ALTOONA, Pa. -- Bill Belichick or Nick Saban? Who you taking? Any discussion of the top current coaches in American sports must include those two at the top, and a case can be made for either for the No. 1 spot.
Beyond those two -- who have emerged as the best NFL and college coaches, respectively, of all time -- it can be fun and a little tricky to rank the best current coaches in this country, regardless of sport.
What criteria do you use? Should it be solely based on championships? How much does difficulty winning a championship in a given sport count? I touch on those and other factors in my rankings of the top five coaches in the nation.
The Penn State wrestling team is getting set to compete in the Big Ten Tournament this weekend in Lincoln, Neb., then the Nittany Lions will take part in the NCAA tourney in two weeks in Detroit. The Nittany Lions will be vying for their ninth national championship in 11 years under Cael Sanderson, so it's fun to consider where he belongs on the list of the county's best coaches.
Here are my top five:
1. BILL BELICHICK
Team: New England Patriots
Championships: Six Super Bowls, the most in history for one coach (XXXVI, XXXVIII, XXXIX, XLIX, LI, LIII)
Other achievements: Three other Super Bowl appearances (for a record nine), most career NFL playoff wins (31)
My take: Belichick is the clear No. 1, in my opinion, for one simple reason: It's harder to win a title in the NFL, especially during the modern era, than any other sport in this country. There's more parity in pro football than any other league, because the NFL is designed to give most teams a shot through its draft, free agency and financial setups. Sure, some teams are terrible for long stretches, and some teams can be great for long stretches, but the NFL system is designed to create as much of a level playing field as any sport. Yes, Belichick had Tom Brady. And yes, there was Spygate, which many people believe gave the Patriots some kind of unfair advantage. But six Super Bowl titles and nine appearances during this era is, quite frankly, pretty darn unbelievable.
2. NICK SABAN
Team: Alabama
Championships: Seven NCAA titles, the first at LSU (2003) and then six at Alabama (2009, 2011, 2012, 2015, 2017, 2020)
Other achievements: Lost in three other national championship games (2016, 2018, 2021)
My take: Saban is the greatest college football coach of all time, and I say that with absolutely zero hesitation. Why? Because the modern era of college football is far, far more difficult than bygone eras, when it was more of a regional game and some programs could just steamroll everybody based on program size and massive recruiting advantages. Bear Bryant won six national titles at Alabama in the 1960s and 70s, but the sport was drastically different then as he could stockpile as many players as he wanted, and parity didn't exist back then compared to the modern era. What Saban has done winning seven national titles in this era is astounding. Had he won those three other title games to be sitting here with 10 national championships in 18 years, then he would be No. 1 on this list.
3. MIKE KRZYZEWSKI
Team: Duke
Championships: Five NCAA titles (1991, 1992, 2001, 2010, 2015)
Other achievements: Most wins all-time in college basketball (1,196), 12 Final Four appearances
My take: This is Coach K's final season, and he has a decent shot at a sixth national title as Duke is ranked No. 4. Look, it's easy to hate on Duke. I'll be honest and say that I've done that for a long time as a huge college basketball fan, because so many players in that program have been, well, unlikable. But I'll also admit that a big part of me is just jealous because Duke has always been good, and I'll bet most Duke haters fall into that, as well. Now, I will add it's surprising that Krzyzewski has won "only" five national titles, given that Duke pretty much has always been one of the favorites every year. For all of his incredible success, Coach K should have won more titles based on the talent he had, but the Blue Devils have suffered a number of head-scratching losses in the NCAA Tournament.
4. GENO AURIEMMA
Team: UConn
Championships: 11 NCAA titles (1995, 2000, 2002–2004, 2009, 2010, 2013–2016)
Other achievements: 21 Final Four appearances, NCAA record 111-game winning streak
My take: UConn was women's basketball for a long time, the cream of the crop by such a wide margin that it really didn't make sense to pay attention to any other teams. What Auriemma built was incredible, as UConn transcended the sport and became the most successful team in this country, regardless of sport. The only question about Auriemma is that he was so dominant and built such a juggernaut that it makes you wonder just how good women's college basketball really was outside of UConn for many years. When you have winning streaks of 111, 90 and 70 and you're beating a lot of teams by 40 or more every night, then clearly you weren't facing a whole lot of pressure as a coach outside of a few games each season. There is more parity in the women's game now, and UConn hasn't won a national title since 2016, although it has gone to the past four Final Fours.
5. CAEL SANDERSON
Team: Penn State
Championships: Eight NCAA wrestling titles (2011-14, 2016-19)
Other achievements: Greatest wrestler in college history (159-0), 2004 Olympic gold medal
My take: Is it right to have a college wrestling coach ranked above NBA legend Gregg Popovich, who has won five titles with the San Antonio Spurs? Some people will say no, and that Poppovich should be ahead of Sanderson. But there's no denying that Popovich has slipped later in his career, winning just one title since 2007 and having the Spurs fall way off, as they're 24-39 this season and about to miss the playoffs for a third straight year. These rankings, admittedly, are more about what have you done for me lately, and in that regard, Sanderson deserves to be ahead of Popovich. Penn State is favored to win the national title again this year, which would give Sanderson nine in 11 years. What he's done at Penn State has been extraordinary. The only reason he's not ranked higher is because -- and this will offend some people -- wrestling is still a niche sport in this country, with only 78 Division I programs competing. But Sanderson, who's only 42, has it rolling at Penn State and could end up with, who knows, 15 or more national titles when all is said and done.
