Editor\u2019s note:\u00a0As the World Cup continues in the United States for the first time since 1994,\u00a0The Athletic\u00a0is looking back at college sports in the 1990s and how much has changed since then. Join us for a couple of weeks of offseason football and basketball nostalgia.<\/p>\n
College football said goodbye to legendary coaches such as Bo Schembechler, Vince Dooley, Barry Switzer and Jimmy Johnson as the 1980s wound down, and it would be the 21st century before greats such as Urban Meyer, Bob Stoops and Jim Tressel would emerge.<\/p>\n
In between, one of the sport\u2019s most improbable turnarounds and some of the most dominant teams it has ever seen \u2014 both in the heartland \u2014 marked a decade that started with poll-determined champs and ended with BCS computers. It featured the best work of some of the greatest coaches of all time as well.<\/p>\n
Though Nebraska may have had the best teams, the sport was centered in Florida. Florida State, Miami and Florida accounted for four of the decade\u2019s 13 championships (yes, 13, thanks to polls and split titles<\/a>).<\/p>\n This ranking of the 25 best head coaches of the 1990s takes into account only the work done in that particular decade. Championships count big, but so do turnarounds and successful programs built from scratch. Four of the top five coaches on the list inherited difficult situations and engineered lasting excellence.<\/p>\n 25. Don James (Washington) Let\u2019s get controversial right away. A coach who worked in all of three seasons in the 1990s making this list? Hey, we said championships count extra, and James\u2019 Huskies got the coaches\u2019 vote<\/a> (Miami topped the AP poll) after a 1991 season featuring wins at No. 9 Nebraska, at No. 7 Cal and by a count of 34-14 over No. 4 Michigan in the Rose Bowl.<\/p>\n Why Bill Snyder’s ‘Manhattan Miracle’ is the best turnaround ever<\/p>\n Scott Dochterman<\/p>\n 24. Terry Bowden (Samford, Auburn) After a 45-23-1 tenure at Samford, including a run to the 1991 Division I-AA semifinals, Bowden took over an Auburn program hampered by sanctions from the end of the Pat Dye era. His first team beat Steve Spurrier\u2019s Gators and rival Alabama, went 11-0, was barred from postseason play but finished No. 4. It went downhill quickly in 1998, but by then Bowden had five straight finishes in the polls, one at No. 9 and one at No. 11.<\/p>\n 23. Bruce Snyder (Cal, Arizona State) Snyder took the Arizona State job after leading Cal to a 10-2 season and No. 8 finish in 1991, and he didn\u2019t take long to get a proud program back on track. The 1996 Sun Devils had an outside shot at a share of a national championship entering the Rose Bowl at 11-0. Jake Plummer gave ASU a late lead, but Ohio State, led by former Sun Devils coach John Cooper, scored to ruin the dream.<\/p>\n 22. Dick Tomey (Arizona) Tomey gets the edge over Snyder by virtue of his 5-3 record against Snyder in their 1990s rivalry matchups. Like a lot of coaches on this list, Tomey took his program to places it hadn\u2019t reached and hasn\u2019t since. His \u201cDesert Swarm\u201d defenses led the way for 1993 and 1998 teams that finished in the top 10. The 1998 team was a UCLA loss away from perfection and finished No. 4, best in school history.<\/p>\n 21. George Welsh (Virginia) Virginia football peaked in November 1990, with a team ranked No. 1 in the polls and featuring the most exciting pass-catch combo in the nation \u2014 Shawn Moore to Herman Moore. That season faded amid heartbreakers and injuries, but Welsh has to his name six of the 10 seasons in program history that ended with ranked teams. The Hoos still haven\u2019t found anyone who can match him.<\/p>\n 20. Fisher DeBerry (Air Force) DeBerry, a College Football Hall of Famer and the winningest coach in Air Force history, led the program from 1984 to 2006 and was right in his sweet spot in the \u201990s. He had just one losing season during the decade, which was highlighted by his 1998 team that went 12-1 and crushed Washington in the Oahu Bowl. That season was a 35-34 loss at TCU away from perfection.<\/p>\n 19. Joe Tiller (Wyoming, Purdue) This may seem high given the numbers, but it might be low when considering innovation and the turnaround of a moribund program. After a successful tenure at Wyoming, culminating with the 10-win season of 1996, Tiller took the Purdue job and brought the spread offense with him. Two decades earlier, Darryl Rogers and then Mike White showed the Big Ten that passing can be good, and Tiller caused fits and copycats \u2014 bubble screens started bubbling up everywhere. He debuted with nine wins, Purdue\u2019s first winning season since 1984. Soon, he would introduce Drew Brees.<\/p>\n 18. LaVell Edwards (BYU) Edwards\u2019 legendary career from 1972-2000 put BYU football on the map and produced consistent offensive fireworks with quarterbacks such as Heisman winner Detmer, Steve Young, Jim McMahon, Marc Wilson and Robbie Bosco. The program peaked with the 1984 national championship \u2014 a Holiday Bowl win over a 6-6 Michigan team was enough for the voters \u2014 but the 1990s saw consistent winning and a move from the WAC to the Mountain West.<\/p>\n 17. Paul Pasqualoni (Syracuse) Yes, kids, Syracuse football used to win consistently<\/a>. Never more consistently than between 1987 and 2001 under Dick MacPherson, then Pasqualoni. He went 10-2 in his first two seasons, 1991 and 1992, and never had a losing season during the decade. The 1998 season had massive potential with senior Donovan McNabb at quarterback and included a win at Michigan, but it started with a crushing 34-33 loss to eventual national champ Tennessee and ended with a loss to Florida in the Orange Bowl.<\/p>\n 16. Mack Brown (North Carolina, Texas) The best was yet to come for Brown and the Longhorns, but he landed that job on the strength of his 1997 season with the Tar Heels \u2014 a 10-1 record, the lone loss to Florida State, with a No. 6 final ranking that was the program\u2019s best in nearly 50 years. That was the culmination of eight impressive years with the Heels, achieved amid Dean Smith\u2019s basketball tenure and after Brown went a combined 2-20 in 1988 and \u201989. He tacked on two nine-win seasons to start his Texas tenure.<\/p>\n 15. Frank Beamer (Virginia Tech) In a different time, Beamer isn\u2019t around to methodically complete one of modern college football\u2019s great program builds \u2014 he\u2019s fired after the 2-8-1 season of 1992, his sixth with the Hokies, leaving him with a record of 24-40-2. The rest of the \u201990s? Try 64-20 and a spot in the BCS Championship Game on Jan. 4, 2000. The Michael Vick-led Hokies couldn\u2019t quite finish the deal against Florida State, but that set the stage for consistently excellent Virginia Tech teams into the 2010s under Beamer.<\/p>\n 14. John Cooper (Ohio State) Ohio State is the lone blue-blood program that hasn\u2019t had a prolonged downturn since the 1960s, and Cooper deserves his share of credit for that. He quickly got things going again after the Earle Bruce era and eventually put together some of the strongest teams in the sport. But the record in big games is abysmal. Cooper was 2-7-1 vs. Michigan in the \u201990s (2-10-1 overall), and that included three losses that ended national title hopes. Throw in an inexplicable home loss to Nick Saban and Michigan State \u2014 a 27.5-point underdog \u2014 in 1998 when the Buckeyes looked like the clear best team, and you\u2019ve got a lot to regret.<\/p>\n 13. Lou Holtz (Notre Dame, South Carolina) Unfortunately for Holtz, his 0-11 debut season at South Carolina<\/a> counts on his record here, before he got things going a bit for the Gamecocks. And this decade immediately follows his Notre Dame peak \u2014 the unbeaten 1988 national title team and 1989 season that finished 12-1 and No. 2 behind Miami, both led by Tony Rice and Rocket Ismail. Holtz had another title in his sights in 1993<\/a> after beating No. 1 Florida State, but a home loss to Boston College the next week as the No. 1 team lives in infamy. It was never the same for Holtz after that.<\/p>\n 12. R.C. Slocum (Texas A&M) One of the difficulties of a list like this is comparing consistently successful coaches who did it for the entire decade with peers who had higher highs but less opportunity to accumulate wins. Slocum is the former, an easily forgotten figure among the big names of the \u201990s, but nonetheless one of its reliable achievers. No other coach in the annals of this storied program achieved nine ranked finishes in 10 years. That includes the unbeaten season of 1994, 10-0-1 and a final ranking of No. 8, despite NCAA sanctions that prohibited the Aggies from postseason play, the coaches poll and appearing on TV. Imagine that today. Slocum\u2019s 1992 team was 12-0 and ranked No. 4 entering the Cotton Bowl, but lost 28-3 to No. 5 Notre Dame.<\/p>\n 11. Lloyd Carr (Michigan) One thing that shouldn\u2019t be overlooked in Carr\u2019s work as Michigan\u2019s coach in the second half of the decade is the fact that he had to navigate the messy finish to Gary Moeller\u2019s tenure. It didn\u2019t take long before Carr proved that he, not Moeller, would have been the better choice to succeed Bo Schembechler. Carr\u2019s third team in 1997 went unbeaten and got a share of the national title with a dominant, Woodson-led defense. If only Michigan and co-champ Nebraska could have met on the field<\/a>. In 1999, Carr might have had another title had he gone solely with senior Tom Brady at quarterback.<\/p>\n 10. Bill McCartney (Colorado) McCartney\u2019s placement, one spot ahead of fellow Bo Schembechler protege Lloyd Carr, might come down to one play \u2014 Kordell Stewart to Michael Westbrook, a 64-yard Hail Mary to shock the Wolverines on the final play in 1994 (Carr was not yet Michigan\u2019s head coach, for the record). That win kept the Buffs in contention for the national championship, their third time in six seasons as true contenders. A loss at eventual champ Nebraska ended that, but Colorado still finished No. 3. And shared the 1990 title with Georgia Tech thanks to an Orange Bowl thriller over Notre Dame. The program has not approached that stretch since.<\/p>\n 9. Gene Stallings (Alabama) The Stallings tenure at Alabama was the oasis between dissatisfying stretches for the program after Paul \u201cBear\u201d Bryant and before Nick Saban \u2014 all of which proved that (almost) no program is immune to recession. Stallings, a \u201cJunction Boy\u201d who played for Bryant at Texas A&M, went 70-16-1 in his seven Alabama seasons. And his title wasn\u2019t just any title; it required a brilliant effort to rout loaded and heavily favored Miami in the Sugar Bowl. That win alone elevates Stallings.<\/p>\n 8. Dennis Erickson (Miami, Oregon State) It was a heck of a half decade for Erickson at \u201cThe U,\u201d before trying his hand at pro football \u2014 a middling four seasons with the Seattle Seahawks \u2014 then returning to the college game in 1999 and immediately leading Oregon State to its first winning season in 29 years. That\u2019s awfully strong work. If only Erickson\u2019s 1989 season (winning it all in his debut with the Hurricanes) and 2000 season (11-1 and a No. 4 final ranking with the Beavers) counted, he\u2019d be higher. Yes, he inherited a monster from Jimmy Johnson. But keeping it at that level is impressive.<\/p>\n 7. Phillip Fulmer (Tennessee) Tennessee fans may always debate how Fulmer ended up with the job after filling in for his ailing boss, Johnny Majors<\/a>, in 1992. But there\u2019s no question he\u2019s the second-best coach in program history after Robert Neyland, taking things to a different level after he got the job full time. Fulmer\u2019s tenure is heavily associated with Peyton Manning at quarterback and Steve Spurrier as an infuriating antagonist. But Fulmer and the Vols beat Florida State for the first-ever BCS national championship the year after Manning departed, thanks in part to a huge win over Spurrier\u2019s Gators.<\/p>\n 6. Joe Paterno (Penn State) Long after he turned Penn State into a college football powerhouse and long before his career ended in scandal, Paterno navigated the Nittany Lions through a highly successful, unsatisfying decade of football. Penn State joined the Big Ten in 1993 and dominated the league in 1994<\/a> with one of the most explosive offenses on record \u2014 but the old way of doing things left Penn State second in the polls to Nebraska and fans unable to watch those teams settle it on the field. That was Paterno\u2019s only Big Ten championship of the decade.<\/p>\n 5. Barry Alvarez (Wisconsin) You have to be of a certain age to understand the improbability of what Alvarez did at Wisconsin in the 1990s. He changed the place forever and established an expectation of winning that persists today. Before he got there? Doormat central.<\/a> Thirty years of futility. The Lou Holtz\/Hayden Fry protege had to do it the old-fashioned way, with a 1-10 debut in 1990 and two more losing seasons before breaking through and winning the Big Ten and Rose Bowl in his fourth season. By the end of the decade, he had three Rose Bowl trophies, a Heisman winner and the most physical program in the sport.<\/p>\n 4. Tom Osborne (Nebraska)
\nOne national championship (split in the polls)
\n31-5 record in three seasons
\nThree Pac-10 championships and two Rose Bowl wins
\nFive national coach of the year awards in 1991<\/p>\n
\n47 wins in less than six full seasons at Auburn
\nUndefeated 1993 season
\nFive ranked finishes, two in the top 10
\nFour wins against top-10 opponents<\/p>\n
\n69 wins, tied for 18th nationally
\nSix national coach of the year awards in 1996
\nTwo top-10 finishes, one in the top five
\n14 wins against ranked teams, four in the top 10<\/p>\n
\n71 wins, tied for 15th nationally
\nOne Pac-10 championship
\nOne Pac-10 Coach of the Year award
\n14 wins against ranked opponents, three in the top 10<\/p>\n
\n78 wins, tied for 10th-most nationally
\nOne ACC championship
\nOne national coach of the year award
\nFour ranked finishes<\/p>\n
\n78 wins, tied for 10th-most nationally
\nTwo WAC championships
\nTwo ranked finishes
\nFive wins against ranked opponents, one in the top 10<\/p>\n
\n64 wins in nine seasons, 21st nationally
\nFour ranked finishes
\nSeven wins against ranked teams, two in the top 10<\/p>\n
\n86 wins, eighth-most nationally
\nCoached quarterback Ty Detmer to the 1990 Heisman Trophy
\nFour ranked finishes, one in the top five<\/p>\n
\n75 wins, tied for 13th nationally, in nine seasons
\nThree Big East championships
\nSix ranked finishes, one in the top 10
\n17 wins against ranked opponents, two over top-10 opponents<\/p>\n
\n85 wins, ninth-most nationally
\nSix ranked finishes, two in the top 10
\n15 wins against ranked teams, five in the top 10
\nCoached running back Ricky Williams to the 1998 Heisman Trophy<\/p>\n
\n77 wins, 12th-most nationally
\nThree Big East championships
\nEight national coach of the year awards for the 1999 season
\nFive ranked finishes, two in the top 10 and one in the top five<\/p>\n
\n91 wins, fifth-most nationally
\n27 wins against ranked teams, seven in the top 10
\nThree Big Ten championships
\nSeven ranked finishes, three in the top 10 and two in the top five
\nCoached 1995 Heisman winner Eddie George<\/p>\n
\n63 wins in eight seasons
\nSix ranked finishes, three in the top 10 and two in the top five
\n19 wins against ranked teams, 11 in the top 10
\nThree straight major bowl wins, one Sugar and two Cotton<\/p>\n
\n94 wins, fourth-most nationally
\nNine ranked finishes, three in the top 10
\nFour conference championships (three Southwest Conference, one Big 12)
\n13 wins against ranked opponents, three in the top 10<\/p>\n
\nOne national championship (split in the polls)
\nTwo top-five finishes in five seasons
\n20 wins against ranked teams, 11 in the top 10
\nCoached cornerback Charles Woodson to the 1997 Heisman, the first defensive player to win it<\/p>\n
\nOne national championship (split in the polls)
\nTwo top-five finishes and ranked finishes in all five seasons
\nTwo Big Eight championships
\n15 wins against ranked opponents, five in the top 10
\nCoached running back Rashaan Salaam to the 1994 Heisman<\/p>\n
\nOne national championship
\nSix ranked finishes in six seasons of coaching, three in the top five
\nThree SEC West titles and one SEC championship
\n15 wins over ranked teams, four in the top 10<\/p>\n
\nOne national championship (split in the polls)
\nFour top-10 finishes and three top-five finishes in five seasons
\n17 wins against ranked opponents, 10 in the top 10
\nCoached quarterback Gino Torretta to the 1992 Heisman<\/p>\n
\nOne BCS national championship
\nTwo SEC championships
\nFive top-10 finishes and two top-five finishes
\n24 wins against ranked teams, fifth-best nationally even though Fulmer\u2019s first full season was in 1993<\/p>\n
\nUndefeated 1994 season, finishing second in the polls
\n97 wins, third-most in the nation
\nFour top-10 finishes, two top-five finishes and only one unranked finish
\n27 wins against ranked teams, tied with John Cooper for third-most<\/p>\n
\nThree Big Ten and Rose Bowl championships for a program that hadn\u2019t won the league since 1962 and had never won a Rose Bowl
\nThree top-10 finishes and one top-five finish
\n16 wins against ranked teams, three in the top 10
\nCoached Heisman Trophy-winning running back Ron Dayne in 1999<\/p>\n
\nThree national championships, most in the nation (one was split)
\nTied for sixth nationally with 87 wins despite retiring after the 1997 season
\nFive straight conference championships and six overall
\nFour top-five finishes
\n22 wins against ranked teams, including 11 in the top 10<\/p>\n