Best college football coach in history from each state

Indiana: Knute Rockne

As one of the most storied programs in college football, Notre Dame has been home to a number of legendary coaches, but none can match Rockne.

After learning to play football at an early age while growing up in Chicago, Rockne attended Notre Dame and earned All-American honors as a defensive end and wide receiver in 1913. Rockne became one of the first prolific receivers in college football history and would continue to be an offensive innovator later on as a coach by popularizing the downfield pass.

The Fighting Irish hired Rockne as an assistant immediately, and he took over as head coach four years later in 1918. Following a 3-1-2 campaign in his debut season that was shortened by World War I, the Fighting Irish were a perfect 9-0 in both 1919 and 1920 to claim a pair of national championships, the first titles in school history.

Rockne earned additional titles in 1924, 1929 and 1930 to bring his total to five, which still only ranks behind Bryant in college football history. The Fighting Irish lost more than two games in just one season under Rockne, and his 105-12-5 record shows a dominance that few can even come close to matching.

Sadly, Rockne’s legendary coaching career was cut short before he could add more championships, as he was killed in a plane crash in 1931. Notre Dame has claimed eight titles since behind legends such as Frank Leahy and Ara Parseghian, but Rockne remains one of the top coaches in college football history.