Approval ratings for all seven head coaches in SEC East
The SEC is the best conference in America, but the divisions have been a bit lopsided as of late.
Since the West is home to Alabama and its four national championships in the past seven years, the East has had a tough time holding serve. The last East team to win the league was Florida in 2008.
Three of the seven programs in the East are hitting the reset button in 2016 with a first-year head coach: Kirby Smart at Georgia, Barry Odom at Missouri and Will Muschamp at South Carolina. At least one must build a legit contender if the SEC is going to come back into balance again.
With Mark Richt, Gary Pinkel and Steve Spurrier all now elsewhere, Mark Stoops and Butch Jones are the longest-tenured coaches in the East — they’re only in Year 4. Hard to believe, but still true.
We’re right in the middle of an election cycle, so here are approval ratings for the East coaches.
Florida
Coach: Jim McElwain (2nd year)
Despite his only head-coaching experience being at Colorado State, McElwain knows life in the SEC.
With relatively meager expectations for Year 1, McElwain won the East division and earned a trip to the conference title game. The previous July at Media Days, the Gators were picked to finish fifth.
That being said, UF had to squeak by East Carolina, Kentucky, Vanderbilt and Florida Atlantic a year ago. When McElwain faced three powerhouses to close out the season — Florida State in Gainesville, Alabama in Atlanta and then Michigan in the Citrus Bowl — he was beaten up badly all three times.
But there was a lot more good and bad for the rookie coach. While McElwain’s first recruiting class was only 21st according to the composite rankings at 247Sports, his haul for 2016 moved up to 13th.
Not a lot of experts are picking Florida to repeat in the East. McElwain doesn’t mind in the least.
Approval rating: 85 percent
Georgia
Coach: Kirby Smart (1st year)
Between the hedges, fans seemed to be very Jeckyll-and-Hyde when evaluating the now-departed Richt.
On the one hand, he was a shoe-in for double-digit wins most seasons and ran a pretty clean program more often than not. Conversely, he never broke through and turned the Dawgs into a genuine threat.

Credit: Brett Davis-USA TODAY Sports
Smart, a longtime Nick Saban disciple and a former defensive back at UGA, appears to be the perfect hire. While he got a lot of credit — both on the sideline and the recruiting trail — for helping the Crimson Tide develop a dynasty, deep down he bleeds red and black. He won’t settle for 10 wins.
However, if Smart goes with Greyson Lambert at QB over Jacob Eason, his poll numbers could plummet.
Approval rating: 75 percent
Kentucky
Coach: Mark Stoops (4th year)
Coming off back-to-back 5-7 seasons, it’s time for Stoops to get over the hump and earn a bowl bid.
Speaking at Media Days last month, Stoops grew frustrated talking about his Wildcats’ inability to close out games in the fourth quarter. They suffered single-score defeats to Florida and Auburn at home, as well as to Vandy on the road. Winning just one of those would have made UK bowl-eligible.
Clearly, basketball comes first in Lexington — ask Ashley Judd. Stoops better make a splash soon.
Approval rating: 55 percent
Missouri
Coach: Barry Odom (1st year)
Most first-year coaches know they have at least three or four years to put a plan in place and earn job security for the long term, but that’s not the case for Odom. With all the high-level turnover at Mizzou lately — including Mack Rhoades, the AD who hired him — he can’t feel very comfortable.
Fortunately, the Tigers aren’t starting from scratch. Odom, last year’s defensive coordinator, will do his best to build on what the retired Gary Pinkel started in Columbia. But he sure has some high hurdles to jump, including a shrinking student body resulting from all the recent strife on campus.
Approval rating: 60 percent
South Carolina
Coach: Will Muschamp (1st year)
If Spurrier no longer had the energy to pace the sideline, then Muschamp is the ideal replacement.

Credit: Shanna Lockwood-USA TODAY Sports
Nobody has ever doubted Coach Boom’s spirit, as he’s the subject of countless internet memes thanks to his combustible — OK, downright explosive — nature on game day. He’s also a strong recruiter, earning the nickname “Flipper” for his ability to get a kid to change his mind at the last minute.
The Gamecocks are drawn to big names (Spurrier, Lou Holtz). Muschamp fits the mold. But can he win?
Approval rating: 70 percent
Tennessee
Coach: Butch Jones (4th year)
Inheriting a mess in the wake of the Derek Dooley disaster, Jones has rescued a once-proud program.
After five wins in Year 1, seven in Year 2 and then nine in Year 3, the Volunteers appear to be the premier team in the East this season and, perhaps, ready to reclaim their spot as a national power.
It has to happen now, though. The rest of the division is in some stage of the rebuilding process. Jones has the most returning starters — nine on offense, eight on defense — and most experience in the East. If the Vols can’t get it done in 2016, you have to wonder if they’ll ever get it done.
More than any coach on this list, Jones’ numbers will spike or tumble based on this year’s results.
Approval rating: 80 percent
Vanderbilt
Coach: Derek Mason (3rd year)
A sharp dresser and smooth talker, Mason is a good face for an institution as prestigious as Vandy.
But even in Nashville, the game of football is about winning games. Nobody cares about graduation rates and off-the-field success stories if the Commodores can’t earn a bowl invitation.
Mason’s predecessor, James Franklin, was only around for three years — including back-to-back nine-win campaigns in 2012-13 — but went to three bowl games. He also beat in-state rival Tennessee twice. He turned his success into a bigger and better job at Penn State, where he’s been 7-6 twice.
Going from 3-9 in Year 1 to 4-8 in Year 2, that’s progress solely by definition. It’s not enough to get anyone’s attention. The East isn’t as deep as the West, so Mason needs to pull an upset or two.
Credit Mason for putting together an underrated defense. The offense is holding Vandy back, though.
Approval rating: 65 percent
John Crist is the senior writer for Saturday Down South, a member of the FWAA and a voter for the Heisman Trophy. Send him an e-mail, like him on Facebook or follow him on Twitter.
I think most Missouri fans have liked what Odom has done so far. Obviously the performance on the field is to be determined but I’ve really liked the off-season he had. Hopefully the on-field performance is just as good.
It seems this article misrepresents the sentiment of most Mizzou fans I know. While he may be a first-time head coach, Barry Odom is very popular at Missouri and I think there is a general (if very early) consensus that he seems to know what he’s doing.
I don’t think there is a lot of pressure on him out of the gate, either. Honestly, if he can go 5-7 and avoid any more major scandals or negative headlines, there won’t be a lot of pressure on him even heading into ’17. I doubt the heat would really start to build unless he missed bowl games in both of his first two seasons, but even then he’d get a third year to turn things around.
Obviously things can change fast in this conference, but I think the majority of our fanbase is legitimately hopeful that he’ll be the next guy to stay at Missouri for a long time.
Where did you get these numbers? did you make them up?… I would like to know…
Your writers Approval rating is at 15%…
^^^^^ I made up my numbers…
I would have to agree, they must have pulled the numbers out of the air. Coach Butch Jones by any measurable is a certified success. The fans love him, the admin loves him. He has a really good staff, recruits well, and has the Vols going almost straight up! He should be at 90% or more, easily.
Here’s some measurables for you, Ray Ray:
Butch Jones time at UT:
Road games: 5-9
vs. Top 25 (road/home): 3-13, 0-8, 2-5
vs. Top 15 (road/home): 1-10, 0-7, 1-3
One-score games (road/home): 6-9, 2-3, 4-6
SEC games (road/home): 10-14, 5-7, 5-7
Power 5, non-SEC opponents (road/home/neutral): 2-3, 0-1, 0-2, 2-0
vs. Teams with winning records: 9-15
OT games: 1-2
Hardly a certified success.
He might, and I stress might, break through and actually beat the big boys this fall. But he’s yet to do it – and time is running short.
@LegacyGator88 you are using skewed numbers.. numbers from the team he inherited..
He has taken a program the was a dumpster fire, and in 3 short years the program is now viewed by the AP poll, Coaches Poll and Vegas as a contender… I agree they do need to win the big one. but my Approval rating of Butch Jones is high.. 95%
Double O, the numbers aren’t skewed. They’re just the numbers.
Mac inherited a dumpster fire of an offense, and turned them into East champs.
It doesn’t matter how good the players get for Butch, he has to coach them to wins – something he has yet to prove he can do (see the numbers I quoted).
@LegacyGator88
How about your numbers may be wrong…
‘vs. Top 15 (road/home): 1-10, 0-7, 1-3’
2013 Beat at the time #11 South Carolina.
2015/16 beat the snot out of #13 North Western.
there maybe more wrong… but this caught my eye.. and I am not going to go look the rest up…
But really this is about Approval and not Stats… and I am Highly Approve of the direction Butch Jones is taking the program…
Double O, I truly laughed out loud when I read your post:)
:)
Too high. Mine is not even a positive number.
What’s wrong with taking your own national temperature of various fan bases? It doesn’t take a rasmussen poll to get a feel for where these coaches stand – just a few hours’ perusal of popular sports sites, message boards, etc.
John is a “columnist,” not a “reporter.” He gets paid for his opinion, not to mindlessly relay someone else’s facts.
If you want a bunch of homer rah-rah-ree, stick to the Vols official site.
Been dissed by Spurrior larely…
Spurrier WORKS for Florida, man! What makes you think he’s going to be dissing his employer?
Wow…I would say you’re a bit obsessive. Must be scared of the big Orange! You are definitely on the path to major heart ache when UF loses to…well of course UT but also pretty much the entire SEC
* That is the SEC East and LSU and Arky. Well let’s go ahead and throw FSU in there as well. Y’all are looking straight at a 5-7 season.
Since the Vols haven’t beaten UF in what, 11 years now, I kinda doubt he’s afraid of you. (But man, this HAS to be the year, doesn’t it? You’ve got’em at home, and you’re better on paper. And you’ve been so close the last couple of times. But really, they won’t be afraid until you actually do the deed, don’t you think?)
Heading down to your next comment, speaking for all UGA followers, I think it’d be great if they went 5-7.
Fisher, down in Florida, we’d squeeze the oranges, feed the peel to cows, and drink the juice with breakfast.
Now that I live up here in Tennessee, I see more and more that y’all just drink Kool-aid.
I am not, and never will be scared of the Vols. I just pay attention to the results more than the hype.
So much criticism lately concerning the writers of SDS….if so many dislike what’s written ….why do you continually visit the site?? Just asking.
V🍊LS4REAL
The comments
I ask myself the same question every time I read one of these… there are good writers on SDS… I really like Oliver Connolly’s Film Room, his writing is very insightful…
@eugene58… you are sorta right…
Mr.Crist,
If my Comments hurt you, your family or Friends in anyway I am truly sorry, I take full responsibility for my Comments, but understand I am a product of my comment section environment… If I could take back what I have comment I would but I can’t, because there is no d@mn EDIT button… Still I am truly sorry,
I feel we could have avoided all this and still can in the future if you would simply start your articles with ‘In My Opinion’
Hope (for a decent article) springs eternal.
And……the comments.
Excellent point.
I actually don’t have any problem with constructive criticism, and I won’t hesitate to do that if there is a good reason. But I also understand that for a site like SDS, the number one demand, especially right now with no games being played, is for their to be new and passable content available when I log in during the morning.
And the fact that I still keep coming back makes me think the site is doing okay at that. There are some silly articles of course, but for the most part it is more than engaging enough.
Please don’t make comments about Kentucky basketball coming first in Lexington; not only is this not true, but there’s no need to bring up basketball on a football blog. Comments like these are a reminder that these articles often are not written by program insiders.
Kentucky is a basketball school until proven otherwise. They have an awesome bb program and an average fb program. Those are facts.
Want to explain why, and forget the tradition bull sh-t. about why Kentucky is in the SEC? The conference is rated sixth in college basketball. Why not get into a conference were us, me, the season ticket holders can see real competition on the hardwood?
It they ever go to the nine game conference football schedule we will never see another bowl game in which we actually participate. BUT then they may go the Tee Ball route, allow everyone to play in a bowl, all 128, so we all can get a trophy.
Hey Paris……turn in your tickets you worthless bitter old man if you feel that way.
Jacob Eason may be as popular as Tebow by the time he leaves Georgia. But not many true Freshman QB’s come in and start right away. Manziel, and Murray were redshirts. But just because Greyson Lambert might start the season as the starter doesn’t mean Eason won’t be the starter by game 5 after Lambert sucks it up. Eason is talented and has alot of potential but my word, he hasn’t even played a meaningful snap and Georgia fans won’t take his C**k out their mouths
Saying that Kirby Smart’s approval would plummet if he starts Lambert over Eason is crazy. People expect him to put the best player on the field. That’s whichever one gives us the best chance to win. People are excited to see Eason but it’s not a live or die decision for Kirby.
Missouri’s Barry Odom didn’t change from having a 100% approval rating as a DC to having a 60% as a HC without losing a game, sorry, that’s just not having a mind set in reality. Even without winning a game Odom has assembled a looks-great-on-paper coaching staff, so how in the hell has that hurt his approval rating? It hasn’t. Finally Missouri looked better in the spring game AND pulled rabbits out of their recruiting hats with almost no time to do it AND THAT IS AN APPROVAL RATING HOME RUN. Imagine what they are going to do in 2017 ? Then work backward to the good year they are going to have in 2016