CFB 2026 Thoughts pt 1 coaches

Happy Tuesday to you. I'll try to do this every Tuesday as it's the day I take my mom to her appointments and have plenty of time waiting for her to be ready to move to the next location.

If anyone wanted a update on my mother, she's gained 31 pounds since November up to 107, 2 new femurs and can do stairs and walks around 20 minutes a day, can do 40 steps a day no problem and lives in her home alone 5 nights a week, is learning how to drive again and as of today has had zero spread since December. She's my hero.

Onto CFB. I've had to realize that I love this sport possibly too much. Every move they make to supposedly improve the sport (playoff expansion, super leagues, g6 own playoffs) hurts me in some weird way. I'm trying to figure out why that is.

Possibly I just spend so much time thinking about it and absorbing so much of it.

I spend no less than 4 hours a day on CFB work and I've decided to share some thoughts with you. Let's start with my coaches top 10 in 2026.

This list might shock you if you are used to seeing generic ESPN, ON3 polls. I think a coach has to have won as a coordinator, has had to win with less at some point and has won with a good offense and defense at some point.

Cignetti
Smart
Fritz
Kiffin
Lanning
Debeor
Monken
Campbell
Chuck martin
Whittingham

You'll notice I don't have Ryan Day or Marcus Freeman on here. I'm not sold that they are great coaches. If you include these types where does it stop? You then have to say Mario Cristobal (worst final 3 minute loss factor percentage in the last decade) and Lincoln Riley (has produced the most heismans of any HC last decade while never winning anything at all) who are completely flawed.

Day has a championship and the highest winning % but let's be clear. He's never called plays on either side of the ball, I just read that the loss of Hartline is the loss of his Head recruiter on a team of 13 recruiters. 13 head recruiters??

Day has a NFL DC, a NFL sized budget to sign a top 5 class every season, a donor list that includes LeBron and Cavs owner Dan Gilbert so if you need a NFL TE and DE that's no problem, OSU plays no harder than a top 50 strength of schedule. He's a .500 coach in the playoff.

How do we grade him in the top 10, top 5 or top 3? Does he manage a huge staff and NFL type of roster well? Absolutely. Does that make him among the best, not really in my opinion.

Freeman wins and recruits well. Does he move the needle past that? I'm not sure. Rocky season 1 losing to Marshall. Lost to NIU, has not blown out a single top 15 team yet.

Here's my issue. Notre Dame gets breaks no one else does. Their refusal to join a conference is hilarious to the sport in 2026. I truly believe if ND gets in the playoff last year we aren't discussing expanding the playoff so much and so quickly.

They get recruits, they'd get them if your uncle was the coach. They are a automatic top 10 for blue bloods based on just regional biases and brand. So how important is Freeman when it comes to recruiting? The worst stretch of coaches at Notre Dame never fell below top 12 that I can find (Charlie Weiss) and many years they were top 3.

What has Freeman done that showed us wild talent. He is a good defensive mind but he gets involved in shootouts with superior talent and sometimes loses. He coaches a team who plays 2 loseable games a year. How great of a coach do you need to manage this schedule and type of talent?

Smart and Lanning won as coordinators and continue to win. Lanning had to rebuild Oregon in many ways in his first 2 years. Smart just produces in a very Saban way.

Someone like Campbell hasn't won a conference etc but he's won with so many 2 and low 3 stars. He produces talent that's not seen on paper. That's so underrated. Fritz has that trait with a longer track record and wining %.

I felt bad leaving the following off the list. Sitake, Helton (WKY has won no less than 8 in 6 cons years), Huff, Creighton (finally missed a bowl) & believe it or not the insanely consistent Ferentz. Chesney is too small of a sample size.

I'll grade every coach hire this off-season next week.

I hope you are running well in whatever aspect of life you are working on. Go Knicks!!

Thank you for the space as always, Eddie