Power Four coaches ranked by AP Top 25 win records
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- Kalen DeBoer owns the best career winning percentage against AP Top 25 teams among Power Four coaches, going 10-1 at Washington before joining Alabama, with his only loss coming against Michigan in the national championship game.
- Kirby Smart has 42 wins over AP Top 25 opponents since 2016 — the most in college football over that span — including Georgia's 5-2 mark against ranked teams last season with victories over Ole Miss, Alabama, Tennessee, Texas, and Georgia Tech.
- In the Big Ten, only Ryan Day, Dan Lanning, Lincoln Riley, and Curt Cignetti carry winning career records against ranked teams; Cignetti went 16-0 at Indiana in 2025, including six wins over ranked foes and a 35-point CFP blowout of DeBoer's Alabama.
- Mario Cristobal went 7-1 against ranked opponents last season and sits at 15-19 career against top teams, positioning Miami as the ACC frontrunner entering 2026 with a chance to push him to .500 for his career.
- Texas Tech's Joey McGuire leads the Big 12 at .466 against ranked teams, as no conference coach holds a winning career record in that category; Baylor's Dave Aranda has lost 12 of his last 13 against ranked foes since the 2021 Big 12 title.
- Matt Rhule has not beaten a ranked opponent since his final game at Temple in 2016, going winless in 20 tries at Baylor and Nebraska against top competition.
Why it matters: Only 10 Power Four coaches (plus Marcus Freeman at Notre Dame) post a .500 or better career record against AP Top 25 teams — a tiny group that will dominate championship conversations and job-security debates under the 12-team playoff. Coaches like Matt Rhule (winless vs. ranked since 2016) and Dave Aranda (1-12 since 2021) face the steepest pressure to flip the script.
