Combined years of experience for every SEC team's coach, coordinators
I’m not sure how much experience matters in college football. For example, Gus Malzahn nearly won a national championship in his second-ever season as an FBS head coach.
The one thing I think we can glean from this list is that experience comes with a price.
At 31 combined years, thanks to the long-standing Nick Saban and Kirby Smart tandem, Alabama retains the most coaching experience in the SEC at the premier staff positions.
By contrast, Kentucky’s group of Mark Stoops, Shannon Dawson and D.J. Eliot combine for only eight years of experience at their respective positions.
It’s not that experience makes a coach better, but that a coach won’t stick around — especially in the SEC — without success. So programs with better tradition and more money — and a better opportunity for wins — can attract more proven coaches.
Most Experienced SEC Head Coaches
- Steve Spurrier — 25 years
- Gary Pinkel — 24 years
- Nick Saban — 20 years
There are five SEC head coaches with at least 15 years of FBS experience in that position. All five of them have won multiple division titles, including the men listed above, Les Miles and Mark Richt.
The takeaway: if you want to survive in the SEC well past the decade mark of your head coaching career, you’d better win some titles. Here’s to looking at you in the next few years, Butch Jones and Kevin Sumlin.
Most Experienced SEC Coordinators
- John Chavis — 20 years
- Andy Ludwig — 19 years
- Dave Wommack — 13 years
Remarkably, there are only three coordinators in the SEC with at least a decade of experience in a similar position.
Most SEC coordinators are going one of two directions — either they’re young and hoping for a head coaching opportunity in the next three or four years (Barry Odom, Jeremy Pruitt) or they’ve already tried and failed as a head coach and are waiting for another opportunity (Will Muschamp, Lane Kiffin).
There aren’t many “lifers” coordinating in the SEC, part of the reason we saw 12 of the 14 teams hire at least one coordinator this offseason.
For the purposes of this story, we considered only equivalent experience.
In other words, for head coaches, we only count years in which they coached FBS teams previously. And for coordinators, we only counted years in which they coordinated FBS teams.
ALABAMA
Nick Saban: 20
Kirby Smart: 8
Lane Kiffin: 3
Total: 31 years
ARKANSAS
Bret Bielema: 10
Dan Enos: 0
Robb Smith: 2
Total: 12 years
AUBURN
Gus Malzahn: 3
Rhett Lashlee: 3
Will Muschamp: 8
Total: 14 years
FLORIDA
Jim McElwain: 3
Doug Nussmeier: 7
Geoff Collins: 5
Total: 15 years
GEORGIA
Mark Richt: 15
Brian Schottenheimer: 0
Jeremy Pruitt: 2
Total: 17 years
KENTUCKY
Mark Stoops: 3
Shannon Dawson: 3
D.J. Eliot: 2
Total: 8 years
LSU
Les Miles: 15
Cam Cameron: 2
Kevin Steele: 5
Total: 22 years
MISSISSIPPI STATE
Dan Mullen: 7
Billy Gonzales: 2
Manny Diaz: 9
Total: 18 years
MISSOURI
Gary Pinkel: 24
Josh Henson: 2
Barry Odom: 3
Total: 29 years
OLE MISS
Hugh Freeze: 5
Dan Werner: 5
Dave Wommack: 13
Total: 23 years
SOUTH CAROLINA
Steve Spurrier: 25*
Jon Hoke: 3
Total: 28
*Shawn Elliott and Steve Spurrier Jr. hold the title of offensive coordinator, but it’s the elder Spurrier’s role.
TENNESSEE
Butch Jones: 8
Mike DeBord: 5
John Jancek: 7
Total: 20 years
TEXAS A&M
Kevin Sumlin: 7
Jake Spavital: 2
John Chavis: 20
Total: 29 years
VANDERBILT
Derek Mason: 1
Derek Mason: 3*
Andy Ludwig: 19
Total: 23 years
*Named himself Vandy’s defensive coordinator after the ’14 season.