More than half of the SEC’s current head coaches have succeeded elsewhere, part of the reason they were considered welcomed additions to the nation’s most competitive league at the time of their arrival. A few, notably Les Miles and Nick Saban, contributed to the SEC’s dominance during the BCS era.

SEC head coaches who have won in other leagues

Bret Bielema, Arkansas (Wisconsin 2006-12)

  • Win-loss record outside the SEC: 68-24 (seven seasons)
  • Percentage of career wins outside the SEC: .871
  • 7 bowl appearances including 3 consecutive Rose Bowls (didn’t coach in final one)

A ‘Big Ten Guy’ in every sense of the phrase after starring at Iowa as a nose guard in the early 1990s, Bielema’s smashmouth mentality at Wisconsin helped the Badgers hover around the Top 10 for a four-year stretch during the end of a successful tenure as head coach. He won three conference titles with one of the nation’s most fierce rushing attacks before setting his sights on the SEC.

Les Miles, LSU (Oklahoma State 2001-04)

  • Win-loss record outside the SEC: 28-21 (four seasons)
  • Percentage of career wins outside the SEC: .213
  • 3 bowl appearances

Several high-profile current head coaches including Oklahoma State’s Mike Gundy and Florida State’s Jimbo Fisher were once members of Miles’ staffs, a coaching tree comparable to Nick Saban’s wide-reaching branches. Before he became the Mad Hatter in Baton Rouge, Miles spent seven years at his alma-mater (Michigan) before calling plays at Oklahoma State from 1995-97. He returned to Stillwater, Okla. after a stint with the Dallas Cowboys as a first-year head coach in 2001 and won Big XII Coach of the Year after his second season.

Nick Saban, Alabama (Toledo 1990; Michigan State 1995-99)

  • Win-loss record outside the SEC: 43-26-1 (six seasons)
  • Percentage of career wins outside the SEC: .242
  • 4 bowl appearances (didn’t coach in final one at MSU)

With four national championships over his 13-year career in the SEC, Saban’s already solidified a spot in the league’s pantheon of coaching greats. With the Spartans, Saban posted four average seasons before helping the program reach the Top 10 in 1999 with a Citrus Bowl bid. Ironically, Saban never won bowl game during his tenure.

Gary Pinkel, Mizzou (Toledo 1991-00)

  • Win-loss record outside the SEC: 73-37-3 (10 seasons)
  • Percentage of career wins outside the SEC: .392
  • 1 bowl appearance (seven straight winning seasons)

The Rockets hired Pinkel following Saban’s departure after the 1990 season and he proceeded to average 7.3 wins per season, the highest number since the program won 35 straight games from 1969 through 1971, the fifth-longest streak in major college football. Pinkel is the record holder for all-time wins at both Toledo and Missouri.

Jim McElwain, Florida (Colorado State 2012-14)

  • Win-loss record outside the SEC: 22-16 (three seasons)
  • Percentage of career wins outside the SEC: 100
  • 2 bowl appearances

This longtime offensive guru and former Saban disciple during Alabama’s BCS dominance returned to the SEC after a three-year stint out West to try and tackle ‘a tremendous opportunity’ at Florida in December following Will Muschamp’s departure. McElwain’s offensive philosophy has often been successful and in due time, should be one of the Eastern Division’s most exciting with the Gators.

Steve Spurrier, South Carolina (Duke 1987-89)

  • Win-loss record outside the SEC: 20-13-1 (three seasons)
  • Percentage of career wins outside the SEC: .088
  • 1 bowl appearance (won ACC in 1989)

The SEC’s active wins leader is the all-time winningest coach at two different SEC programs. Less than 10 percent of the Head Ball Coach’s 226 career victories have come outside of the conference. He got his start as a head coach at Duke in 1987 and led the Blue Devils to their first ACC football championship two years later before embarking on a memorable career in Gainesville.

Kevin Sumlin, Texas A&M (Houston 2008-11)

  • Win-loss record outside the SEC: 35-17 (four seasons)
  • Percentage of career wins outside the SEC: .555
  • 3 bowl appearances (two division titles)

The mastermind behind massive offensive success at Purdue (with Drew Brees), Oklahoma (44 PPG in 2007) and as a head coach at Houston (with Case Keenum), Sumlin’s flair for the fan-friendly Air Raid was one of the reasons he was an attractive pick to take over the Aggies in December 2011. RS-freshman quarterback Johnny Manziel proceeded to win the Heisman Trophy during Sumlin’s first season at Texas A&M.

Butch Jones, Tennessee (Central Michigan 2007-09; Cincinnati 2010-12)

  • Win-loss record outside the SEC: 50-27 (six seasons)
  • Percentage of career wins outside the SEC: .806
  • 5 bowl appearances

Jones was a winner at both career head coaching stops prior to Knoxville. At Central Michigan, Jones directed the Chippewas to a pair of MAC titles and 27 wins over a three-year span. He won consecutive conference championships at Cincinnati as well after a 4-8 hiccup during his first season in 2010.