The Sporting News ranks all 138 FBS head coaches entering 2026 season

Heading into the 2026 college football season, The Sporting News has ranked all 138 FBS head coaches.

Unsurprisingly, Indiana‘s Curt Cignetti leads the list. Cignetti led the Hoosiers to an unblemished 16-0 record and a National Championship last season. The top-10 coaches in the list span from three conferences. The SEC leads the way with four coaches (Kirby Smart, Kalen DeBoer, Steve Sarkisian, and Lane Kiffin), followed by the Big Ten with three (Curt Cignetti, Ryan Day, and Dan Lanning) and the ACC with two (Mario Cristobal and Dabo Swinney).

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Looking at the list in full, Auburn‘s Alex Golesh (+42 spots), New Mexico‘s Jason Eck (+41 spots), and UCLA‘s Bob Chesney (+40 spots) made the biggest leaps from last season. Meanwhile, North Carolina‘s Bill Belichick (-38 spots), Charlotte‘s Tim Albin (-35 spots), and Boston College‘s Bill O’Brien (-31 spots) fell the furthest from last season. The entire list is below.

+/- denotes how far the coach has fallen/risen from last offseason’s rankings

Record at Indiana (2024-2025): 27-2 (17-1)

Unsurprisingly, Indiana‘s Curt Cignetti tops the list. Cignetti is the back-to-back winner of AP Coach of the Year, and led Indiana to its first ever National Championship last season. Under Cignetti, the Hoosiers have lost just twice: a regular season game against No. 2 Ohio State on Nov. 23, 2024, and a College Football Playoff First Round Game against No. 5 Notre Dame on Dec. 20, 2024. Since that CFP loss to the Irish, Indiana has won 16 consecutive games. Just two seasons into his tenure, Cignetti has already cemented himself as the best coach in program history.

Record at Georgia (2016-2025): 117-21 (69-12)

Georgia‘s Kirby Smart, who is one of two active FBS coaches with multiple National Championships, comes in at No. 2 on the list. The past three seasons since the Bulldogs’ last title, however, have been mega frustrating. They missed the 2023 College Football Playoff (the last with just four teams) with a 12-1 record, and lost their first Playoff game in the past two CFP’s. There’s no denying that Smart is one of the best coaches in college football though, as his .848 winning percentage is the best in Georgia program history.

Record at Ohio State (2019-2025): 79-12 (54-5)

Ryan Day, who led Ohio State to a National Championship in 2024, ranks No. 3 on the list. Day has been a sensational successor to Urban Meyer, as the Buckeyes have not lost more than two games in any of his seven seasons at the helm. After losing to Miami in Quarterfinals of last season’s College Football Playoff, there’s no doubt Day has a massive chip on his shoulder to bring home Ohio State‘s second title in the past three seasons.

Record at Notre Dame (2022-2025): 43-11

Although Notre Dame just barely missed last season’s College Football Playoff, Marcus Freeman ranks No. 4 on the list. The season prior, the Irish made a run to the CFP National Championship before falling to Ohio State. In four seasons, Freeman has led Notre Dame to 43 wins and a deep run in the 2024-25 College Football Playoff. Coming off a season in which Notre Dame declined a postseason bid, however, a bounce back season from Freeman and his team is expected in a massive way.

Record at Oregon (2022-2025): 48-8 (32-4)

It seems as if it’s a matter of when, not if, Dan Lanning will lead Oregon to its elusive National Championship. Under Lanning, Oregon entered the 2024-25 CFP as the No. 1 overall seed, and advanced to the Semifinals in 2025-26 before falling to eventual National Champions Indiana. Oregon is coming off a stellar 13-2 season, in which it racked up five victories over ranked opponents.

Record at Alabama (2024-2025): 20-8 (12-4)

Kalen DeBoer has left a bit to be desired at Alabama after a mediocre two seasons, compared to Crimson Tide standards. Alabama finished with at least four losses in back-to-back seasons for the first time 2006-2007, and were blown out 38-3 by eventual National Champions Indiana in the 2026 Rose Bowl. DeBoer received a massive extension this season, and Alabama fans are expecting him to lead the Tide back into Championship contention sooner than later.

Record at Texas (2021-2025): 93-55 (30-13)

Although Steve Sarkisian‘s Texas Longhorns opened the 2025 season as the No. 1 ranked team in the country, it failed to reach the College Football Playoff for the third consecutive season. This was due in part to its season-opening loss to Ohio State, and its disappointing loss to a down Florida team. The Longhorns, however, finished the season strong and will be looking to parlay that into a bounce back 2026 campaign.

Record at LSU (2026): 0-0 (0-0)

At long last, Lane Kiffin led Ole Miss to its first College Football Playoff appearance in school history last season. He, however, bolted for the LSU opening before the Rebels could open First Round play against Tulane. Kiffin, who racked up 55 wins across six seasons at Ole Miss, will now look to lead LSU back to the College Football Playoff for the first time since 2019 this season. With all the expectations in the world, Baton Rouge will certainly be a circus.

Record at Miami (2022-2025): 35-19 (18-14)

After slipping into the College Football Playoff as the last at-large team ahead of Notre Dame and BYU, Mario Cristobal led the Miami Hurricanes all the way to the College Football Playoff National Championship Game. Amid criticism from failed past seasons, Cristobal more than showed that he is the man for the job at Miami. The Hurricanes are coming off a 13-3 campaign and return a Heisman Trophy candidate receiver in Malachi Toney this season.

Record at Clemson (2009-2025): 183-50 (110-27)

The 2026 season will be crucial for Dabo Swinney and Clemson, as the Tigers failed to reach eight wins in a season for the first time since 2010 last year. After opening the year with a tough loss to LSU, losses to Georgia Tech and Syracuse really sunk any expectations that last season’s team had. Swinney, who also boasts two National Championships, can obviously still coach at a high level and will look to bounce back in a massive way this season.

Coaches 11-25

11. Mike Elko (Texas A&M) +15
12. Kyle Whittingham (Michigan) +1
13. Rhett Lashlee (SMU) +10
14. Jeff Brohm (Louisville) +1
15. Lincoln Riley (USC) -3
16. Josh Heupel (Tennessee) -5
17. Eli Drinkwitz (Missouri) +4
18. Sonny Dykes (TCU) -4
19. Joey McGuire (Texas Tech) +24
20. James Franklin (Virginia Tech) -12
21. Matt Campbell (Penn State) -5
22. Kalani Sitake (BYU) +9
23. Brent Venables (Oklahoma) +18
24. Kirk Ferentz (Iowa) -5
25. Bret Bielema (Illinois) –