Anthony Wilson
CBS Sports capped its 2024 Power Four coaching rankings with the release of the Top 25 on Wednesday, highlighting the upper echelon of coaches at the highest level of college football. This year’s list features several new names following the retirement of Nick Saban and the departure of Jim Harbaugh to the NFL left some huge vacancies near the top.
Georgia’s Kirby Smart was a natural successor for the top spot, and the rest of the top 10 is a combination of veterans who already have multiple College Football Playoff appearances under their belt and relative newcomers who appear poised to take the sport by storm. However, just because a coach is in the top 25 doesn’t mean he’s immune to pressure.
Additional expectations come with such high billing. With seven at-large bids up for grabs, moving into an expanded 12-team College Football Playoff is now the bar for a top-10 coach. For some, even that won’t be enough, and only a run towards the national title will appease fans clamoring for more.
Not that any top coaches are in the hot seat heading into 2024, but this season certainly feels like a turning point for some prolific figures in the CBS Sports top 25.
2024 Power Four Coach Rankings: 68-26 | 25-1
Ryan Day, Ohio State
CBS Sports Ratings: 2 | 2023 Record:11-2
Most programs would kill for the level of success — both on the field and in the recruiting sphere — that Ohio State has enjoyed in recent years. But for all the 11-win seasons and New Year’s Six bowl appearances, it’s hard to shake the feeling that Day has fallen far short of expectations since the 2020 run to the College Football Playoff national championship game. The 2023 season marked the third consecutive loss to top rival Michigan, a third consecutive year without a berth in the Big Ten Championship Game and the second time in the last three years that Ohio State missed the playoffs.
Day has to capitalize on a Big Ten loss in 2024. Michigan — which went 15-0 and won its first national title since the BCS era last season — lost coach Jim Harbaugh and a litany of stars to the NFL. Newcomer Oregon represents a big test with its talent level and success under coach Dan Lanning, but Day can’t let a first-year Big Ten program push him around. The Buckeyes went all out this offseason, hunting down UCLA coach Chip Kelly to serve as their offensive coordinator and putting together a really strong transfer process. Anything less than a Big Ten title could land Day in hot water.
Dabo Swinney, Clemson
CBS Sports Ratings: 3 | 2023 Record: 9-4
Clemson’s recent slide was something to behold. The Tigers went from six consecutive ACC titles to just one in the last three years and the former playoff mainstay hasn’t sniffed a CFP berth in three seasons. In 2023, Clemson reached a new low by losing four games for the first time since 2011 and recording its worst ACC finish since 2010, falling behind the likes of Georgia Tech, Virginia Tech and NC State in the final standings.
Whether it’s Swinney’s staunch anti-transfer portal stance (although that appears to be softening a bit) or something else, Clemson has not adapted well to the modern era amid the myriad of recent changes in college football. That said, the ACC is wide open this year, and the expanded playoff offers the Tigers an open path back to the sport’s highest level. On paper, Clemson is a contender. It’s up to Swinney to stop the bleeding.
Brian Kelly, L.S.U.
CBS Sports Ratings: 4 | 2023 Record: 10-3
Kelly’s first two years at LSU certainly weren’t terrible. Anyone with a 20-7 record, including 12-4 in conference games, and an appearance in an SEC Championship game deserves their flowers. But there is a feeling that Kelly’s LSU teams underperformed. The Tigers have not lived up to the lofty expectations that Kelly openly welcomed when he left a comfortable position at Notre Dame.
He’s 0-2 so far and hasn’t come close to the CFP. This is even more disappointing considering the season LSU quarterback Jayden Daniels has put together in 2023. The second pick in the NFL Draft won the Heisman Trophy and produced one of the best seasons we’ve ever seen from a quarterback, approaching the same echelon as former Tigers star Joe Burrow. Unfortunately for Daniels, LSU’s defense let opponents run all over it and surrendered an average of 47.3 points in three losses. Kelly hired promising coordinator Blake Baker to solve this problem. but there are still some major question marks on that side of the ball – especially along the line – that the Tigers have failed to resolve during either transfer window.
Lincoln Riley, USC
CBS Sports Ratings: 10 | 2023 Record: 8-5
USC’s 2023 efforts have been shocking. The Trojans were picked to win the Pac-12 in a preseason media poll and several projections have them firmly in the College Football Playoff field. Even with Heisman winner Caleb Williams back at quarterback, USC limped to a 7-5 regular season. It was by far the worst performance of Riley’s career as a head coach and the first time he failed to post double-digit wins in a full 12-game season.
Additionally, Riley’s stock has been trending downward in recent years. His 2021 campaign with Oklahoma is viewed as a disappointment and his first season with USC was marred by two losses to Utah and a loss to Tulane in the Cotton Bowl despite entering the game at relatively full strength. Former coordinator Alex Grinch’s defense has shouldered much of the blame for Riley’s recent struggles. Riley eventually replaced Grinch and took down his replacement, hiring former UCLA DC D’Anton Lynn to solve the glaring problem. Now Riley has to make immediate success in a highly competitive, new-look Big Ten to prove that the last few years have been a small dip and not a trend.
James Franklin, State of Pennsylvania
CBS Sports Ratings: 11 | 2023 Record: 10-3
Penn State seems perfectly content with what James Franklin has accomplished thus far, and it would probably take an abject disaster to change that. With back-to-back 10-win seasons and three New Year’s Six Bowl appearances in the last five years, there are plenty of reasons for decision-makers in State College, Pennsylvania to be happy. However, an expanded college football playoff adds more pressure for Franklin. There’s no excuse to miss it given the standard he’s set, especially now that the Nittany Lions no longer play Michigan and Ohio State in the same year. With quarterback Drew Allar back and a loaded backfield joined by Nicholas Singleton and Kaytron Allen, now is the time for Penn State to make some noise. Otherwise, that goodwill might start to wane a bit.
