First…a link.
1. John Wooden, college basketball
Sure, why not?
2. Vince Lombardi, NFL
3. Bear Bryant, college football
4. Phil Jackson, NBA
5. Don Shula, NFL
6. Red Auerbach, NBA
7. Scotty Bowman, NHL
8. Dean Smith, college basketball
9. Casey Stengel, MLB
10. Knute Rockne, college football
I’d argue that Shula is overrated because he really wasn’t a great innovator and never really managed to get the most out of his teams aside from that one perfect year when the NFL’s talent base was putridly awful. But he’s got the most wins of any NFL coach, so I guess it’s ok at best.
Knute Rockne tho? Really? I mean, yea he was a foundation figure in college football, but really? I’m just not overwhelmed at all. But still…this isn’t egregious or anything, so we’ll allow it.
11. Pat Summitt, women’s college basketball
12. Paul Brown, NFL
13. Joe Paterno, college football
14. George Halas, NFL
15. Chuck Noll, NFL
16. Bob Knight, college basketball
17. Joe Gibbs, NFL
18. Tom Landry, NFL
19. Mike Krzyzewski, college basketball
20. Bill Belichick, NFL
Pat Fucking Summitt at 11? You have GOT to be kidding me. I’m going to say it…there’s NO FUCKING REASON ON EARTH why a women’s basketball coach should be on this list no matter what. It’s simply FAR to easy to succeed in women’s college basketball because a) there’s like no fucking talent at all and b) any talent there is chooses one of two schools. Wow…way to go Pat. You get the best recruits and beat the fuck out the schools you stole them from…AWESOME JOB!!! Pat Summitt doesn’t belong in the top 100, let alone the top 20, and there’s nothing you can do to persuade me to think otherwise.
How the hell is Paul Brown so low? Have you SEEN his coaching tree? Do you have any idea how different the NFL would be today without Paul Brown’s innovations? Think about it…Bill Walsh developed his offensive system that became the West Coast Offense philosophy (not scheme) from Paul Brown’s offense, and considering that EVERY NFL team uses some form of this philosophy, isn’t it right to say that Paul Brown’s fingerprint is all over today’s NFL? Brown dominated his era like few others have, and his impact is still felt today…yet Shula, who really brought nothing to the table, is worthy of a top 10 while Brown gets ignored? Please.
Chuck Noll is way too high on this list too. Yes, he has four Super Bowl rings, but how hard was that to do in the pre-salary cap era when he had a roster with like 40 fucking Hall of Famers on it? I’m saying he shouldn’t be this high due to the Pat Summitt corollary.
Both Belichick and Bob Knight should be way higher. I’d say Belichick might be the no. 1 overall coach in history, but that’s just the opinion of a young whippersnapper.
21. Adolph Rupp, college basketball
22. Joe McCarthy, MLB
23. Eddie Robinson, college football
24. Bobby Bowden, college football
25. John McGraw, MLB
26. Bill Walsh, NFL
27. Woody Hayes, college football
28. Connie Mack, MLB
29. Bud Wilkinson, college football
30. Pat Riley, NBA
Two big issues with this group…
Bill Walsh should be in the top 10, no doubt about it. This is borderline criminal to see him at 26.
Pat Riley shouldn’t sniff this list as another victim of the Pat Summitt corollary. Riley was given Hall of Famers at every starting position, yet we’re celebrating his awesomeness? Why not look at his track record since…his Knicks teams ushered in the era of the unwatchable NBA where games that ended up with both teams in the 60’s were the norm. Then his Heat teams take this to the next level, making an already awful product that much worse. His track record as a personnel guy is laughably bad to the point where, if it weren’t for one lucky year where Bennett Salvatore gifted the Heat a title, he’d be an absolute laughingstock on the level of Isiah Thomas.
31. Pete Newell, college basketball
32. Joe Torre, MLB
33. Bill Parcells, NFL
34. Tom Osborne, college football
35. Walter Alston, MLB
36. Bo Schembechler, college football
37. Toe Blake, NHL
38. Sparky Anderson, MLB
39. Al Arbour, NHL
40. Amos Alonzo Stagg, college football
Parcells NEEDS to be higher considering his efforts in rebuilding awful teams. There are few better coaches in history than Parcells, and in my opinion, he belongs near the top of the NFL list, right behind Belichick, Walsh and Brown (in that order) and right in front of Shula.
Bo Schembechler, for all his good work at Michigan, doesn’t belong on this list. I’m not saying this as an Ohio State fan, I’m saying this as an objective critic who realizes that Bo never won a Rose Bowl and never won a National Championship. He was college football’s Andy Reid with better clock management skills and an outsized aura. But as a coach? Nope…doesn’t belong. I’d put Urban Meyer on this list before I put Schembechler, and that’s saying something.
41. Tony La Russa, MLB
42. Geno Auriemma, women’s college basketball
43. Dick Irvin, NHL
44. Ara Parseghian, college football
45. Chuck Daly, NBA
46. Bobby Cox, MLB
47. Hank Iba, college basketball
48. Tommy Lasorda, MLB
49. Gregg Popovich, NBA
50. Herb Brooks, NHL
Tona LaRussa and Greg Popvich should both be top 30 without even thinking about it. Why are they down this low? I have no fucking idea. Why is Bobby Cox on this list at all? I didn’t realize that bitching up a storm, getting thrown out of games, and squandering massive amounts of talent was worthy of being a top 50 coach of all time. But that’s just me.
Oh, and what’d I say about women’s college basketball coaches. Geno, a “toucher” if I’ve ever seen one, belongs nowhere near this list at all.
Pretty shitty list if you ask me. And I should know, I’m the list master.
Thoughts?
JoePa still has plenty of time to pass Summitt.
Someone please explain to me how John Heisman isn’t on this list.
I’m glad you’re the one who said Belichick should be number 1 and not me.
/because he should be
No way he competes with Noll or Walsh. Video cameras were just way to bulky back then, and the picture quality was atrocious.
i don’t really see how anyone could argue otherwise. in the era of extreme parity and the restrictions on the salary cap, belichick has created a dynasty that rivals any in NFL history. his schemes are brilliant, fucking brilliant, on both sides of the ball, and he gets the most out of every player on his roster (except for laurence maroney…which confuses me).
and don’t give me the cheating bullshit either…noll’s steeler teams had more roids in their system than a team full of ben johnsons and barry bondses.
Also, why does Noll deserve to be bumped because he had hall of famers, but Walsh should be top 10, even though he was loaded with hall of famers as well?
belichick would coach circles around noll…noll’s schemes were fucking prehistoric.
walsh vs. belichick would be theater for the ages provided walsh had the advantage of today’s elite athlete.
Rodney Harrison approves this message.
different era.
you had players from opposing teams fearing for their safety because the steelers of that era were so juiced up. that’s fucking gay…and typical PIT.
that goes hand in hand.