In the latest piece of evidence that confirms we do in fact have a watch list for everything and anything, the Bobby Dodd Coach of the Year Foundation released a watch list of college football coaches for their 2015 award. Among the 25 coaches deemed worthy of such a preseason honor are past winners Paul Johnson, Gary Patterson, Nick Saban, Bill Snyder, Bob Stoops and Dabo Swinney. Three-time national championship coach Urban Meyer is also on the list. So are the other two coaches from last season’s College Football Playoff, Jimbo Fisher and Mark Helfrich.
My question is simple. If we have watch lists naming almost every center on one award watch list, shouldn’t every coach of an FBS program be listed on a watch list for a coach of the year award? While it is nice to get an idea of some of the top position players in college football with the help of some watch lists for various awards, coaches should be evaluated on a different scale. We know who the top coaches at the top programs are, watch list or no watch list. Having a preseason watch list for this award defeats the purpose of the award’s ultimate goal.
Everybody has their opinions on what should make a coach of the year. Is it assembling and coaching the best team possible during the course of a season? If so, then these would appear to be worthy names to consider, as are the rest of the names on the watch list. Or is the intent of a coach of the year award more to honor a coach who defied expectations or battled through the most adversity to lead his team to victories few saw coming? If so, then there is no possible way to predict which coach will be worthy of mentioning in the conversation when the season is nearing an end.
Of course, watch lists are all about preseason publicity. You may have spent a summer day thinking about which player might win the Heisman Trophy in December. Have you ever gone through a summer and given one thought to who might win the Bobby Dodd Coach of the Year Award? No? Well, now you might, thanks to the release of this watch list that has absolutely no business seeing the light of day (and the media types that fall for the stunt to let you know about it; guilty as charged).
2015 Bobby Dodd Coach of the Year Award Watch List
Art Briles, Baylor
Mark Dantonio, Michigan State
Jimbo Fisher, Florida State
Hugh Freeze, Ole Miss
Bryan Harsin, Boise State
Mark Helfrich, Oregon
Paul Johnson, Georgia Tech
Brian Kelly, Notre Dame
Gus Malzahn, Auburn
Urban Meyer, Ohio State
Jim Mora, UCLA
Dan Mullen, Mississippi State
Gary Patterson, TCU
Gary Pinkel, Missouri
Mark Richt, Georgia
Rich Rodriguez, Arizona
Nick Saban, Alabama
Bill Snyder, Kansas State
Steve Spurrier, South Carolina
Bob Stoops, Oklahoma
Kevin Sumlin, Texas A&M
Dabo Swinney, Clemson
Kyle Whittingham, Utah