So everyone on the "Most Underrated List" was a coach that other coaches liked to play because they were easy to beat? And they honored them with their anonymous vote?
Okay. Fine. Forget what the coaches said. Let's go back to 2014 and see how Athlon rated ALL current coaches, presumably free of treacly new hire sentiment.
Looks like Mike Riley comes in at #27, ahead of Kirk Ferentz, Jerry Kill, Dabo Swinney, Dan Mullen, Mike Leach, and all the way down at #43, Bo Pelini.
27. Mike Riley, Oregon State
Record at Oregon State: 88-73 (13 years)
Career Record: 88-73 (13 years)
Oregon State’s Program Rank: No. 10 in the Pac-12, No. 54 nationally
Riley is in his second stint at Oregon State, and the Beavers have been one of the Pac-12’s most consistent programs under his watch. From 1971-98, Oregon State failed to earn a winning record. But since 2003, the Beavers have eight winning seasons out of the last 11 years. Riley has guided Oregon State to six years of at least eight wins during that span. The Beavers also have 15 bowl appearances in school history – eight of them are under Riley’s watch. So while Oregon State is still looking for a Pac-12 title under Riley, he has clearly elevated a program that struggled mightily prior to his arrival. And if you needed any additional data on Riley’s impact, take a look at recruiting rankings. The Beavers own the No. 10 roster in the Pac-12, yet rank sixth in the conference in conference wins over the last four years.
And above Riley is a list of coaches we might have coveted at the time, but haven't aged so well, either.
Riley was not considered a terrible hire by independent college football observers in 2015. At worst he was considered a head-scratcher. Others thought it was a good fit. The head of Rivals thought Nebraska scored a coup.
Like Pelini, Riely is gone. No sense making them into more or less than they were.
