Unsurprisingly, Alabama's Nick Saban and Clemson's Dabo Swinney were Nos. 1 and 2, respectively, in CBS Sports' ranking of the top 25 Power Five college football coaches entering the 2021 season. While lead writer Tom Fornelli releases the rankings each season, the results are based on a vote among the CBS Sports staff.
It's undeniable that the two football factories have had immense success during their tenures, and the same goes for Oklahoma's Lincoln Riley at No. 3 and Ohio State's Ryan Day at No. 4, though their time at their respective schools has been brief, in comparison.
And then there is Michigan's Jim Harbaugh, who was in the top 10 of the same rankings heading into his first year in 2015 and then again each of the next two seasons. He was tabbed at No. 12 ahead of the 2020 campaign, but after a 2-4 season, he's fallen to No. 23 prior to his seventh season at the helm in Ann Arbor.
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Despite having his worst season in 2020, Harbaugh has still won 69 percent of his games at Michigan (49-22), including 10-win seasons in three of his six campaigns (three of five that were of a normal length). Michigan's record during his tenure is the fifth-best among Big Ten teams during that span and third-best among teams in the East division, just behind Penn State (53-22) and well behind Ohio State (68-8).
The biggest knock on Harbaugh has been his team's failure to win the Big Ten and appear in the College Football Playoff, and the fact that he has a 11-8 record over the last two seasons after starting out 38-16.
"Like nearly everybody else, my opinion of Harbaugh has dropped in recent years when it comes to these rankings," Fornelli wrote. "I think this might be a little too low, but when it comes to Harbaugh, everything seems embellished one way or the other. I had him at No. 17 on my ballot. I mean, he went 2-4 last season, but Michigan has still been a solid top-20 program during his tenure."
It's important to note how strong Ohio State — in Michigan's division — has been since Harbaugh arrived in 2015, with Day seamlessly stepping in after Urban Meyer unceremoniously resigned following the 2018 campaign, keeping the program's success going at a rate unmatched in the Big Ten.
Fornelli pointed out that one of the main reasons why Harbaugh's stock has fallen since the beginning of his tenure is that he hasn't yet beaten those Buckeyes — a fair criticism. But he had an interesting take on that aspect of the case for Harbaugh, saying that the voters haven't held other Big Ten coaches accountable for their records against Ohio State and other elite programs the same way they do for Michigan's coach.
"The inability to beat Ohio State looms large for obvious reasons, but we don't seem to hold that against other Big Ten coaches like we do Harbaugh," he wrote.
While examining Fornelli's point about Harbaugh and Ohio State further, it's easy to see that it's not just Michigan with the 'Ohio State problem.'
For example, Northwestern's Pat Fitzgerald ranks No. 8 on the list, but he's 0-8 against the Buckeyes and has a win percentage of just 56.6 over his 15 years as the head man in Evanston. His two recent Big Ten West division titles — in 2018 and 2020 — are likely huge reasons why he ranks in the top 10, ahead of Harbaugh, but his strength of schedule has been easier in the West. Fitzgerald has beaten Michigan just once — in 2008, during the Rich Rodriguez years — and has won 62.6 percent of his games during Harbaugh's tenure.
Penn State's James Franklin checked in at No. 13, and it's easier to compare him to Harbaugh. He has won 66.4 percent of his games, but he does have a Big Ten title and a win over Ohio State in 2016. The Nittany Lions have split the six games with Michigan during Harbaugh's tenure, 3-3.
Kirk Ferentz of Iowa slotted 17th, and he has seen success in the West division, having won 71.6 percent of his games over the last six seasons and 58.8 percent of his contests during his tenure, which dates back to 1999. He's 2-8 against Ohio State and has only played the Buckeyes twice since Meyer took over in 2012, though he did beat the Buckeyes in 2017, the most recent meeting between the two programs.
Wisconsin's Paul Chryst ranked No. 18, and Fornelli felt that was low, as he had the Badgers' head man at No. 8 on his personal ballot. Wisconsin has won 74.6 percent of its games during his tenure, which has spanned the same years as Harbaugh's in Ann Arbor, albeit in the weaker division. He is 3-2 against the Wolverines but 0-4 versus Ohio State.
A new name, Indiana's Tom Allen, appeared on the rankings, after he checked in at No. 46 last season. He was tabbed at No. 20 this time around, fresh off a 6-2 campaign. Allen's Hoosiers beat Michigan for the first time since 1987. He is 24-22 overall at Indiana, but he's ascended the program to heights it hasn't seen in decades.
Minnesota's P.J. Fleck was the only other Big Ten coach to be ranked in the top 25, rounding off the list at No. 25.
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