be for even the best coach.
Paul Johnson did get the Georgia Tech job after the work he did at Navy and Niumatalolo may just do the same.
12. Temple
Temple would normally be on the bottom of any list, but since Al Golden worked miracles in Philadelphia and now Steve Addazio is ready to take it to another level coaching gig has improved a little.
But the Owls play in Lincoln Financial Field, which was built for the NFL’s Philadelphia Eagles. So the 15,000 to 20,000 fans don’t make a dent in the stadium.
As much as Temple has improved over the past five years, the Owls still never managed to win the Mid-American Conference. So it’s hard to imagine that Temple will be anything more than a middle-of-the-pack Big East team.
13. Memphis
Based on the talent available within the 38111 ZIP Code, Memphis should be a stronger program. However, the Tigers have not been able to tap into that talent pool much.
Larry Porter lasted just two seasons, and now former TCU coach Justin Fuente is going to make a run at it. If he can get the fans back in the seats then maybe Memphis will justify the late addition to the Big East.
Otherwise, Memphis remains a doormat program.
