30 best college football coaching hires this century

22. David Shaw – Stanford

Stanford had the unenviable position to replace someone who lived so large like Jim Harbaugh back in 2010. He was leaving for the NHL after putting together one of the great Stanford seasons. Now, the Stanford Cardinal needed to find someone who can build off that momentum and replace one of the best college quarterbacks in the past 10 years in Andrew Luck. It was a lot to keep this football team from crumbling, but that’s exactly what David Shaw did.

College fans always want to hire the guy who’s dreamed of coaching in their job. So many coaches look at some of these FBS schools as a stepping stone to their next job, but not David Shaw. This is the job he’s always wanted. He said as much in his introductory press conference.

"“Since the day I started coaching, this is the job I always knew that I wanted.” — David Shaw"

Shaw was around for the rebuild of Stanford. He came with Jim Harbaugh the same year the man of a thousand khakis came on campus. They worked together, and Stanford became one of the powerhouses of the Pac12. This, after years it was considered a school focusing on education only.

Shaw led Stanford to eight straight bowl games and at least tied for first in the Pac 12 in four of his first five seasons. It was an unprecedented run for a team that’s never seen anything like it. Stanford needed someone very special to take over this team, and Shaw is just one of the best coaches in the country right now.