College Football Rankings: ESPN ranks Top 10 head coaches for 2025 season

The start of the 2025 college football season is still three months away. And with most coaches and players currently enjoying their Summer offseason, it’s officially Ranking Season.

With that in mind, ESPN unveiled its ranking of college football’s Top 10 head coaches based on a survey of its own experts. And, as should be expected, there was a clear runaway winner at No. 1 — Georgia‘s Kirby Smart, who won back-to-back College Football Playoff national championships in 2021-22. The sport’s two other active coaches with at least one national title on their resume — last season’s champ, Ohio State coach Ryan Day, and Clemson‘s Dabo Swinney — rounded out ESPN’s Top 3.

Beyond that, though, there was a wide range of opinions, as the 12 ESPN experts each utilized a diverse standard of what makes someone a Top 10-worthy head coach.

Check out ESPN’s Top 10 college football head coaches ahead of 2025 season:

1. Kirby Smart, Georgia

As one of just two active head coaches with multiple national titles to their credit, the 49-year-old Smart received 11 of the 12 potential first-place votes to run away with the No. 1 spot. With a career coaching record of 105-19 in nine seasons at Georgia, Smart needs just five wins in 2025 to eclipse legendary Oklahoma coach Bob Stoops for second-most all-time wins through his first 10 seasons.

ESPN’s Mark Schlabach cited Smart’s 20 first-round NFL draft picks compared to just 19 career losses for the honor, adding that only back-to-back national championships for Day will be enough to knock the Bulldogs headman off his No. 1 pedestal.

2. Ryan Day, Ohio State

Day takes the second spot as the most recent CFP National Champion, quieting the doubters and malcontents with a sensational run through the first 12-team Playoff to win to secure the Buckeyes’ first national title in a decade.

ESPN’s Andrea Adelson was among three voters to rank Day at No. 4 in their personal list, citing his porous 1-4 record against rival Michigan, having lost four straight in the series. Still, Day maintains a .875 career winning percentage, the third-best all-time and best in the AP poll era.

3. Dabo Swinney, Clemson

Outside of Smart, Swinney is college football’s only other two-time national champion-winning coach and lands at third in this ranking. That is due in large part to his history of success as opposed to Clemson’s recent struggles — 2024 ACC title notwithstanding.

Nevertheless, Swinney is 180-47 all-time in 17 seasons with the Tigers, and was the perfect foil to Alabama‘s Nick Saban during their CFP championship back-and-forth during the late 2010s. That included knocking off the Crimson Tide to take home the national title in 2016 and 2018.

4. Marcus Freeman, Notre Dame

At just 39 years old, Freeman is among the youngest coaches on this list and sits more than 20 points behind the Top 3 in ESPN’s tally. Still, fresh off the Fighting Irish’s strong 14-2 run to the CFP title game in 2024, Freeman garnered multiple second-place votes to lead the second tier of coaches.

Freeman enters Year 4 at Notre Dame with a 33-10 career record and has the Irish firmly back in the national title mix following back-to-back double-digit winning seasons. That said, he still has his detractors, with ESPN’s David Hale among two voters to completely omit Freeman from their Top 10.

5. Steve Sarkisian, Texas

Much like Freeman, Sarkisian rounds out ESPN’s Top 5 largely due to his ability to reassert Texas as a legitimate national championship contender after roughly 15 years out of the picture. The Longhorns’ 13-3 record in 2024 tied the program record for most wins in a season (2005 and 2009).

ESPN’s Chris Low was one of two voters to rank Sarkisian at No. 2, citing his place as “one of the game’s top offensive minds,” his recruiting prowess, and Texas’ instant success in Year 1 in the SEC. Suffice it to say, the sky is the limit for the 51-year-old Sarkisian, who is 84-52 all-time in 11 seasons as a head coach.

6. Dan Lanning, Oregon

Lanning is the second 39-year-old on this list and has been a revelation in just three seasons as a head coach, going 35-6 with the Ducks, including an undefeated run and conference championship in Oregon’s first season as a part of the Big Ten.

The Ducks’ 35 wins over the last three seasons are the fourth-most in the FBS during that span, with Lanning asserting himself as one of the hottest names in coaching in a short period of time. Still, he has his doubters, with ESPN’s Bill Connelly leaving Lanning off his personal Top 10 due to his lack of longevity.

7. Kalen DeBoer, Alabama

The second-year Crimson Tide coach leads what could be considered this list’s third tier, receiving 24 points less than Lanning to land at No. 7 overall. But while Year 1 in Tuscaloosa was challenging at times, history is in DeBoer’s favor with a 46-13 career record not counting a 67-3 mark at Sioux Falls (NAIA).

That said, DeBoer received a wide range of votes, with several ESPNers ranking him at No. 4 while others left him completely out of their Top 10. ESPN’s Kyle Bonagura cited DeBoer’s overall track record of success and what that reveals moving forward for including the Alabama coach in his personal Top 5.

8. James Franklin, Penn State

Before last season, Franklin might have been a somewhat controversial addition to this Top 10 list. But after guiding the Nittany Lions to the CFP national semifinals and a runner-up finish in the Big Ten in his third-straight double-digit win season, the 53-year-old lands comfortably in the mix.

Although five ESPN voters left Franklin completely out of their personal Top 10 lists, Connelly had him at No. 5 due in large part to his “Mark Richt-style, success-over-the-long-haul path.” And while he still has issues vs. Ohio State, Franklin’s overall consistency with a 125-57 career record can’t be overlooked.

9. Kyle Whittingham, Utah

The longtime Utes coach is tied with Oklahoma State‘s Mike Gundy as the second-longest tenured head coach in the FBS with 20 seasons in Salt Lake City, trailing only Iowa‘s Kirk Ferentz (26 seasons). And Whittingham has been relatively consistent with a 167-86 record in that span.

ESPN’s Adam Rittenberg was one of just two voters to rank Whittingham as high as No. 5 on their personal lists. He cited Utah’s “remarkable” level of success across four different conferences in the last two decades, including a conference or division title over his last four years as a part of the Pac-12.

10. Matt Campbell, Iowa State

Rounding out ESPN’s Top 10 is another hot name in college football’s annual coaching carousel. Campbell is off the heels of an impressive 11-3 campaign last season to secure the Cyclones’ first-ever double-digit win season.

Hale undoubtedly held Campbell in the highest regard, ranking the 45-year-old coach at No. 4 on his personal ranking due in large part to his ability to turn Iowa State into a somewhat-consistent winner, having won at least seven games in seven of his nine seasons in Ames.

Also receiving votes: Brian Kelly, LSU, 13; Bill Belichick, North Carolina, 10; Curt Cignetti, Indiana, 10; Lance Leipold, Kansas,10; Jeff Monken, Army, 8; Jeff Brohm, Louisville, 6; Kenny Dillingham, Arizona State, 5; Lane Kiffin, Ole Miss, 3; Deion Sanders, Colorado, 3; Josh Heupel, Tennessee, 3; Rhett Lashlee, SMU, 3; Chris Klieman, Kansas State, 1; Kirk Ferentz, Iowa, 1.