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College football coach rankings: Has Dabo Swinney officially surpassed Nick Saban?

By Phil Poling

SANTA CLARA, CA - JANUARY 07: Head coach Dabo Swinney of the Clemson Tigers meets head coach Nick Saban of the Alabama Crimson Tide at mid-field after his 44-16 win in the CFP National Championship presented by AT&T at Levi's Stadium on January 7, 2019 in Santa Clara, California. (Photo by Ezra Shaw/Getty Images)
SANTA CLARA, CA - JANUARY 07: Head coach Dabo Swinney of the Clemson Tigers meets head coach Nick Saban of the Alabama Crimson Tide at mid-field after his 44-16 win in the CFP National Championship presented by AT&T at Levi's Stadium on January 7, 2019 in Santa Clara, California. (Photo by Ezra Shaw/Getty Images) /
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ARLINGTON, TX – SEPTEMBER 29: Texas A&M Aggies head coach Jimbo Fisher leads his team onto the field before the game between the Arkansas Razorbacks and the Texas A&M Aggies on September 29, 2018 at AT&T Stadium in Arlington, Texas. (Photo by Matthew Pearce/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images)
ARLINGTON, TX – SEPTEMBER 29: Texas A&M Aggies head coach Jimbo Fisher leads his team onto the field before the game between the Arkansas Razorbacks and the Texas A&M Aggies on September 29, 2018 at AT&T Stadium in Arlington, Texas. (Photo by Matthew Pearce/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images) /

No. 8: Jimbo Fisher, Texas A&M

Landing at No. 8 on our list is second-year Texas A&M head coach Jimbo Fisher. He grew up under Bobby Bowden at Florida State and became the head coach in 2010, prior to accepting the Aggies’ job before the 2018 season. He did, however, deliver a national championship to Tallahassee – the 2013 BCS Title.

Fisher’s first season at A&M was a general success, finishing the year 9-4. He got an early jump on recruiting, though, compared to most new head coaches after being hired on Dec. 1 in 2017. His inaugural recruiting class, per 247Sports, ranked 17th in the country and sixth in the SEC. After testing the waters, Fisher jumped all the way in for the 2019 recruiting cycle and hauled in the No. 4 overall class, headlined by five-star recruits Kenyon Green and DeMarvin Leal. He’ll need production from everybody regardless of class, as the SEC continues to be one of the deepest conferences in college football.

Although Texas A&M dropped four games in 2018, two came against the team’s that wound up playing in the College Football Playoff National Championship – Alabama and Clemson. The Aggies played the Tigers tough, only losing 28-26. The Aggies were no match for the Tide, though, losing to Alabama 45-23. Those other two losses, to Mississippi State and Auburn, came on the road in hostile territory. So while there were a couple of bumps in the road, there’s plenty of reason to believe Fisher will get back on track in 2019.