[Masochist]

Originally Posted by Delta-1-Bravo

My apologies to JoePa for that cheap-shot. He's still alive...?

I don't have an answer to your question, but having the 'most wins' wouldn't be part of the criteria. Hanging around piling up 'W's' long after Coordinators and position coaches have become accountable for gameplanning and recruiting... I don't think that adds to one's 'greatness'.

I'm partial to guys like LaVell Edwards. Coaches that do more w/less. His BYU teams consistently gave bigger/stronger/faster opponents from major conferences fits. Jim Harbaugh did the same thing recently at Stanford.

Best football coaches of all-time? IMO, the two Bill's: Belichick and Walsh.

Now give me your definition of "alive" He's still roaming the sidelines (most of the times, in-between hospital stays), if that's what you're asking.

The reason I asked is because it's a subjective term and sadly college football uses wins as the definition of success. Kind of like how most Americans equate money with success. We could split this conversation off into one of a million sub-sections: Greatest Coach Based on Numbers Alone (regardless of how he got them), Coach Who Did the Most With Least, Coach Who Had the Greatest Impact on a Program ...

I have a respect for coaches such as Paterno, Frank Beamer, John Gagliardi and Chris Ault, who are able to remain with a program for as long as they have in a "win now or else" atmosphere. Not all have been successful their entire career (win-wise), but they've obviously done something right to stick around.