Current Coaches with Best College Football Bowl Game Record

by Chris Vasile - 12/14/2021

Best current bowl coaches Nick Saban Alabama Crimson Tide

It’s often said that the most integral part of any team is the head coaching position. The head coach is someone – depending on the sport – who puts the game plan into place, motivates his players and puts his players in the best possible position to succeed. The head coach is also the first line of defense in terms of deflecting criticism off his players and directing it at him. When you really think about it, being a head coach is putting yourself in a lose-lose situation unless you turn out to be one of the greats like Bill Belichick or Nick Saban. If the decisions you make help the team win… great! If the decision backfires, or if the team is just not playing up to standards, you are likely to get run out of town quicker than you blink.

With the College Bowl season upon us, and coaches jumping ship from program to program, it’s imperative to understand who is leading the team you are going to be putting your hard-earned money on and if they have what it takes to lead, motivate and execute a proper game plan to give their players (and your wager) the best possible shot at winning. Below is a list of the four best active coaches in relation to winning percentage during bowl games. Let’s remember to handicap the games accordingly and cover every angle possible when making your decisions.

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Best: Jimbo Fisher, Texas A&M Aggies – 8-2 Bowl Record (.800)

Since Jumbo Fisher left Florida State in 2017, he’s led Texas A&M to four consecutive bowl games, including this year’s appearance in the Gator Bowl against Wake Forest. The line is currently listed as Aggies -5, with the total set at 58. In each of the past three seasons, Fisher has led his Aggies to bowl wins in the Orange, Texas and Gator bowl and is favorite to make it four straight. Let’s not forget what Fisher did with his time at Florida State. While leading the Seminoles, he led them to a National Title in 2014, and he went a total of 5-2 in Bowl games in his eight seasons in charge.

Best: Kyle Whittingham, Utah Utes - 10-3 Bowl Record (.786)

Since Kyle Whittingham took over as the head coach of the Utah Utes back in 2005, they have made a bowl game 13 times and have won 10 of those games. Now, the Utes have lost two consecutive bowl appearances (2018 Holiday Bowl to Northwester and 2019 Alamo Bowl to Texas). Nonetheless, there is no coach that is currently active with a better record (minimum 10 appearances) than Whittingham. If you believe the coach plays a major role in getting his team ready for the Bowl games, you can back No. 11 Utah in the Rose Bowl on Jan. 1 against No. 6 Ohio State. The spread for this contest is currently Ohio State -6.5, with the total set at 65.5. Whittingham will have to install a great game plan to limit the high-flying Buckeyes’ offense.

Best: Mike Gundy, Oklahoma State, 10-5 Bowl Record (.667)

When you think of Mike Gundy, you instantly think of his mullet. It’s definitely one of the better hairdos in the football world, but Gundy should also be synonymous with winning football games for Oklahoma State. While the Cowboys have never made the College Football Playoff or won a BCS Title under Gundy, they have been to 15 bowl games and Gundy has led them to victory in 10 of those contests. The Cowboys have split their last two bowl appearances, winning last year’s Cheez-It Bowl and losing the Texas Bowl in 2019. They did, however, win three straight from 2016 to 2018. This year, No. 9 Oklahoma State is facing off with No. 5 Notre Dame in the Fiesta Bowl on New Year’s Day. The current spread is Notre Dame -2, with the total set at 45.5.

Best: Mack Brown, North Carolina – 14-9 Bowl Record (.609)

It’s been a relatively rocky ride for the Mack Brown era at North Carolina. He’s had several great pieces on both sides of the football in his three years in charge but has yet to finish better than T3 in the ACC. This year, Mack’s Tar Heels slumped to a 6-6 record but were invited to compete in the Duke’s Mayo Bowl against South Carolina. As of writing this, the Tar Heels are 9-point favorites with the total set at 58.7. Brown has split his first two Bowl appearances with the Tar Heels, winning the Military Bowl in 2019 before losing in last year’s Orange Bowl. When Brown was with the Longhorns from 1998-2013, Mack accumulated a 10-5 bowl record including a loss in the BCS National Championship Game in 2009.

Honorable Mention: Nick Saban, Alabama – 17-10 (.630)

I know, I know, how could I make a list talking about the best Bowl coaches and leave arguably the greatest college football coach of all time off of it? Well, that’s because he’s been to so many Bowl games that his winning percentage is just .630. Yes, I know he’s won 17 and that includes five National Championships with Alabama. However, going on just winning percentage, he doesn’t even crack the top 20. Sometimes it sucks to be as consistent as Saban has been over his last 15 years at Alabama. This year, Alabama is the No. 1 seed in the College Football Playoff and will square off against Cincinnati. The Crimson Tide are listed as 13.5-point favorites, with the total set at 58. Can Saban add another Cotton Bowl win to his resume? I’m thinking yes.

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Current Coaches with Best College Football Bowl Game Record

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