25 best college football coaches never to win a national title
- Head Coaching Record: 180-120-4 at Washington State 1976, Pittsburgh 1977-81, Texas A&M 1982-88, and Mississippi State 1991-2003
- Closest He Came to Winning a National Championship: 1980; 11-1 Gator Bowl Champions, No. 2 final ranking
- Notable: Three Southwest Conference Championships (1985, 1986 and 1987), Three Southwest Conference Coach of the Year Awards (1985, 1986, 1987), 1981 Walter Camp Coach of the Year Award
One of several great college football coaches to play for Paul “Bear” Bryant at the University of Alabama, Jackie Sherrill began his coaching career as a graduate assistant at his alma mater in 1966 before moving on to Arkansas, Iowa State and Pittsburgh, where he worked as an assistant before being hired as the head coach at Washington State in 1976. Sherrill won two national championships as a player, but was never part of a national title winning team as a head coach.
After just one season with the Cougars, in which he compiled a 3-8 record, Sherrill was brought back to Pitt to succeed Johnny Majors. Sherrill compiled an impressive 50-9-1 record as the head coach of the Panthers across five seasons, including three straight 11-win seasons from 1979-1981 and twice coming within a whisker of winning it all. In 1980, the Panthers won the Gator Bowl and finished No. 2 in the nation. The 1981 Pitt squad won the Sugar Bowl and finished No. 4 in the final AP Poll.
Sherrill left Pitt for Texas A&M prior to the 1982 season and compiled a 52-28-1 record with the Aggies in seven seasons. He won 10 games twice and finished ranked among the nation’s top ten in both 1985 and 1987, but resigned in 1988 with the program under NCAA investigation. Three years later, Sherrill returned to the sidelines as the head coach at Mississippi State. In his longest stint at any school, Sherrill compiled a 75-75-2 record with the Bulldogs, which included an SEC West title in 1998 and a 10-2 record in 1999.
Next: Gary Patterson