SEC Spring Meetings Are Here, So It's Time To Rank All 16 Football Coaches | Glenn Guilbeau

Nick Saban is gone, partly because he grew sick of the Transfer Portal and NIL, like so many of us, and retired. Jimbo Fisher is also gone, but it wasn't his decision. And he remains in the portal with enough buyout income to fund a small conference's NIL.

Steve Sarkisian at Texas and Brent Venables at Oklahoma enter the Southeastern Conference this season as the league expanded from 14 to 16.

For the first time since the 2006 season, college football coaches will not have Nick Saban to worry about losing to again. (Getty Images)

There are three coaches at new jobs in the league. Washington's Kalen DeBoer will try to replace the Saban Legend at Alabama, where he won six national championships from 2009 through 2020 and made three other championship games. Mike Elko left Duke to replace Fisher at Texas A&M for a much smaller NIL hit, and Jeff Lebby left the offensive coordinator post at Oklahoma for Mississippi State.

The elite league did not win the national title last season after a stretch of four straight by three programs (Georgia 2021, ‘22, Alabama 2020, and LSU 2019). SEC coaches' jobs did just get easier. Their chances of not getting fired have improved because their chances of reaching the playoffs have improved with the College Football Playoff now up to 12 teams from four.

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With the SEC Spring Meetings opening in Destin, Florida, Tuesday, here are the latest SEC Football Coach Rankings from No. 1 through now No. 16:

Georgia coach Kirby Smart is No. 1 in the rankings for the second straight year. (Getty Images)

1. KIRBY SMART, GEORGIA - The new Nick Saban at just age 48. He already has won two national championships and would have had a chance for three in a row in a more normal season as his only loss last season was in the SEC Championship Game to Saban. In a season with fewer undefeated teams, he would have reached the four-team CFP. Count on him to challenge for the national title this season with quarterback Carson Beck back for his senior season. Beck is the top returning quarterback for 2024 after finishing No. 8 in passing efficiency last season at 167.9 with 3,941 yards, 24 touchdowns and only six interceptions. Saban was already 52 when he won his first national title at LSU in 2003 and 69 when he won his seventh and last one in 2020 at Alabama. Smart will keep contending for titles as he is not a slave to the short-sighted portal, but he's not as resistant to it as Clemson's Dabo Swinney, who is suffering for it. Smart wisely still gets most of his players the old-fashioned way - pre-2021 - through excellent recruiting of mostly non-transfers, aka high school kids. Last Year: No. 1.

New Alabama coach Kalen DeBoer won immediately at Fresno State and Washington and will do the same at Alabama. (Getty Images)

2. KALEN DEBOER, ALABAMA - Alabama fans may fear they may soon be like everybody else in college football without Saban. And that may be true. But Alabama will be better this season on offense and particularly early in the season. DeBoer, 49, is an offensive coordinator and will be much better at that with his co-coordinators Nick Sheridan and JaMarcus Shephard than Tommy Rees was last year. Quarterback Jalen Milroe ended last season much better than he started it, and will continue to improve under DeBoer as Michael Penix Jr. did. DeBoer took over a 4-8 Fresno State team from 2019 and improved it to 9-3 after a 3-3 COVID campaign in 2020. When he took over Washington before the 2022 season, the Huskies were coming off a 4-8 and 3-6 season. He went 11-2 and 7-2 before the best season in Washington history last year at 14-1 and 9-0 and a national champion runner-up finish. Oh, and yes it was NAIA, but DeBoer was 56-1 with three national championships from 2006-09 at Sioux Falls. He was the best candidate out there when he went to Alabama. The problem is, DeBoer could be great at Alabama, but never win half of the titles Saban did. Last Year: Not in SEC.   

3. LANE KIFFIN, OLE MISS - This poll weighs heavily on how much the coach improves what he inherited. In 2020, Kiffin, 49, took over an Ole Miss program coming off three losing seasons and a .500 campaign. In just his second season, he set the school record for regular season wins with 10. Then last year, Ole Miss went 11-2 for its most wins in a whole season ever. Florida Atlantic was 3-9 for three straight years before Kiffin arrived in 2017 and went 11-3, then 10-3 in 2019. People forget how good Kiffin was in one season at Tennessee in 2009 as well. He took over a 5-7 and 3-5 team from Phillip Fulmer's last year and went 7-6 and 4-4. Not great, but no one did better at Tennessee until six years later. He is an offensive mastermind who could out-coach several current NFL head coaches, and it's amazing he's not in that league. Still, he understands how important it is to have a good running game and a defense. He doesn't like recruiting and likes to talk about how the portal and NIL are like NFL free agency. Yet, he is one of the best at the portal there is. And he has his most talented team ready for the 2024 season, just in time for the 12-team CFP. Look for Kiffin to finally start winning big games with junior quarterback Jaxson Dart, a portal add after 2021, make the national championship game this season, and maybe beat Ohio State for the title. Last Year: No. 6. 

OPINION: 2023 SEC Coaches' Rankings

4. STEVE SARKISIAN, TEXAS - Another offensive wizard like Kiffin, Sarkisian, 50, took Texas to the playoffs for the first time last year since the 2009 season when the Longhorns fell to Saban and Alabama in the national title game. His 12-2 record last year was Texas' best since that same season. The most previous coach Tom Herman won was 10 in 2018 amid mediocrity. Sarkisian also turned in four winning seasons at Washington from 2010-13 after the Huskies had five straight losing seasons, including an 0-12 in 2008. Sarkisian defeated some inner demons that went public during a forgettable run at USC in 2014 and 15, but he rebuilt himself - also like Kiffin as an offensive coordinator at Alabama - and with the Atlanta Falcons. A West Coast quarterback guru - yes like Kiffin - Sarkisian will again contend for a national title this season with Quinn Ewers. And look out for 2025 when a Manning returns to the SEC by the name of Arch. SEC should've looked ahead and put Ole Miss on the Longhorns' schedule. Last Year: Not in SEC.

LSU coach Brian Kelly needs drastic improvement on defense. (Getty Images)

5. BRIAN KELLY, LSU - Some luster is off the former Notre Dame coach who came to LSU for a better chance at winning a national championship than in South Bend. But Kelly missed a golden chance last year with one of the best offenses in college football history behind Heisman Trophy winning quarterback Jayden Daniels - the No. 2 pick of the 2024 NFL Draft. LSU finished No. 1 in total offense at 543.5 yards and No. 1 in scoring with 45 points a game. But the final record was only 10-3 and 6-2 because the defense was terrible - No. 115 against the pass (255.6 a game) and No. 105 in total yards allowed (416.6 a game). Kelly fired DC Matt House, who was not that good the year before either at No. 40 in total defense (354 a game). Kelly should have realized his issues soooner. He also needs to recruit better on defense. Considering the defensive talent that is in the state, LSU should never be so bad on defense and shouldn't need transfers from average programs. Kelly was able to get hot defensive coordinator Blake Baker away from Missouri, but he still will need better players. And the offense will likely not be nearly as good as last year with new quarterback Garrett Nussmeier, who has the arm but tends to be erratic. Kelly appears to be doing well at LSU with a West title and win over Alabama in his first year in 2022 (10-4, 6-2). But of his seven losses in two seasons, five have come by an average of three touchdowns. Kelly returned Notre Dame as close to its glory days as anyone has with five double-digit win seasons and three playoff appearances. But at 62 and not a fan of recruiting or the NIL and portal, can he keep up in this NIL-Portal world with a bevy of talented, likely hungrier and more energetic SEC coaches in their 40s and early 50s? Last Year: No. 4.

6. JOSH HEUPEL, TENNESSEE - Another rising coach who is just 46 and on Kelly's heels. Heupel took a dip last year to 9-4 and 4-4 from a breakthrough 11-2 and 6-2 season at Tennessee in 2022, which was the Vols' best since 2001. Quarterback Joe Milton was a disappointment last season. Now, the future is 6-foot-6 Nico Iamaleava - the No. 2 quarterback in the nation from the 2023 class out of Downey, California. If Iamaleava delivers, and the defense continues to improve from a No. 126 finish against the pass in 2022, Heupel could move up. Last Year: No. 3.

7. ELI DRINKWITZ, MISSOURI - Just as he was on the hot seat last season, Drinkwitz, 41, exploded with Missouri's best season in a decade at 11-2 and 6-2. He had gone 6-7 and 3-5 the two previous seasons after a 5-5 mark in the COVID 2020 season after inheriting a 6-6 team. He made the biggest jump in this poll - up six spots. The problem for Missouri is, if Drinkwitz keeps winning in double digits or close to it, someone else may get him. Last Year: No. 13.

8. MARK STOOPS, KENTUCKY - Two mediocre seasons of 7-6 and 3-5 have followed what was Stoops' second 10-win season - a rarity at Kentucky. In a newly tougher conference with more recruiting challenges than usual for him in a basketball state, Stoops, 56, may have had his last 10-win season. Last Year: No. 5.

9. HUGH FREEZE, AUBURN - He worked magic at Ole Miss, eventually going 9-4 and 5-3 and 10-3 and 6-2 in 2014 and ‘15 with two wins over Alabama after taking over a program that was 6-16 in the two seasons before him. But he was sort of the Will Wade of college football. There are no less than four NCAA asterisks next to his 2012-16 seasons for vacated wins by NCAA rulings on recruiting and other violations. He did OK at his Liberty purgatory - 34-15 in four seasons. But it was Liberty. In his first season at Auburn, Freeze, 54, was 6-7 and 3-5, which was only one win better than Bryan Harsin’s last season. Gus Malzahn got fired after going 6-5 in 2020, and no one has won more games than that since. Maybe with Saban gone, Auburn can return to its playoff glory years of 2010 (national championship) and 2013 (national runner-up)? Doubtful. The league is much better now than when Freeze left Ole Miss in disgrace. Last Year: No. 7.

10. MIKE ELKO, TEXAS A&M - One of the nation's best defensive coordinators at Texas A&M and previously at Notre Dame, Elko, 46, showed promise as Duke's head coach, going 9-4 and 5-3 in 2022 for the best season in Durham since 2014. That after inheriting a team that went 3-9 and 0-8 and 2-9 and 1-9 the two previous seasons. There was a dip to 7-5 and 4-4 last year, but he lost three by a touchdown or less. Problem is the Aggies need offense, and the SEC is much better than the ACC. Last Year: Not in SEC.

11. BRENT VENABLES, OKLAHOMA - Another great defensive coordinator, but this is the age of offensive coordinator head coaching hires. Venables, 53, recovered to a 10-3 and 7-2 season last year after a terrible start at 6-7 and 3-6 in 2022. That after inheriting a program that had reached the playoffs three times and averaged an 11-2 season under previous coach Lincoln Riley. Last Year: Not in SEC.

12. SAM PITTMAN, ARKANSAS - The league and the portal and NIL may be passing Pittman, 62, by. Since going 9-4 and 4-4 in 2021 for Arkansas' best season since 2011, Pittman went 7-6 and 3-5 and 4-8 and 1-7. He was fortunate to keep his job after last season. Last Year: No. 8.

Florida coach Billy Napier was a hot coach when he was at the University of Louisiana in 2020 and '21. (Getty Images)

13. BILLY NAPIER, FLORIDA - Napier is not the only problem at Florida, which has struggled with NIL as much or more than any major brand in college football. Make that former major brand. But he is a big part of it. Napier couldn't even get to .500 in his first two seasons at 6-7 and 3-5 and 5-7 and 3-5, and it could get worse. He inherited a 6-7 and 2-6 team from previous coach Dan Mullen, who was fired after a 5-6 start in 2021, and Napier has kept the program right there. Once a rising coach from the Saban tree, Napier, 44, was 40-12 at Louisiana from 2018-21. He actually turned down multiple SEC head coaching jobs before taking Florida. Only a miracle will keep him at Florida much longer. Last Year: No. 12.

14.  SHANE BEAMER, SOUTH CAROLINA - Other than Lou Holtz and Steve Spurrier, South Carolina has had a bunch of Shane Beamers. They hover around .500 at best for the most part - Sparky Woods and Brad Scott in the 1990s and Will Muschamp from 2016-20. Beamer, 47, appears headed for a similar fate soon as he has gone 7-6, 8-5 and 5-7. Last Year: No. 9.

15. JEFF LEBBY, MISSISSIPPI STATE - They may not admit it loud enough for anyone to hear, but Bulldog fans are hoping some of Lane Kiffin can rub off on Lebby, a 40-year-old who was his offensive coordinator and quarterbacks coach by title in 2020 and '21. Last Year: Not in SEC.

16. CLARK LEA, VANDERBILT - Somebody has to be the coach at Vanderbilt. After a promising 5-7 season in 2022, Lea, 42, fell to 2-10 and 0-8 last year, matching his first season. I used to suggest Vanderbilt just cheat like it's the 1980s, and Charley Pell is your coach. No NCAA sanctions could have made it worse than it already was. But now, everyone can do that legally. Last Year: No. 11. 

(Agree? Disagree? Send me your own SEC coaches rankings 1-16 via email at glenn.guilbeau@outkick.com or via X @SportBeatTweet.)