Per The Athletic,
Ranking the Big 12 football coaching hires since the 1996 debut season and what they wrote about each ISU coach.
1-Bob Stoops, OK
2-Mack Brown, TEX
3-Lincoln Riley, OK
4-Mike Gundy, OK ST
5-Mike Leach, TT
6-Gary Pinkel, MIZZ
7-Bill Snyder (part 2), K ST
8-Matt Campbell, ISU
9-Frank Solich, NEB
10-Matt Rhule, BAY
11-Bo Pelini, NEB
12-Art Bailey, BAY
13-Mark Mangino, KAN
14-Gary Barnett, COLO
15-Les Miles, OK ST
16-Tom Herman, TEX
17-Mike Sherman, T A&M
18-Paul Rhoads, ISU
19-Chris Klieman, K ST
20-Neal Brown, WV
21-Kliff Kingsbury, TT
22-Bill Callahan, NEB
23-Dennis Franchione, T A&M
24-Matt Wells, TT
25-Tommy Tuberville, TT
26-Charlue Strong, TEX
27-Ron Prince, K ST
28-Terry Allen, KAN
29-Dan Hawkins, COLO
30-Guy Morriss, BAY
31-John Blake, OK
32-Gene Chizik, ISU
33-David Beaty, KAN
34-Turner Gill, KAN
35-Dave Roberts, BAY
36-Kevon Steele, BAY
37-Les Miles, KAN
38-Charlie Weis, KAN
Matt-A newly hired coach loves to say his struggling program is a sleeping giant. Campbell believed it. He needed only two years to turn Iowa State into a legitimate threat in this conference. His teams keep pulling off huge upsets and going to bowls every year, and in 2020, the Cyclones took the next big step of playing for a Big 12 title and winning a New Year’s Six bowl. Throughout their rise, Campbell has rejected countless job offers because he loves where he is and he’s not done building. The newest challenge is how the Cyclones play up to top-10 expectations this fall as they try to put it all together and win the Big 12.
Paul-Rhoads always made a great fit for this job in a lot of ways — he grew up 20 minutes from campus — but he couldn’t make the leap from 6-to-7 wins a year to something greater. He did guide Iowa State to bowl games in three of his first four years, but the program regressed from there and went 8-28 over his last three seasons. Rhoads had a tough time recruiting the right players to Ames and ultimately regretted not trying to be more unique offensively in a spread-heavy league. Still, his Cyclones pulled off a few impressive upsets — like knocking No. 2 Oklahoma State out of the BCS race in 2011 — and his passionate locker room speeches and fiery, likable personality made him beloved.
Gene-Chizik’s resume at the time of his hiring impressed. He’d served as the defensive coordinator for Auburn’s undefeated 2004 season and Texas’ 2005 national championship team. But he struggled at Iowa State and left after only two seasons, when Auburn hired him as its head coach. Chizik’s sudden departure, after just a short time, left a bitter taste in the mouths of the Cyclones and their fans. But 10 years later, Pollard acknowledged that Chizik’s recruiting and the foundation he established helped move the program in the right direction, as Rhoads took Iowa State to a 7-6 season and a bowl win the year after Chizik left.
Ranking the Big 12 football coaching hires since the 1996 debut season and what they wrote about each ISU coach.
1-Bob Stoops, OK
2-Mack Brown, TEX
3-Lincoln Riley, OK
4-Mike Gundy, OK ST
5-Mike Leach, TT
6-Gary Pinkel, MIZZ
7-Bill Snyder (part 2), K ST
8-Matt Campbell, ISU
9-Frank Solich, NEB
10-Matt Rhule, BAY
11-Bo Pelini, NEB
12-Art Bailey, BAY
13-Mark Mangino, KAN
14-Gary Barnett, COLO
15-Les Miles, OK ST
16-Tom Herman, TEX
17-Mike Sherman, T A&M
18-Paul Rhoads, ISU
19-Chris Klieman, K ST
20-Neal Brown, WV
21-Kliff Kingsbury, TT
22-Bill Callahan, NEB
23-Dennis Franchione, T A&M
24-Matt Wells, TT
25-Tommy Tuberville, TT
26-Charlue Strong, TEX
27-Ron Prince, K ST
28-Terry Allen, KAN
29-Dan Hawkins, COLO
30-Guy Morriss, BAY
31-John Blake, OK
32-Gene Chizik, ISU
33-David Beaty, KAN
34-Turner Gill, KAN
35-Dave Roberts, BAY
36-Kevon Steele, BAY
37-Les Miles, KAN
38-Charlie Weis, KAN
Matt-A newly hired coach loves to say his struggling program is a sleeping giant. Campbell believed it. He needed only two years to turn Iowa State into a legitimate threat in this conference. His teams keep pulling off huge upsets and going to bowls every year, and in 2020, the Cyclones took the next big step of playing for a Big 12 title and winning a New Year’s Six bowl. Throughout their rise, Campbell has rejected countless job offers because he loves where he is and he’s not done building. The newest challenge is how the Cyclones play up to top-10 expectations this fall as they try to put it all together and win the Big 12.
Paul-Rhoads always made a great fit for this job in a lot of ways — he grew up 20 minutes from campus — but he couldn’t make the leap from 6-to-7 wins a year to something greater. He did guide Iowa State to bowl games in three of his first four years, but the program regressed from there and went 8-28 over his last three seasons. Rhoads had a tough time recruiting the right players to Ames and ultimately regretted not trying to be more unique offensively in a spread-heavy league. Still, his Cyclones pulled off a few impressive upsets — like knocking No. 2 Oklahoma State out of the BCS race in 2011 — and his passionate locker room speeches and fiery, likable personality made him beloved.
Gene-Chizik’s resume at the time of his hiring impressed. He’d served as the defensive coordinator for Auburn’s undefeated 2004 season and Texas’ 2005 national championship team. But he struggled at Iowa State and left after only two seasons, when Auburn hired him as its head coach. Chizik’s sudden departure, after just a short time, left a bitter taste in the mouths of the Cyclones and their fans. But 10 years later, Pollard acknowledged that Chizik’s recruiting and the foundation he established helped move the program in the right direction, as Rhoads took Iowa State to a 7-6 season and a bowl win the year after Chizik left.
