Midseason favorites, sleeper candidates for 2022 Coach of the Year for every Power 5 conference
With most schools having six games in the books, we’ve somehow already hit the halfway point of the 2022 college football season.
Time flies when the games are so good, I guess.
So since we’re at the midseason, it’s a perfect time to highlight some of the best candidates for Coach of the Year in each Power 5 conference.
Considering some candidates are obvious, I’ll note my favorites, but also give credit to some sleeper coaches in each conference.
ACC – Coach of the Year
Favorite: Dabo Swinney, Clemson
Sleeper(s): Dino Babers, Syracuse or Dave Clawson, Wake Forest
After a “down” 10-3 season in 2021, Swinney has the Tigers back as a national title contender this fall. This offseason, Swinney had to replace both his coordinators and has reignite quarterback DJ Uiagalelei’s confidence. Thus far, his moves have all paid off.
Still, don’t sleep on the job Babers has done with ‘Cuse. He entered the year on the hot seat, but has the Orange 5-0 and ranked No. 18 nationally. They haven’t played anybody and their schedule is about to get much harder, but if Syracuse finishes the season with eight wins then Babers will get real consideration for ACC Coach of the Year because of preseason expectations.
Same really for Clawson, as the Demon Deacons are 5-1 with a lone overtime loss to Clemson. If they win 10 regular-season games for the second straight year, then Clawson could take home the award for consecutive seasons, too.
Big Ten – Coach of the Year
Favorite: Ryan Day, Ohio State
Sleeper: Bret Bielema, Illinois
Day has the Buckeyes humming, and as the brainchild and play caller for the nation’s most dynamic offense, he’ll be rewarded for Ohio State’s dominance if it wins the league after a hiccup 2021 season.
As for Bielema, he just might take home the hardware if the Fighting Illini surprisingly win a muddled Big Ten West. Illinois is 5-1 this season, sneaking into the back-half of the Top 25 and already exceeding its preseason win total projections.
Big 12 – Coach of the Year
Favorite: Lance Leipold, Kansas
Sleeper: Sonny Dykes, TCU or Mike Gundy, Oklahoma State
Leipold is no stranger to this space, as we’re big fans of the Jayhawks’ second-year head coach. Even if Kansas doesn’t win the Big 12, he seems like a shoe-in for Coach of the Year after racing out to a 5-1 start.
In almost any other year, Dykes would be the midseason favorite after taking over a TCU program that stalled under Gary Patterson. In Year 1 with the Horned Frogs, Dykes has turned Max Duggan into a Heisman Trophy contender and has TCU scored 46.4 points per game.
Similarly, Gundy has just kept things rolling at Oklahoma State. A season after narrowly losing the Big 12 championship with a defense-first led team, Oklahoma State is back to winning shootouts.
Whoever wins the showdown in Dallas on Saturday between TCU and Oklahoma State will have a leg-up on the race for top sleeper candidate.
Pac-12 – Coach of the Year
Favorite: Lincoln Riley, USC
Sleeper: Chip Kelly, UCLA or Dan Lanning, Oregon
It hasn’t take Riley long to already rebrand the Trojans back into LA’s fun, glitzy football team. USC is 6-0 and a darkhorse playoff contender. If the Trojans’ depth can hold up all season, they’re the favorites to win the Pac-12 in Riley’s first year.
Two teams who will have something to stay about that though are UCLA and Oregon, with both coaches legitimate candidates.
Kelly has his best team yet with the Bruins, with their offense looking a lot like his dynamic attacks at Oregon back in the late aughts. Meanwhile, Lanning, a first-year head coach, has rebounded from a rough debut against his former employer, as the Ducks are 5-0 — including three double-digit wins over Power 5 teams — since their blowout loss to Georgia in Week 1. He’s resurrected Bo Nix’s career, and if Oregon wins the conference, Lanning will earn plenty of credit.
SEC – Coach of the Year
Favorite: Josh Heupel, Tennessee
Sleeper: Mike Leach, Mississippi State
Like the Big 12, this one is pretty straightforward at the midseason point.
Many, myself included, liked Tennessee to make a leap in 2022, but in Heupel’s second season he has the Vols in position to compete for the SEC East and a potential College Football Playoff spot. Tennessee looks to have its best team in 15 years, and if it beats Alabama on Saturday, this award is a wrap.
The Year 3 bump has proven true for Leach once again, as the Bulldogs are 5-1 and look like the second-best team in the SEC West. If they upset Alabama or finish 10-2 with a win in the Egg Bowl over a solid Ole Miss squad, then Leach could find himself with another Coach of the Year trophy to go along with his hardware from the Big 12 (2008 with Texas Tech) and Pac-12 (2015, 2018 with Washington State).