Fansided

25 greatest SEC Football coaches of all time

By John Buhler

Dec 31, 2015; Arlington, TX, USA; Alabama Crimson Tide head coach Nick Saban reacts in the third quarter against the Michigan State Spartans in the 2015 CFP semifinal at the Cotton Bowl at AT&T Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Matthew Emmons-USA TODAY Sports
Dec 31, 2015; Arlington, TX, USA; Alabama Crimson Tide head coach Nick Saban reacts in the third quarter against the Michigan State Spartans in the 2015 CFP semifinal at the Cotton Bowl at AT&T Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Matthew Emmons-USA TODAY Sports /
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Dec 26, 2016; St. Petersburg, FL, USA; A Mississippi State Bulldogs helmet on the field prior to the game between the Miami Redhawks and the Mississippi State Bulldogs at Tropicana Field. Mandatory Credit: Jasen Vinlove-USA TODAY Sports
Dec 26, 2016; St. Petersburg, FL, USA; A Mississippi State Bulldogs helmet on the field prior to the game between the Miami Redhawks and the Mississippi State Bulldogs at Tropicana Field. Mandatory Credit: Jasen Vinlove-USA TODAY Sports /

23. Jackie Sherrill

Jackie Sherrill certainly made an impact everywhere he coached college ball. While he would have the bulk of his success coaching the then independent Pittsburgh Panthers (1977-81) and the Texas A&M Aggies in the old Southwest Conference (1982-88), he might have been the most culturally impactful coach Starkville has ever seen on the gridiron.

After spending three years away from the game, Sherrill took a job with an awful Mississippi State Bulldogs program back in 1991. Before taking over the Bulldogs in 1991, Mississippi State had not posted a winning record since 1986, having won a dreadful 14 games combined from 1987 to 1990.

Sherrill did what he did in Starkville and started to move mountains with this lackluster football program. Mississippi State would go 7-5 (4-3) in his first year on the job in 1991, losing in the Liberty Bowl. Sherrill would go on to have seven winning seasons in Starkville, including a 10-win campaign in 1999.

The best year of the Sherrill era in Starkville was the 1998 campaign where the Bulldogs won its only SEC West division crown to date. Overall, Sherrill would go 75-75-2 at Mississippi State in 13 years on the job. The Bulldogs would go 43-59-1 in the SEC over that time frame, boasting a 2-4 bowl record.

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