This is a list of football coaches with a .750 or greater winning percentage. [1] [2] College football coaches who have coached college teams for 10 or more seasons are included in the list. "College level" is defined as a four-year college or university program in either the National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics (NAIA) or the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA). If the team competed at a time before the official organization of either of the two groups, but is generally accepted as a "college football program," it is also included.
Leading the list is Larry Kehres, who compiled a .929 winning percentage while coaching the Mount Union Purple Raiders from 1986 to 2012. The longest tenure among coaches on the list is that of John Gagliardi, who was a head coach from 1949 until retiring after the 2012 season. Gagliardi also leads all listed coaches in total games, wins, and losses. Former Vanderbilt head coach Dan McGugin has the most ties of anyone on the list.
bold | Expected to be active as head coach in 2024 |
† | Inducted into the College Football Hall of Fame |
Name | First year | Last year | Years | Games | Wins | Losses | Ties | Win % | Teams |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Larry Kehres † | 1986 | 2012 | 27 | 359 | 332 | 24 | 3 | .929 | Mount Union (1986–2012) |
Knute Rockne † | 1918 | 1930 | 13 | 122 | 105 | 12 | 5 | .881 | Notre Dame (1918–1930) |
Frank Leahy † | 1939 | 1953 | 13 | 129 | 107 | 13 | 9 | .864 | Boston College (1939–1940), Notre Dame (1941–1943, 1946–1953) |
Bob Reade † | 1979 | 1994 | 16 | 170 | 146 | 23 | 1 | .862 | Augustana (IL) (1979–1994) |
Pete Fredenburg | 1998 | 2021 | 24 | 270 | 231 | 39 | 0 | .856 [n 1] | Mary Hardin–Baylor (1998–2021) |
Doyt Perry † | 1955 | 1964 | 10 | 93 | 77 | 11 | 5 | .855 | Bowling Green (1955–1964) |
Urban Meyer | 2001 | 2018 | 17 | 219 | 186 | 32 | 0 | .853 | Bowling Green (2001–2002), Utah (2003–2004), Florida (2005–2010), Ohio State (2012–2018) |
George Washington Woodruff † | 1892 | 1905 | 12 | 164 | 139 | 23 | 2 | .854 | Penn (1892–1901), Illinois (1903), Carlisle (1905) |
Jeff Devanney | 2006 | 2023 | 18 | 142 | 121 | 21 | 0 | .852 | Trinity (CT) (2006–present) |
Dick Farley † | 1987 | 2003 | 17 | 136 | 114 | 19 | 3 | .849 | Williams (1987–2003) |
Jake Gaither † | 1945 | 1969 | 25 | 244 | 204 | 36 | 4 | .844 | Florida A&M (1945–1969) |
Joseph Smith | 2006 | 2023 | 17 | 185 | 156 | 29 | 0 | .843 | Linfield (2006–present) |
Dave Maurer † | 1969 | 1983 | 15 | 155 | 129 | 23 | 3 | .842 | Wittenberg (1969–1983) |
Gary Fasching | 2013 | 2023 | 10 | 118 | 99 | 19 | 0 | .839 | Saint John's (MN) (2013–present) |
Paul Hoernemann † | 1946 | 1959 | 14 | 124 | 102 | 18 | 4 | .839 | Heidelberg (1946–1959) |
Barry Switzer † | 1973 | 1988 | 16 | 190 | 157 | 29 | 4 | .837 | Oklahoma (1973–1988) |
Tom Osborne † | 1973 | 1997 | 25 | 307 | 255 | 49 | 3 | .836 | Nebraska (1973–1997) |
Don Coryell † | 1957 | 1972 | 15 | 154 | 127 | 24 | 3 | .834 | Whittier (1957–1959), San Diego State (1961–1972) |
Percy Haughton † | 1899 | 1924 | 13 | 120 | 97 | 17 | 6 | .833 | Cornell (1899–1900), Harvard (1908–1916), Columbia (1923–1924) |
Fielding H. Yost † | 1898 | 1926 | 28 | 245 | 198 | 35 | 12 | .833 | Ohio Wesleyan (1897), Nebraska (1898), Kansas (1899), Stanford (1900), San Jose State (1900), Michigan (1901–1923, 1925–1926) |
Robert Neyland † | 1926 | 1952 | 21 | 216 | 173 | 31 | 12 | .829 | Tennessee (1926–1934, 1936–1940, 1946–1952) |
Bud Wilkinson † | 1947 | 1963 | 17 | 178 | 145 | 29 | 4 | .826 | Oklahoma (1947–1963) |
Steve Ryan | 2002 | 2023 | 22 | 279 | 228 | 49 | 0 | .823 | Morningside (2002–present) |
Chuck Klausing † | 1964 | 1985 | 16 | 151 | 123 | 26 | 2 | .821 | Indiana (PA) (1964–1969), Carnegie Mellon (1976–1985) |
Mike Kelly † | 1981 | 2007 | 27 | 301 | 246 | 54 | 1 | .819 | Dayton (1981–2007) |
Henry Kean | 1931 | 1954 | 23 | 208 | 165 | 34 | 9 | .815 | Kentucky State (1931–1942), Tennessee State (1944–1954) |
Joe Fincham | 1996 | 2021 | 25 | 255 | 224 | 51 | 0 | .815 | Wittenberg (1996–2021) |
Joe Fusco † | 1972 | 1990 | 19 | 191 | 154 | 34 | 3 | .814 | Westminster (PA) (1972–1990) |
Vernon McCain † | 1948 | 1963 | 16 | 126 | 100 | 21 | 5 | .813 | Maryland State (1948–1963) |
Charlie Richard † | 1980 | 1994 | 14 | 152 | 123 | 28 | 1 | .813 | Baker (1980–1990, 1992–1994) |
Jock Sutherland † | 1919 | 1938 | 20 | 186 | 144 | 28 | 14 | .812 | Lafayette (1919–1923), Pittsburgh (1924–1938) |
Ron Schipper † | 1961 | 1996 | 36 | 357 | 287 | 67 | 3 | .808 | Central (IA) (1961–1996) |
Mike Sirianni | 2003 | 2023 | 21 | 229 | 185 | 44 | 0 | .808 | Washington & Jefferson (2003–present) |
Nick Saban | 1990 | 2023 | 28 | 364 | 292 | 71 | 1 | .804 [n 2] | Toledo (1990), Michigan State (1995–1999), LSU (2000–2004), Alabama (2007–2023) |
Bob Devaney † | 1957 | 1972 | 16 | 173 | 136 | 30 | 7 | .806 | Wyoming (1957–1961), Nebraska (1962–1972) |
Chuck Broyles | 1990 | 2009 | 20 | 247 | 198 | 47 | 2 | .806 | Pittsburg State (1990–2009) |
Clarence Munn † | 1935 | 1953 | 10 | 90 | 71 | 16 | 3 | .806 | Albright (1935–1936), Syracuse (1946), Michigan State (1947–1953) |
Sid Gillman † | 1944 | 1954 | 10 | 102 | 81 | 19 | 2 | .804 | Miami (OH) (1944–1947), Cincinnati (1949–1954) |
Glenn Caruso | 2006 | 2023 | 17 | 196 | 157 | 39 | 0 | .801 | St. Thomas (MN) (2006–present) |
Rick Willis | 1997 | 2021 | 23 | 231 | 185 | 46 | 0 | .801 | Wartburg (1997–2021) |
Mike Swider | 1996 | 2019 | 24 | 261 | 209 | 52 | 0 | .801 | Wheaton (IL) (1996–2019) |
Bob Stoops | 1999 | 2016 | 18 | 238 | 191 | 48 | 0 | .798 | Oklahoma (1999–2016, 2021) |
Dabo Swinney | 2008 | 2023 | 16 | 212 | 169 | 43 | 0 | .797 | Clemson (2008–present) |
John Thorne | 2002 | 2014 | 13 | 148 | 118 | 30 | 0 | .797 | North Central (IL) (2002–2014) |
Frank Thomas † | 1925 | 1946 | 19 | 183 | 141 | 33 | 9 | .795 | Chattanooga (1925–1928), Alabama (1931–1946) |
Chris Petersen | 2006 | 2019 | 14 | 185 | 147 | 38 | 0 | .795 | Boise State (2006–2013), Washington (2014–2019) |
Harold Burry † | 1952 | 1971 | 20 | 163 | 127 | 31 | 5 | .794 | Westminster (PA) (1952–1971) |
Ted Kessinger † | 1976 | 2003 | 28 | 277 | 219 | 57 | 1 | .792 | Bethany (KS) (1976–2003) |
Matt Mitchell | 2010 | 2022 | 13 | 148 | 117 | 31 | 0 | .791 | Grand Valley State (2010–2022) |
John Tucker | 1933 | 1947 | 12 | 103 | 77 | 17 | 9 | .791 | Arkansas Tech (1933–1947) |
Allen H. Zikmund | 1955 | 1971 | 17 | 155 | 121 | 31 | 3 | .790 | Nebraska–Kearney (1955–1971) |
Pete Schmidt | 1983 | 1996 | 14 | 135 | 105 | 27 | 3 | .789 | Albion (1983–1996) |
Mike Drass | 1993 | 2017 | 25 | 291 | 229 | 61 | 1 | .789 | Wesley (DE) (1993–2017) |
Ad Rutschman † | 1968 | 1991 | 24 | 234 | 183 | 48 | 3 | .788 | Linfield (1968–1991) |
Henry L. Williams † | 1891 | 1921 | 23 | 187 | 141 | 34 | 12 | .786 | Army (1891), Minnesota (1900–1921) |
Norris Patterson | 1950 | 1967 | 23 | 175 | 133 | 33 | 9 | .786 | William Jewell (1950–1967) |
Gil Dobie † | 1906 | 1938 | 33 | 242 | 182 | 45 | 15 | .783 | North Dakota Agricultural (1906–1907), Washington (1908–1916), Navy (1917–1919), Cornell (1920–1935), Boston College (1936–1938) |
John Wristen | 2008 | 2022 | 14 | 169 | 133 | 37 | 0 | .782 | CSU–Pueblo (2008–2022) |
Bear Bryant † | 1945 | 1982 | 38 | 425 | 323 | 85 | 17 | .780 | Maryland (1945), Kentucky (1946–1953), Texas A&M (1954–1957), Alabama (1958–1982) |
Jim Sochor † | 1970 | 1988 | 19 | 202 | 156 | 41 | 5 | .780 | UC Davis (1970–1988) |
Bill Edwards † | 1936 | 1968 | 23 | 221 | 168 | 45 | 8 | .778 | Western Reserve (1936–1940), Vanderbilt (1949–1952), Wittenberg (1955–1968) |
Bo Schembechler † | 1963 | 1989 | 27 | 307 | 234 | 65 | 8 | .775 | Miami (OH) (1963–1968), Michigan (1969–1989) |
John Gagliardi † | 1949 | 2012 | 64 | 638 | 489 | 138 | 11 | .775 | Carroll (MT) (1949–1952), Saint John's (MN) (1953–2012) |
Fred Folsom | 1895 | 1915 | 19 | 141 | 106 | 29 | 6 | .773 | Colorado (1895–1899, 1901–1902, 1908–1915), Dartmouth (1903–1906) |
Curt Cignetti | 2011 | 2023 | 13 | 154 | 119 | 35 | 0 | .773 | IUP (2011–2016), Elon (2017–2018), James Madison (2019–2023), Indiana (2024–present) |
Ken Sparks | 1980 | 2016 | 36 | 439 | 338 | 99 | 2 | .772 | Carson–Newman (1980–2016) |
Roger Harring † | 1969 | 1999 | 31 | 343 | 261 | 75 | 7 | .771 | Wisconsin–La Crosse (1969–1999) |
Rod Sandberg | 2014 | 2023 | 10 | 96 | 74 | 22 | 0 | .771 | Whitworth (2014–present) |
Clark Swisher | 1946 | 1968 | 22 | 192 | 146 | 42 | 4 | .771 | Northern State (1946–1955, 1957–1968) |
Bill Cronin | 1997 | 2021 | 25 | 283 | 204 | 61 | 0 | .770 | Georgetown (KY) (1997–2021) |
Volney Ashford † | 1937 | 1967 | 31 | 264 | 197 | 55 | 12 | .769 | Missouri Valley (1937–1946) |
Jim Purtill | 1982 | 2013 | 16 | 170 | 130 | 39 | 1 | .768 | Salem (1982), St. Norbert (1999–2013) |
Fritz Crisler † | 1930 | 1947 | 18 | 157 | 116 | 32 | 9 | .768 | Minnesota (1930–1931), Princeton (1932–1937), Michigan (1938–1947) |
Bob Folwell | 1909 | 1924 | 16 | 144 | 106 | 29 | 9 | .767 | Lafayette (1909–1911), Washington & Jefferson (1912–1915), Penn (1916–1919), Navy (1920–1924) |
Wallace Wade † | 1923 | 1950 | 24 | 230 | 171 | 49 | 10 | .765 | Alabama (1923–1930), Duke (1931–1941, 1946–1950) |
Jeff McMartin | 2004 | 2023 | 20 | 203 | 155 | 48 | 0 | .764 | Central (IA) (2004–present) |
Jimmie Keeling | 1990 | 2010 | 21 | 225 | 172 | 53 | 0 | .764 | Hardin–Simmons (1990–2010) |
Frank Kush † | 1958 | 1979 | 22 | 231 | 176 | 54 | 1 | .764 | Arizona State (1958–1979) |
Chris Oliver | 2010 | 2023 | 14 | 160 | 122 | 38 | 0 | .763 | Lindsey Wilson (2010–2021), Georgetown (KY) (2022–present) |
Gordon Kirkland | 1934 | 1948 | 14 | 145 | 107 | 31 | 7 | .762 | Catawba (1934–1948) |
Dan McGugin † | 1904 | 1934 | 30 | 271 | 197 | 55 | 19 | .762 | Vanderbilt (1904–1917, 1919–1934) |
Jim Crowley † [n 3] | 1929 | 1941 | 13 | 109 | 78 | 21 | 10 | .761 | Michigan State (1928–1932), Fordham (1933–1941) |
Andy Smith † | 1909 | 1925 | 17 | 161 | 116 | 32 | 13 | .761 | Penn (1909–1912), Purdue (1913–1915), California (1916–1925) |
Tony DeCarlo | 1987 | 1998 | 12 | 131 | 90 | 27 | 4 | .760 | John Carroll (1987–1998) |
Woody Hayes † | 1946 | 1978 | 33 | 320 | 238 | 72 | 10 | .759 | Denison (1946–1948), Miami (OH) (1949–1950), Ohio State (1951–1978) |
Earl Blaik † | 1934 | 1958 | 25 | 228 | 166 | 48 | 14 | .759 | Dartmouth (1934–1940), Army (1941–1958) |
John Merritt † | 1952 | 1983 | 32 | 321 | 237 | 72 | 12 | .757 | Jackson State (1952–1962), Tennessee State (1963–1983) |
Ed Sherman † | 1945 | 1966 | 22 | 191 | 141 | 43 | 7 | .757 | Muskingum (1945–1966) |
Curt Wiese | 2006 | 2023 | 12 | 140 | 106 | 34 | 0 | .757 | Marietta (2006–2007), Minnesota–Duluth (2013–present) |
Charley Moran | 1909 | 1933 | 18 | 168 | 121 | 35 | 12 | .756 | Texas A&M (1909–1914), Centre (1919–1923), Bucknell (1924–1926), Catawba (1930–1933) |
John Luckhardt † | 1982 | 2011 | 27 | 319 | 240 | 77 | 2 | .755 | Washington & Jefferson (1982–1998), California (PA) (2002–2011) |
Frosty Westering † | 1962 | 2003 | 40 | 406 | 303 | 96 | 7 | .755 | Parsons (IA) (1962–1963), Lea (1966–1971), Pacific Lutheran (1972–2003) |
Danny Hale | 1984 | 2012 | 25 | 283 | 213 | 69 | 1 | .754 | West Chester (1984–1988), Bloomsburg (1993–2012) |
Lloyd Carr | 1995 | 2007 | 13 | 162 | 122 | 40 | 0 | .753 | Michigan (1995–2007) |
Earl Banks † | 1960 | 1973 | 14 | 129 | 96 | 31 | 2 | .752 | Morgan State (1960–1973) |
Jerome Berg | 1956 | 1966 | 11 | 84 | 62 | 20 | 2 | .750 | Mayville State (1956–1966) |
Chris Klieman | 2005 | 2023 | 11 | 148 | 111 | 37 | 0 | .750 | Loras (2005), North Dakota State (2014–2019), Kansas State (2019–present) |
Allyn McKeen † | 1937 | 1948 | 11 | 106 | 78 | 25 | 3 | .750 | West Tennessee State (1937–1938), Mississippi State (1939–1948) |
Note: As of the end of the 2010 season, Jim Tressel, who served as the head football coach for Youngstown State (1986–2000) and Ohio State (2001–2010), had a career record of 241–79–2 for a winning percentage of .752. In July 2011, Ohio State vacated all 12 of its wins from the 2010 season, dropping Tressel's career record to 229–79–2 and his winning percentage to .742.
Name | First year | Last year | Years | Games | Wins | Losses | Ties | Win % | Teams |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Kalen DeBoer | 2005 | 2023 | 9 | 116 | 104 | 12 | 0 | .897 | Sioux Falls (2005–2009), Fresno State (2020–2021), Washington (2022–2023), Alabama (2024–present) |
Duke Greco | 2014 | 2023 | 9 | 106 | 91 | 15 | 0 | .858 | Delaware Valley (2014–present) |
Kirby Smart | 2016 | 2023 | 8 | 110 | 94 | 16 | 0 | .855 | Georgia (2016–present) |
Lincoln Riley | 2017 | 2023 | 7 | 92 | 74 | 18 | 0 | .804 | Oklahoma (2017–2021), USC (2022–present) |
Mike Jacobs | 2016 | 2023 | 8 | 91 | 74 | 17 | 0 | .813 | Notre Dame (OH) (2016–2019), Lenoir–Rhyne (2020–2023), Mercer (2024–present) |
Tony Annese | 2012 | 2023 | 9 | 153 | 123 | 30 | 0 | .804 | Ferris State (2012–present) |
Todd Hoffner | 1999 | 2023 | 20 | 234 | 173 | 61 | 0 | .739 | Wisconsin–Eau Claire (1999–2005), Minnesota State (2008–2011, 2014–present) |
Jim Hilvert | 2007 | 2023 | 13 | 148 | 109 | 39 | 0 | .736 | Thomas More (2007–2014), Baldwin Wallace (2017–present) |
The main list set forth above is limited to coaches with 10 years of experience as a head coach. This list supplements the main list by identifying coaches who are omitted from the main list because they have not coached 10 years, but who have achieved a winning percentage of .850 or higher while coaching a minimum of five seasons or 50 games.
Name | First year | Last year | Years | Games | Wins | Losses | Ties | Win % | Teams |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Vince Kehres | 2013 | 2019 | 7 | 101 | 95 | 6 | 0 | .941 | Mount Union (2013–2019) |
Walter Camp | 1888 | 1895 | 7 | 87 | 79 | 5 | 3 | .925 | Yale (1888–1892), Stanford (1892, 1894–1895) |
Joe Woodley | 2019 | 2023 | 5 | 63 | 58 | 5 | 0 | .921 | Grand View (2019–present) |
Robert B. Redman | 1947 | 1951 | 5 | 42 | 38 | 4 | 0 | .905 | Bloomsburg (1947–1951) |
Charles Tambling | 1902 | 1918 | 5 | 20 | 18 | 2 | 0 | .900 | Central Michigan (1902–1905, 1918) |
Kalen DeBoer | 2005 | 2023 | 9 | 116 | 104 | 12 | 0 | .897 | Sioux Falls (2005–2009), Fresno State (2020–2021), Washington (2022–2023), Alabama (2024–present) |
Samuel Archer | 1905 | 1915 | 8 | 42 | 35 | 2 | 5 | .893 | Morehouse (1905–1908, 1912–1915) |
Ron Erhardt | 1966 | 1972 | 7 | 69 | 61 | 7 | 1 | .891 | North Dakota State (1966–1972) |
Jeff Thorne | 2015 | 2021 | 6 | 76 | 66 | 10 | 0 | .868 | North Central (IL) (2015–2021) |
Jay Cottone | 1981 | 1985 | 5 | 53 | 46 | 7 | 0 | .868 | Plymouth State (1981–1985) |
Kevin Bullis | 2015 | 2022 | 8 | 91 | 78 | 13 | 0 | .857 | Wisconsin–Whitewater (2015–2022) |
Duke Greco | 2014 | 2023 | 9 | 106 | 91 | 15 | 0 | .858 | Delaware Valley (2014–present) |
Walter C. Booth | 1900 | 1905 | 6 | 63 | 53 | 8 | 2 | .857 | Nebraska (1900–1905) |
Kirby Smart | 2016 | 2023 | 8 | 110 | 94 | 16 | 0 | .855 | Georgia (2016–present) |
John Macklin | 1911 | 1915 | 5 | 34 | 29 | 5 | 0 | .853 | Michigan State (1911–1915) |
Robert Cleckler Bowden was an American college football coach. Bowden coached the Florida State Seminoles of Florida State University (FSU) from 1976 to 2009 and is considered one of the greatest college football coaches of all time for his accomplishments with the Seminoles.
James Patrick Tressel is an American college football coach and university administrator who served as president of Youngstown State University in Youngstown, Ohio from 2014 to 2023. Before becoming an administrator, Tressel was the head football coach of the Youngstown State Penguins and later the Ohio State Buckeyes in a career that spanned from 1986 until 2010. Tressel's teams earned several national championships during the course of his career, earning him numerous accolades.
Ronald Maurice "Skip" Schipper was an American football coach and college athletics administrator. He served as the head football coach at Central College in Pella, Iowa from 1961 to 1996, compiling a record of 287–67–3. His 1974 Central Dutch football team won a NCAA Division III football championship. Schipper was inducted into the College Football Hall of Fame in 2000.
Larry Kehres is an American college football coach and college athletics administrator. He is the quarterbacks coach for the University of Mount Union, a position he has held since 2023. He was the head football coach at Mount Union for 27 seasons from 1986 to 2012. Kehres retired from coaching in May 2013 with a record of 332–24–3 and a winning percentage of .929, the highest in college football history. Kehres also has the most national titles, conference titles (23), and unbeaten regular seasons (21) of any coach in college football history. His Purple Raiders set the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) football record for most consecutive victories with 55, running from 2000 to 2003. He was succeeded as head football coach by his son, Vince. The elder Kehres was also the athletic director at Mount Union from 1985 to 2020. He was inducted into the College Football Hall of Fame in 2017.
The Youngstown State Penguins football team represents Youngstown State University in American college football. Youngstown State currently plays as a member of the NCAA at the NCAA Division I Football Championship Subdivision and are a member of the Missouri Valley Football Conference (MVFC). The Penguins have played their home games in Stambaugh Stadium, more commonly called "The Ice Castle," since 1982.