Big 12 coach rankings 2023: Oklahoma State's Mike Gundy dethroned as TCU's Sonny Dykes rises to top
The Big 12 coaching fraternity will be larger than ever as the league adds four new teams ahead of the 2023 season
By
Dean Straka
•
6 min read
Each offseason, the CBS Sports and 247Sports college football teams get together and rank every single Power Five coach ahead of the upcoming season. Thanks to realignment, it should come as no surprise that no Power Five conference saw more change in our rankings than the Big 12 as four new coaches -- Gus Malzahn (UCF), Dana Holgorsen (Houston), Kalani Sitake (BYU) and Scott Satterfield (Cincinnati) 2023 -- join the league's coaching fraternity.
Realignment isn't the only reason for the shakeup in coaching rankings, though. Breakthrough seasons for TCU's Sonny Dykes and Kansas State's Chris Klieman vaulted them to the top of the list. Meanwhile, disappointing 2022 campaigns from Oklahoma State's Mike Gundy, Iowa State's Matt Campbell and Baylor's Dave Aranda lowered their stock in the eyes of our staff.
Coaches like Texas' Steve Sarkisian and Oklahoma's Brent Venables were pushed down the list by some of of the newcomers. Both face pivotal seasons with mounting pressure to perform as their programs get set to move to the SEC on July 1, 2024. Speaking of pressure, it's now or never for West Virginia's Neal Brown after four struggling seasons with the Mountaineers.
Below is how all 14 Big 12 coaches rank, as previously voted on by the CBS Sports and 247Sports staffs.
Complete Power Five coach rankings: 1-25 | 26-69
Big 12 Coach Rankings 2023
| 1 |  |
| Sonny Dykes (11 overall): Dykes looks like a home-run hire after last year's run to the College Football Playoff National Championship. He was already on an upward trajectory at SMU from 2018-21, a stretch during which the Mustangs sustained success not seen since the NCAA reinstated the football program in 1989. The Horned Frogs have a chance to cement their status as a top program in the new-look Big 12. Last year: 5th in Big 12 | |
| 2 |  |
| Chris Klieman (12 overall): It took four seasons for Klieman to lead Kansas State to an outright Big 12 championship -- the program's first since 2003. Following in the footsteps of a legend like Bill Snyder is quite the undertaking, but it hasn't fazed Klieman, who previously guided North Dakota State to four FCS national titles in a span of five seasons. Last year: 4th in Big 12 | |
| 3 |  |
| Mike Gundy (17 overall): Gundy is the longest-tenured active Big 12 coach by a wide margin. His 156-75 overall record speaks volumes, though it's fair to ask where Oklahoma State is headed at this point of Gundy's career. The Cowboys went from matching a program-record 12 wins in 2021 to just seven in 2022. That was followed by a rash of transfer portal entries in the offseason. Gundy turns 56 in August, and this is shaping up to be a consequential season for his future trajectory. Last year: 1st in Big 12 | |
| 4 |  |
| Lance Leipold (23 overall): The coach who guided Wisconsin-Whitewater to six NCAA Division III national titles from 2007-14 seems to be flipping the script at Kansas. Leipold needed just two years to get the Jayhawks to multiple Big 12 wins and bowl eligibility, feats they hadn't accomplished since 2008. It sure looks like Kansas' days as the Big 12's cellar-dweller are over for as long as Leipold is around. Last year: 7th in Big 12 | |
| 5 |  |
| Dave Aranda (28 overall): It's been a rollercoaster ride for Aranda through three years in Waco, Texas. Baylor won two games in 2020, rocketed to 12 wins and a Big 12 title in 2021 and fell back to earth at 6-7 in 2022. The Bears' ability to bounce back after last year's letdown will go a long way in shaping his reputation moving forward. Last year: 2nd in Big 12 | |
| 6 |  |
| Gus Malzahn (34 overall): Malzahn continues to get respect from his time at Auburn, where he was 67-35 from 2013-20. He notably guided the Tigers to an SEC title and BCS National Championship appearance in his first year on the Plains a decade ago. As for the present, UCF won nine games in each of Malzahn's first two years and has built arguably the most Power Five-ready roster among the four Big 12 newcomers. Last year: N/A in Big 12 | |
| 7 |  |
| Matt Campbell (35 overall): Campbell's stock peaked in 2020 with a Big 12 Championship Game appearance and the first AP top-10 finish in program history. The Cyclones are 11-14 in the two seasons since. It's worth acknowledging that Iowa State's 4-8 campaign in 2022 was littered with one-score losses, but close doesn't cut it. Another season of underwhelming results would be a tough look for Campbell. Last year: 3rd in Big 12 | |
| 8 |  |
| Steve Sarkisian (37 overall): It remains to be seen if Sarkisian's tenure on the Forty Acres will be a success. The Longhorns improved from a 5-7 mess in his 2021 debut to an 8-5 finish in 2022, but that's far from reaching the threshold of Texas being "back." Sarkisian is 59-47 all-time as a college coach and has yet to win more than nine games in a season, a mark he hit at USC in 2014. Last year: 6th in Big 12 | |
| 9 |  |
| Kalani Sitake (41 overall): The past three seasons are the best stretch yet of Sitake's coaching career. BYU is 29-9 in that time, finishing as high as No. 11 in the AP Top 25 rankings in 2020. There will be an acclimation period for the Cougars in the Big 12, but Sitake is no stranger to Power Five competition from BYU's days as an FBS independent. The Cougars were 6-1 against such opponents as recently as 2021. Sitake and BYU also beat new Big 12 foe Baylor at home just last year. Last year: N/A in Big 12 | |
| 10 |  |
| Joey McGuire (46 overall): It's a bit surprising McGuire isn't higher on this list. In his debut as a college coach, he guided Texas Tech to its first winning record in Big 12 play since 2009. The Red Raiders also beat Texas and Oklahoma in the same season for the first time ever. The sample size is small, but McGuire's early achievements give Texas Tech hope. Last year: 10th in Big 12 | |
| 11 |  |
| Dana Holgorsen (48 overall): Holgorsen is 88-61 all-time as a college coach, but his tenure at Houston has left much to be desired. Outside of a 12-win season in 2021, the Cougars are 15-18 under his watch. It's his second time to lead a program into the Big 12 after he coached West Virginia through its inaugural season in the conference back in 2012. Last year: N/A in Big 12 | |
| 12 |  |
| Brent Venables (52 overall): Venables thrived as a defensive coordinator, but the jury is still out on him as a head coach. Last year was Oklahoma's first losing season since 1998. If the pressure of a dissapointing first season wasn't enough, Venables is also charged with getting the Sooners' house in order before a move to the SEC. Still, a strong recruiting class and a solid transfer portal haul are reasons for optimism going into his second season. Last year: 8th in Big 12 | |
| 13 |  |
| Scott Satterfield (54 overall): Satterfield went 51-24 at Appalachian State from 2013-18, but that success has yet to translate to the Power Five level. He was 25-24 in the past four seasons at Louisville, and now fills what was an unexpected vacancy at Cincinnati after Luke Fickell abruptly departed for Wisconsin. Satterfield's experience helps, but it could be difficult for him to replicate Fickell's success. Last year: N/A in Big 12 | |
| 14 |  |
| Neal Brown (59 overall): Brown won 35 games in four years at Troy, but it's been a different story in Morgantown. West Virginia has finished above .500 just once under Brown, who is 22-25 since his arrival. With key roster and staff departures this offseason, more challenges appear to be on deck in a make-or-break year for Brown. Last year: 9th in Big 12 | |
