Fansided

25 best college football coaches never to win a national title

By Nicholas Ian Allen

Oct 25, 2014; Manhattan, KS, USA; Kansas State Wildcats head coach Bill Snyder waits to lead his team onto the field before the start of a game against the Texas Longhorns at Bill Snyder Family Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Scott Sewell-USA TODAY Sports
Oct 25, 2014; Manhattan, KS, USA; Kansas State Wildcats head coach Bill Snyder waits to lead his team onto the field before the start of a game against the Texas Longhorns at Bill Snyder Family Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Scott Sewell-USA TODAY Sports /
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Apr 25, 2015; Blacksburg, VA, USA; Virginia Tech Hokies head coach Frank Beamer speaks to the media following the Orange Maroon spring game at Lane Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Michael Shroyer-USA TODAY Sports
Apr 25, 2015; Blacksburg, VA, USA; Virginia Tech Hokies head coach Frank Beamer speaks to the media following the Orange Maroon spring game at Lane Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Michael Shroyer-USA TODAY Sports /
  • Head Coaching Record: 233-115-2* at Murray State 1981-86, and Virginia Tech 1987-Present
  • Closest He’s Come to Winning a National Championship: 1999; 11-1, Lost to Florida State in the Fiesta Bowl, No. 3 final ranking
  • Notable: Eight conference championships (1986 Ohio Valley Conference Champions, 1995, 1996, 1999 Big East Championships, 2004, 2007, 2008, 2010 ACC Championships), five conference Coach of the Year awards (1995, 1996, 1999, 2004, 2005), 1999 AFCA, AP, Bobby Dodd, Eddie Robinson, George Munger, Paul “Bear” Bryant National Coach of the Year Awards, 2010 Joseph V. Paterno Coach of the Year Award

Few college football coaches have put a program on the map like Frank Beamer. After stints as a graduate assistant at Maryland and as an assistant coach at The Citadel and Murray State, Beamer rose to the head coaching position at Murray State in 1981. In six seasons with the Racers, he won 42 games and was hired to be the head coach at his alma mater, Virginia Tech.

Beamer’s head coaching career in Blacksburg got off to a slow start. The Hokies were 2-9 in his first season in 1987 and 3-8 in Year 2. After three years spent hovering around .500, Tech fell to 2-8-1 in 1992 (the program’s second season as a member of the Big East). Despite the setback, Beamer and the Hokies pressed on and won nine games in 1993, including the Independence Bowl in Beamer’s first bowl game, and finished the season ranked No. 22 in the country.

Virginia Tech won its first Big East title in 1995 and repeated in 1996. Three seasons later, Beamer led the Hokies to an 11-0 regular season record and a spot in the 1999 Sugar Bowl against No. 1 Florida State with the national championship on the line. Tech lost 46-29, but finished No. 2 in the AP Top 25, which remains the highest final ranking in school history.

Under Beamer, the Hokies have recorded double-digit victories in 13 different seasons, including eight in a row from 2004-2011. Tech won three Big East titles before leaving for the ACC in 2004 and have captured the league title on four occasions since. Unfortunately, Beamer and the Hokies have yet to capture that elusive national championship.

Next: Bo Schembechler

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