NCAA Football: 5 most valuable college coaches

4.) Art Briles, Baylor

Age: 58
Salary: 4.2 million

Art Briles got to where he is the old school way. He was a high school football coach in Texas for 20 years. Then he caught on at Texas Tech, was hired to be the head coach at Houston in 2003 and took over at Baylor in 2007.

If there were ever a more Texan head coach than Briles — we haven’t found him yet. The man was born in Rule, Texas. And last year, as Baylor went 11-2 and made its first trip to the Fiesta Bowl, that’s just what Briles did — he ruled Texas. With the Longhorns down and Texas A&M taking a step back, it was Baylor (seriously, Baylor) that ruled the roost in the Lone Star state.

And that, right there, is what makes Briles so valuable. He’s taken Baylor, a proverbial Big 12 doormat, and not only made them relevant — he made them dominant. Before Briles got to Baylor, the Bears hadn’t finished in the top 25 since 1986. Baylor has now finished in the top 25 two of the last three years. The school had its first Heisman winner, Robert Griffin, under Briles. Hell, last year Baylor was legitimately part of the national title conversation for most of the season.

That’s how Briles got a massive ten year contract extension worth 4.2 million dollars a year, which is actually a little high for a school like Baylor. Credit the powers that be in the athletic department for realizing that they weren’t likely to get another coach the caliber of Briles and then ponying up to keep him.

That move paid off big-time this offseason as Texas looked to replace Mack Brown. Briles, whether the brain trust in Austin realized it or not, was probably the perfect candidate for that job. He’s a Texan, he’s a proven winner and he’s well-connected to the Texas high school football scene, but he was committed to Baylor.

And it looks like that’s where he’ll stay to finish his career.