30 best college football coaches of all time, ranked

26. Bob Stoops, Oklahoma 1999-2016

Bob Stoops had a long legacy at Oklahoma of winning in the Big 12. The Oklahoma Texas rivalry was always hard-fought, but Stoops made it one-sided once and for all. Texas was leading the overall series 54-34-5, so Stoops going 11-7 was a huge deal. Lincoln Riley has done even better, but it was Stoops who brought Oklahoma back into the national lexicon.

Stoops started his career in 1983, but it was taking over the defense for Kansas State under Bill Snyder that really led to his legacy as a head coach. The Wildcats were one of the worst teams in college football, but Snyder and Stoops led that team out of the doldrums and actually into national title contention one year. He used that turnaround into a job under Steve Spurrier on the Florida Gators coaching staff. Spurrier gave Stoops complete control over the defense, and they won the national championship that year.

Stoops took the Oklahoma head coaching job in 1999. The Sooners were down in the dumps. They hadn’t even been to a bowl game since 1994. Garry Gibbs and John Blake were not able to hold up the legacy that was left when Barry Switzer left the program. Stoops finally brought back that legacy of winning. He went to a bowl game in his first season in Norman. He won the national championship in his second season with the Sooners. The turnaround was epic in its speed, and the Sooners went from a laughing stock to a champion

Stoops stuck around Oklahoma for 18 seasons, winning at least a share of the Big 12 11 times. His run will never be forgotten in Oklahoma. The Sooners turnaround can be thanked solely to the hard work of Bob Stoops. He even returned to the team this season when Lincoln Riley announced he was going to USC. Stoops is Oklahoma, and his legacy there will live on forever.