List of college football coaches with 200 wins

This is a list of college football coaches with 200 career wins. "College level" is defined as a four-year college or university program in either the National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics (NAIA) or the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA). If a team competed at a time before the official organization of either of the two groups but is generally accepted as a "college football program", it is included.

Historical overview

As of November 28, 2016, a total of 84 head football coaches had reached the milestone of 200 career coaching wins.

In the 100 years after the first college football game in 1869, only eight coaches reached the 200-win milestone. The only two who reached the mark before 1950 were Pop Warner, with 319 wins from 1895 to 1938 (mostly at Carlisle, Pittsburgh and Stanford), and Amos Alonzo Stagg, with 314 wins from 1890 to 1946 (mostly at the University of Chicago).^[1]

By 1970, another six coaches had reached the milestone: Ace Mumford, with 233 wins from 1924 to 1961 (mostly at Southern University); Fred T. Long, with 227 wins from 1921 to 1965 (mostly at Wiley College); Jess Neely, with 207 wins from 1924 to 1966 (mostly at Clemson and Rice); Cleveland Abbott, with 203 wins at Tuskegee University between 1923 and 1954; Jake Gaither, with 204 wins at Florida A&M University from 1945 to 1969; and Eddie Anderson, with 201 wins from 1922 to 1964 (mostly at Holy Cross).^[1][2]

Though only eight coaches reached the milestone from 1869 to 1970, 76 coaches have reached the mark in the 46 seasons since then.

Leaders by category

In overall career wins, the all-time leader is John Gagliardi with 489 wins, mostly at the Division III level.^[3] Gagliardi began his head coaching career at Carroll College in Helena, Montana in 1949, and moved from there in 1953 to Saint John's University in Collegeville, Minnesota, where he served until retiring after the 2012 season. Joe Paterno, head coach at Pennsylvania State University from 1966 until his 2011 firing in the wake of the Jerry Sandusky child molestation scandal, is second with 409 wins. NCAA sanctions following the scandal had stripped him of all 111 Penn State wins between 1998 and 2011,^[4] but the NCAA restored those wins on January 16, 2015 as part of a settlement of a lawsuit by the state of Pennsylvania against the NCAA.^[5] Eddie Robinson, head coach at Grambling State University from 1941 to 1997 with a two-season hiatus during World War II in which Grambling did not field a team, is third with 408.^[2][3] Bobby Bowden is in fourth place and Larry Kehres is in fifth.^[3]

Among coaches with at least 10 seasons in NCAA Division I and its predecessors, the all-time leaders in wins are Paterno (409), Robinson (408), Bowden (377), Bear Bryant (323), and Warner (319).

Considering wins in Division I FBS only—including wins with "major" programs before the 1978 split of Division I football, and wins in Division I-A/FBS after the split—the all-time leaders are Paterno (409), Bowden (377), Bryant (323), Warner (319), and Stagg (314).

The only coaches with 200 Division I FCS wins after the Division I split are Roy Kidd (223), Jimmye Laycock (245), Jerry Moore (215), and Andy Talley (203).

Among NCAA Division I coaches active in 2016, the all-time leader in Division I wins is Laycock (245), Nick Saban (203) is second and Bill Snyder (200) is third.

The all-time win leaders in NCAA Division II are Danny Hale (Bloomsburg and West Chester), Gaither and Chuck Broyles, and the all-time win leaders in NCAA Division III are Gagliardi and Kehres.

Among coaches active in 2016, the career win leaders are Ken Sparks (338), Kevin Donley (300), Larry Wilcox (267), Monte Carter (261), and Dennis Douds (260).^[1][2]

Among the coaches with 200 career wins, the individual with the highest winning percentage is Kehres with a .929 winning percentage in 27 seasons (1986–2012) as the head football coach at the University of Mount Union in Alliance, Ohio. Five others finished their careers with 200 wins and a winning percentage of .800 or greater: Gaither (.844), Tom Osborne (.836), Mike Kelly (.819), Ron Schipper (.808) and Bo Schembechler (.804).^[1][2]

The coaches with the most wins at one college are Gagliardi (465 at St. John's), Paterno (409 at Penn State), Robinson (408 at Grambling), Kehres (332 at Mount Union), Sparks (327 at Carson–Newman), Kidd (314 at Eastern Kentucky), Bowden (304 at Florida State) and Tubby Raymond (300 at Delaware).

Key

*	Active in the 2016 season.
†	Inducted into the College Football Hall of Fame as a coach.
††	Inducted into the College Football Hall of Fame as a player.
†††	Inducted into the College Football Hall of Fame as both a player and a coach.
	200 wins with a Division I program (or historic equivalent)[n 1]

Coaches with 200 career wins

Updated as of games played on November 28, 2016.

Rank	Name	Years	Wins	Losses	Ties	Pct.	Teams
1	Gagliardi, JohnJohn Gagliardi^†	63	489	138	11	.775	Carroll (MT) (1949–1952), St. John's (MN) (1953–2012)
2	Paterno, JoeJoe Paterno^†	45	409	136	3	.749	Penn State (1966–2011)
3	Robinson, EddieEddie Robinson^†[n 2]	55	408	165	15	.707	Grambling (1941–1942, 1945–1997)
4	Bowden, BobbyBobby Bowden^†	44	377[n 3]	129	4	.743	Samford (1959–1962), West Virginia (1970–1975), Florida State (1976–2009)
5	Sparks, KenKen Sparks^*	37	338	99	2	.772	Carson–Newman (1980–present)
6	Warner, PopPop Warner^†	49	336[n 4]	114	32	.733	Georgia (1895–1896), Iowa State (1895-1899), Cornell (1897–1898, 1904–1906), Carlisle (1899–1903, 1907–1914), Pittsburgh (1915–1923), Stanford (1924–1932), Temple (1933–1938)
7	Kehres, LarryLarry Kehres	27	332	24	3	.929	Mount Union (1986–2012)
8	Bryant, BearBear Bryant^†	38	323	85	17	.780	Maryland (1945), Kentucky (1946–1953), Texas A&M (1954–1957), Alabama (1958–1982)
9	Kidd, RoyRoy Kidd^†	39	314	124	8	.713	Eastern Kentucky (1964–2002)
9	Stagg, Amos AlonzoAmos Alonzo Stagg^†††	57	314	199	35	.605	Springfield (1890–1891), Chicago (1892–1932), Pacific (CA) (1933–1946)
11	Westering, FrostyFrosty Westering^†	40	305	96	7	.756	Parsons (1962–1963), Lea (1966–1971), Pacific Lutheran (1972–2003)
12	Raymond, TubbyTubby Raymond^†[n 5]	36	300	119	3	.714	Delaware (1966–2001)
12	Donley, KevinKevin Donley^*	38	300	129	1	.699	Anderson (IN) (1978–1981), Georgetown (KY) (1982–1992), California (PA) (1993–1996), Saint Francis (IN) (1998–present)
14	Schipper, RonRon Schipper^†	36	287	67	3	.808	Central (IA) (1961–1996)
15	Beamer, FrankFrank Beamer	35	278	144	4	.657	Murray State (1981–1986), Virginia Tech (1987–2015)
16	Wilcox, LarryLarry Wilcox^*	38	267	143	0	.651	Benedictine (KS) (1979–present)
17	Ford, BobBob Ford[n 6]	45	265	191	1	.581	St. Lawrence (1965–1968), Albany (1973–2013)
18	Cater, MonteMonte Cater^*	36	263	115	2	.695	Lakeland (1981–1986), Shepherd (1987–present)
19	Harring, RogerRoger Harring^†	31	261	75	7	.771	Wisconsin–La Crosse (1969–1999)
20	Douds, DennisDennis Douds^*	43	260	188	3	.580	East Stroudsburg (1974–present)
21	Biesiot, HankHank Biesiot	38	258	121	1	.680	Dickinson State (1976–2013)
22	Edwards, LaVellLaVell Edwards^†	29	257	101	3	.716	BYU (1972–2000)
22	Girardi, FrankFrank Girardi^†	36	257	97	5	.723	Lycoming (1972–2007)
22	Talley, AndyAndy Talley^*	37	257	155	2	.623	St. Lawrence (1979–83), Villanova (1985–present)
25	Osborne, TomTom Osborne^†	25	255	49	3	.836	Nebraska (1973–1997)
25	Malosky, James S.James S. Malosky	40	255	125	13	.665	Minnesota–Duluth (1958–1997)
27	Holtz, LouLou Holtz^†	33	249	132	7	.651	William & Mary (1969–1971), North Carolina State (1972–1975), Arkansas (1977–1983), Minnesota (1984–1985), Notre Dame (1986–1996), South Carolina (1999–2004)
28	Ash, RobRob Ash	36	247	137	5	.641	Juniata (1980–1988), Drake (1989–2006), Montana State (2007–2015)
29	Kelly, MikeMike Kelly^†	27	246	54	1	.819	Dayton (1981–2007)
30	Joe, BillyBilly Joe^†[n 7]	34	245	127	4	.657	Cheyney (1972–1978), Central State (1981–1993), Florida A&M (1994–2004), Miles (2008–2010)
30	Laycock, JimmyeJimmye Laycock^*	37	245	180	2	.576	William & Mary (1980–present)
32	Brown, MackMack Brown	30	244	122	1	.666	Appalachian State (1983), Tulane (1985–1987), North Carolina (1988–1997), Texas (1998–2013)
32	Moore, JerryJerry Moore^†	31	243	135	2	.642	North Texas (1979–1980), Texas Tech (1981–1985), Appalachian State (1989–2012)
34	Tjeerdsma, MelMel Tjeerdsma	27	242	82	4	.744	Austin (1984–1993), Northwest Missouri State (1994–2010)
35	Bagnoli, AlAl Bagnoli^*	35	239	114	0	.677	Union (NY) (1982–1991), Penn (1992–2014), Columbia (2015–present)
36	Hayes, WoodyWoody Hayes^†	33	238	72	10	.759	Denison (1946–1948), Miami (OH) (1949–1950), Ohio State (1951–1978)
37	Merritt, JohnJohn Merritt^†	32	235	70	12	.760	Jackson State (1952–1962), Tennessee State (1963–1983)
38	Giancola, RickRick Giancola^*	34	234	116	2	.668	Montclair State (1983–present)
38	Schembechler, BoBo Schembechler^†	27	234	65	8	.775	Miami (OH) (1963–1968), Michigan (1969–1989)
40	Mumford, AceAce Mumford^†	36	233	85	23	.717	Jarvis Christian (1924–1926), Bishop (1927–1929), Texas College (1931–1935), Southern (1936–1942, 1944–1961)
40	Taylor, JoeJoe Taylor	30	233	96	4	.706	Howard (1983), Virginia Union (1984–1991), Hampton (1992–2007), Florida A&M (2008–2012)
40	Ault, ChrisChris Ault^†	28	233	109	1	.681	Nevada (1976–1992, 1994–1995, 2004–2012)
43	Fry, HaydenHayden Fry^†	37	232	178	10	.564	SMU (1962–1972), North Texas (1973–1978), Iowa (1979–1998)
44	Bailey, WillardWillard Bailey	37	230	150	7	.603	Virginia Union (1971–1983, (1995–2003), Norfolk State (1984–1992), Saint Paul's (VA) (2005–2010)
44	Kelly, BrianBrian Kelly^*	26	230	88	2	.722	Grand Valley State (1991–2003), Central Michigan (2004–2006), Cincinnati (2006–2009), Notre Dame (2010–present)
46	Tressel, JimJim Tressel^†	25	229	79	2	.742	Youngstown State (1986–2000), Ohio State (2001–2010)
47	Spurrier, SteveSteve Spurrier^††	26	228	89	2	.718	Duke (1987–1989), Florida (1990–2001), South Carolina (2005–2015)
48	Long, Fred T.Fred T. Long	45	227	151	31	.593	Paul Quinn (1921–1922), Wiley (1923–1947, 1956–1965), Prairie View A&M (1948), Texas College (1949–1955)
49	Luckhardt, JohnJohn Luckhardt	27	225	70	2	.761	Washington & Jefferson (1982–1998), California (PA) (2002–2011)
50	Hameline, WaltWalt Hameline[n 8]	34	223	139	2	.615	Wagner (1981–2014)
51	Carpenter, GeneGene Carpenter^†	32	220	90	6	.706	Adams State (1968), Millersville (1970–2000)
52	Drass, MikeMike Drass^*	24	219	56	1	.795	Wesley (DE) (1993–present)
52	Harms, RonRon Harms^†	31	219	112	4	.660	Concordia (NE) (1964–1969), Adams State (1970–1973), Texas A&M–Kingsville (1979–1999)
52	Kessinger, TedTed Kessinger^†	28	219	57	1	.792	Bethany (KS) (1976–2003)
55	Randleman, RonRon Randleman	36	218	167	6	.565	William Penn (1969–1975), Pittsburg State (1976–1981), Sam Houston State (1982–2004)
56	Christopherson, JimJim Christopherson	32	217	102	7	.676	Concordia (Moorhead) (1969–2000)
56	Martinelli, FredFred Martinelli^†	35	217	119	12	.641	Ashland (1959–1993)
58	Hale, DannyDanny Hale	25	213	69	1	.754	West Chester (1984–1988), Bloomsburg (1993–2012)
58	Franchione, DennisDennis Franchione	30	213	135	2	.611	Southwestern (KS) (1981–1982), Pittsburg State (1985–1989), Texas State (1990–1991), New Mexico (1992–1997), TCU (1998–2000), Alabama (2001–2002), Texas A&M (2003–2007), Texas State (2011–2015)
60	Hamilton, EricEric Hamilton	36	212	144	6	.594	New Jersey (1977–2012)
60	Manlove, BillBill Manlove^†	32	212	111	1	.656	Widener (1969–1991), Delaware Valley (1992–1995), La Salle (1997–2001)
62	Mazzaferro, PeterPeter Mazzaferro	41	209	157	11	.569	Waynesburg (1959–1962), Curry (1963), Bridgewater State (1968–1986, 1988–2004)
63	Neely, JessJess Neely^†	40	207	176	19	.539	Southwestern (TN) (1924–1927), Clemson (1931–1939), Rice (1940–1966)
63	Keeler, K. C.K. C. Keeler^*	23	207	82	1	.716	Rowan (1993–2001), Delaware (2002–2012), Sam Houston State (2014–present)
65	Ayers, MikeMike Ayers^*	32	206	156	2	.569	East Tennessee State (1985–1987), Wofford (1988–present)
65	Butterfield, JimJim Butterfield^†	27	206	71	1	.743	Ithaca (1967–1993)
67	Elliott, HaroldHarold Elliott	37	205	179	9	.533	Southwestern (KS) (1964–1968), Washburn (1969–1970), Emporia State (1971–1973), Texas–Arlington (1974–1983), Northwest Missouri State (1988–1993), Eastern New Mexico (1994–2004)
68	Gaither, JakeJake Gaither^†[n 9]	25	204	36	4	.844	Florida A&M (1945–1969)
69	Abbott, ClevelandCleveland Abbott	32	203	96	28	.664	Tuskegee (1923–1954)
69	Lackner, RichRich Lackner^*	31	203	110	2	.648	Carnegie Mellon (1986–present)
69	Saban, NickNick Saban^*	21	203[n 10]	60	1	.771	Toledo (1990), Michigan State (1995–1999), LSU (2000–2004), Alabama (2007–present)
72	Johnson, SteveSteve Johnson^*	28	202	93	1	.684	Bethel (MN) (1989–present)
72	Kindbom, LarryLarry Kindbom^*	34	202	138	1	.594	Kenyon (1983–1988), Washington University (1989–present)
72	Nehlen, DonDon Nehlen^†	30	202	128	8	.609	Bowling Green (1968–1976), West Virginia (1980–2000)
72	Woodson, Warren B.Warren B. Woodson^†	31	202	94	14	.674	Arkansas State Teachers (1935–1940), Hardin–Simmons (1941–1942, 1946–1951), Arizona (1952–1956), New Mexico State (1958–1967), Trinity (TX) (1972–1973)
76	Anderson, EddieEddie Anderson^†	39	201	128	15	.606	Loras (1922–1924), DePaul (1925–1931), Holy Cross (1933–1938, 1950–1964) Iowa (1939–1942, 1946–1949)
76	DeLong, MikeMike DeLong	34	201	139	2	.591	Maine Maritime (1979–1980), Springfield (MA) (1984–2015)
76	Dooley, VinceVince Dooley^†	25	201	77	10	.715	Georgia (1964–1988)
76	Piper, Keith W.Keith W. Piper	39	201	141	18	.583	Denison (1954–1992)
76	Sweeney, JimJim Sweeney	32	201	153	5	.567	Montana State (1963–1967), Washington State (1968–1975), Fresno State (1976–1977, 1980–1996)
81	Glenn, JoeJoe Glenn	28	200	134	1	.599	Doane (1976–1979), Northern Colorado (1989–1999), Montana (2000–2002), Wyoming (2003–2008), South Dakota (2012–2015)
81	Margraff, JimJim Margraff^*	27	200	85	3	.700	Johns Hopkins (1990–present)
81	Mudra, DarrellDarrell Mudra^†	26	200	81	4	.709	Adams State (1959–1962), North Dakota State (1963–1965), Arizona (1967–1968), Western Illinois (1969–1973), Florida State (1974–1975), Eastern Illinois (1978–1982), Northern Iowa (1983–1987)
81	Snyder, BillBill Snyder^†^*	25	200	105	1	.655	Kansas State (1989–2005, 2009–present)

Active coaches nearing 200 career wins

This list identifies active coaches with at least 185 career wins. Updated as of games played on November 28, 2016.

Rank	Name	Years	Wins	Losses	Ties	Pct.	Teams
^*	Murphy, TimTim Murphy	30	195	111	1	.637	Maine (1987–1988), Cincinnati (1989–1993), Harvard (1994–present)
^*	Van Diest, MikeMike Van Diest	18	194	42	0	.822	Carroll (MT) (1999–present)
^*	Fredenburg, PetePete Fredenburg	19	193	38	0	.835	Mary Hardin–Baylor (1998–present)
^*	Streeter, Barry H.Barry H. Streeter	38	193	186	5	.509	Gettysburg (1978–2003, 2005–present)
^*	Eash, NormNorm Eash	30	191	101	1	.654	Illinois Wesleyan (1987–present)
^*	Fincham, JoeJoe Fincham	21	191	43	0	.816	Wittenberg (1996–present)
^*	Nielson, BobBob Nielson	24	190	85	1	.690	Ripon (1989–1990), Wartburg (1991–1995), Wisconsin–Eau Claire (1996–1998), Minnesota–Duluth (1999–2003, 2008–2012), Western Illinois (2013–2015), South Dakota (2016–present)
^*	Stoops, BobBob Stoops	18	188	48	0	.797	Oklahoma (1999–present)

See also

• List of college football coaches with 100 losses
• List of college football coaches with 20 ties
• List of college football coaches with 0 career wins
• List of college football coaches with 30 seasons
• List of college football coaches with a .750 winning percentage
• List of National Football League head coaches

Notes

1. The list includes coaches with 200 wins regardless of division. Coaches with 200 wins at a Division I school (or historic equivalents) are designated with the referenced peach shading. The referenced shading has also been used for coaches with historic programs that were among the elite programs of their era. For example, Amos Alonzo Stagg's wins with the University of Chicago are included.
2. Although Robinson has 408 total wins at Grambling, he has only 154 NCAA Division I wins. Robinson's first two wins were before Grambling was an accredited college. When the NCAA first split into the University Division (predecessor to today's Division I) and College Division (predecessor to today's Divisions II and III) in 1956, Grambling became a member of the College Division, and remained at that level until the split of the College Division after the 1972 season. At that time, Grambling became a Division II school, and did not move to Division I until 1977. The following year, when Division I-AA was created, Grambling became a charter member of that group and has remained there to this day.
3. Bobby Bowden had 389 wins on the field. A March 6, 2009 NCAA ruling, which was appealed and then upheld on January 5, 2010, required Florida State to vacate 12 wins from the 2006 and 2007 seasons in relation to an academic scandal which resulted in using ineligible players.
4. The NCAA credits Warner with an overall record of 336–114–32. The College Football Data Warehouse credits him with one fewer win with the Carlisle Indians in 1908 and does not count his 18–8 record with Iowa State, giving him a career record of 318–106–32.
5. Although Raymond has 300 total wins at Delaware, he has only 181 NCAA Division I wins. From 1966 to 1972, Delaware was in the College Division, and once the NCAA adopted its current three-division setup in 1973, Delaware became a Division II school. Delaware did not move to Division I-AA until 1980; they have remained at that level ever since.
6. Although Ford has 265 total wins and 256 at Albany, he only has 98 NCAA Division I wins. Ford's first nine wins were at St. Lawrence, which was then in the College Division and is now in Division III. When Albany reinstated varsity football in 1973 with Ford as head coach, it did so as a Division III program; it joined Division II in 1995 and did not move to Division I-AA (now FCS) until 1999.
7. Although Joe has 245 wins, only 86 came at Division I Florida A&M; all other victories were with lower division programs.
8. Although Hameline has 223 total wins, all at Wagner, he has only 128 NCAA Division I wins. Wagner was a Division III school when he became head coach in 1981, and did not upgrade to the I-AA/FCS level until 1993.
9. Although Gaither has 204 wins at Florida A&M, FAMU did not move up to Division I until the creation of I-AA football in 1978, nine years after Gaither retired. All games coached by Gaither were designated as College Division games, either implicitly (games prior to 1956) or explicitly (1956 and later).
10. Nick Saban had 5 wins vacated from the 2007 season in relation to an academic scandal regarding textbooks. Four football players were found to have used their scholarships to obtain free textbooks for friends and/or girlfriends.

References

1. "NCAA Career Statistics". NCAA. Retrieved June 21, 2010. (The NCAA Career Statistics database allows the viewer to obtain coaching records for all NCAA coaches by inputting the individual's name in the linked window.)
2. "NCAA Coaching Records" (PDF). NCAA. 2013. (The linked document is a report published by the NCAA listing the winningest coaches based on data through the end of the 2012 season. Updated information on coaches active in subsequent seasons is available through the other sources listed in the "References" section.)
3. "All-Time Coaching Records". College Football Data Warehouse. Retrieved June 20, 2010. (The referenced page reflects the updated information on the Top 10 winningest coaches. Records for other coaches are available in the database in alphabetical order through links from the referenced page.)
4. "Penn State sanctions: $60M, bowl ban". ESPN. July 23, 2012. Retrieved September 27, 2013.
5. "Joe Paterno is now winningest coach". ESPN.com. Associated Press. January 16, 2015. Retrieved January 16, 2015.