This one I don't know the answer to. Which head coach has beat the most head coaches that have at least 1 FBS national championship as a head coach?

What inspired this question, on the Iowa message boards we have been playing this game. Name all the head coaches that Kirk Ferentz and Hayden Fry have beat that have won FBS national championships. So far we have come up with 7 names for Ferentz and 5 for Fry.

coaches that Kirk Ferentz has beat
Joe Paterno
Jim Tressel
Nick Saban
Steve Spurrier
Urban Meyer
Lloyd Carr
Gene Chizik

And for what it is worth, the list could have been even bigger for Ferentz. Here are some coaches he faced but lost to as a head coach.
Pete Carroll
Mack Brown
Bobby Stoops

So that's the benchmark to beat. 7 coaches. Who is better? I am guessing its probably Paterno, Osborne, Bowden or Saban, but don't know if there is an easy way to look this up.

I know just at Alabama, Nick Saban has 8 wins over title coaches....
Jimbo Fisher
Dabo Swinney
Les Miles
Joe Paterno
Urban Meyer
Steve Spurrier
Mack Brown
Phil Fullmer

This is a good place to start for anyone who wants to check: http://www.jhowell.net/cf/scores/byName.htm

(05-22-2018 12:59 PM)stever20 Wrote:  I know just at Alabama, Nick Saban has 8 wins over title coaches....
Jimbo Fisher
Dabo Swinney
Les Miles
Joe Paterno
Urban Meyer
Steve Spurrier
Mack Brown
Phil Fullmer

Plus Gene Chizik. And if you count LSU he has 10 (he beat Bob Stoops).

(05-22-2018 01:03 PM)Hokie4Skins Wrote:  

(05-22-2018 12:59 PM)stever20 Wrote:  I know just at Alabama, Nick Saban has 8 wins over title coaches....
Jimbo Fisher
Dabo Swinney
Les Miles
Joe Paterno
Urban Meyer
Steve Spurrier
Mack Brown
Phil Fullmer

Plus Gene Chizik. And if you count LSU he has 10 (he beat Bob Stoops).

good one. Also at Michigan St he beat Lloyd Carr so 11. He also got Lou Holtz at LSU so 12.

Looking a bit more-
Lou Holtz- 9-
Jimmy Johnson
Joe Paterno
Bill McCartney
Dennis Erickson
Johnny Majors
Steve Spurrier
Bobby Bowden
John Robinson
LaVell Edwards

Tom Osborne is up there.

Switzer
McCartney
Snellenberger
Holtz
Spurrier
Fulmer
Bryant
Johnson
Royal
Paterno
Saban

And he was 0-2 against Don James and 0-1 versus Danny Ford and Bobby Ross.

Bobby Bowden has beaten:

Dabo Swinney
Nick Saban* (2007 win was later vacated)
Joe Paterno
Steve Spurrier
Mack Brown
Tom Osborne
Johnny Majors
Howard Schnellenberger
Jimmy Johnson
Dennis Erickson
LaVell Edwards
Lou Holtz
John Robinson
Larry Coker
Ben Schwartzwalder
Danny Ford

Osborne had at least 14.

Beat at least once: B. Bowden, M. Brown, Bryant, Erickson, D. Ford, L. Holtz, J. Johnson, B. McCartney, Paterno, Royal, N. Saban, Schnellenberger, Spurrier, Switzer.

Lost to at least once, never beat: D. James.

(05-22-2018 01:34 PM)Wedge Wrote:  Osborne had at least 14.

Beat at least once: B. Bowden, M. Brown, Bryant, Erickson, D. Ford, L. Holtz, J. Johnson, B. McCartney, Paterno, Royal, N. Saban, Schnellenberger, Spurrier, Switzer.

Lost to at least once, never beat: D. James.

He also beat Fulmer in his final game as Nebraska coach.

(05-22-2018 01:38 PM)Hokie4Skins Wrote:  

(05-22-2018 01:34 PM)Wedge Wrote:  Osborne had at least 14.

Beat at least once: B. Bowden, M. Brown, Bryant, Erickson, D. Ford, L. Holtz, J. Johnson, B. McCartney, Paterno, Royal, N. Saban, Schnellenberger, Spurrier, Switzer.

Lost to at least once, never beat: D. James.

He also beat Fulmer in his final game as Nebraska coach.

Yup. So that's 15 for Osborne.

(05-22-2018 01:34 PM)Wedge Wrote:  Osborne had at least 14.

Beat at least once: B. Bowden, M. Brown, Bryant, Erickson, D. Ford, L. Holtz, J. Johnson, B. McCartney, Paterno, Royal, N. Saban, Schnellenberger, Spurrier, Switzer.

Lost to at least once, never beat: D. James.

Mack never coached against Osborne. And Tom was 0-1 against Danny Ford.
http://wally83.tripod.com/toalltime.html

(05-22-2018 01:42 PM)Renandpat Wrote:  

(05-22-2018 01:34 PM)Wedge Wrote:  Osborne had at least 14.

Beat at least once: B. Bowden, M. Brown, Bryant, Erickson, D. Ford, L. Holtz, J. Johnson, B. McCartney, Paterno, Royal, N. Saban, Schnellenberger, Spurrier, Switzer.

Lost to at least once, never beat: D. James.

Mack never coached against Osborne. And Tom was 0-1 against Danny Ford.
http://wally83.tripod.com/toalltime.html

A shrine site for Tom Osborne. LOL.

Anyway, I was counting a win over North Carolina, but that turns out to have been before Mack was there.

And Danny Ford belongs on the second list, not the first, and Bobby Ross should be on the second list.

(By the way, that means Osborne had two consecutive seasons in which his Nebraska team lost to both teams that split the AP and coaches' polls #1s -- Colorado and Georgia Tech in 1990, and Miami and Washington in 1991.)

So it's

Beat at least once: B. Bowden, Bryant, Erickson, Fulmer, L. Holtz, J. Johnson, B. McCartney, Paterno, Royal, N. Saban, Schnellenberger, Spurrier, Switzer.

Lost to at least once, never beat: D. Ford, D. James, B. Ross.

I guess I could try to get it started for Paterno.

Coaches he has beat
Woody Hayes 4-2
Bobby Bowden 6-1
Bear Bryant 1-4
LaVell Edwards 2-1
Tom Osborne 2-3
Lou Holtz 6-5
Johny Majors
Lloyd Carr
Jim Tressel
Vince Dooley
Jimmy Johnson

So that's 11. I am sure there are more.

(05-22-2018 02:39 PM)goofus Wrote:  I guess I could try to get it started for Paterno.

Coaches he has beat
Woody Hayes 4-2
Bobby Bowden 6-1
Bear Bryant 1-4
LaVell Edwards 2-1
Tom Osborne 2-3
Lou Holtz 6-5
Johny Majors
Lloyd Carr
Jim Tressel
Jim Dooley
Jimmy Johnson

So that's 11. I am sure there are more.

He beat Saban as well.

(05-22-2018 02:49 PM)Hokie4Skins Wrote:  

(05-22-2018 02:39 PM)goofus Wrote:  I guess I could try to get it started for Paterno.

Coaches he has beat
Woody Hayes 4-2
Bobby Bowden 6-1
Bear Bryant 1-4
LaVell Edwards 2-1
Tom Osborne 2-3
Lou Holtz 6-5
Johny Majors
Lloyd Carr
Jim Tressel
Jim Dooley
Jimmy Johnson

So that's 11. I am sure there are more.

He beat Saban as well.

Bobby Ross is also on the Paterno list.

Former “Gooner” HC Barry Switzer beat 10 coaches
who eventually won a national championship
Woody Hays
Tom Osborn
Daryl Royal
Joe Paterno
Bill McCarthney
Johnny Majors
Bobby Bowden
Jimmy Johnson
Lou Holtz
Mack Brown

Former Coach Bob Stoops
(Longest tenured coach & most wins @ OU)
Only beat 5 coaches who have won a nat’l championship
Bobby Bowden
Mack Brown
Les Miles
Jimbo Fisher
Nick Saben

(05-22-2018 03:11 PM)HHOOTter Wrote:  Former “Gooner” HC Barry Switzer beat 11 coaches
who eventually won a national championship
Bo Schembechler
Woody Hays
Tom Osborn
Daryl Royal
Joe Paterno
Bill McCarthney
Johnny Majors
Bobby Bowden
Jimmy Johnson
Lou Holtz
Mack Brown

Former Coach Bob Stoops
(Longest tenured coach & most wins @ OU)
Only beat 5 coaches who have won a nat’l championship
Bobby Bowden
Mack Brown
Les Miles
Jimbo Fisher
Nick Saben

Schembechler never won a national title.

So far if I did my counting correctly
, we have come up with the following.

Edited with updates
Bowden - 16
Osborne - 13
Paterno -13
Saban - 12
Switzer - 10
Lou Holtz - 9
Ferentz - 7
Stoops -5

Two from Clemson

Danny Ford - 9

Woody Hayes
Dan Devine
Vince Dooley
Bobby Bowden
Steve Spurrier
Joe Paterno
Tom Osborne
Barry Switzer
Gene Stallings


Dabo Swinney - 8

Steve Spurrier
Bobby Bowden
Jimbo Fisher
Gene Chizik
Les Miles
Bob Stoops
Urban Meyer
Nick Saban