Top 5 oldest college football coaches feat. Nick Saban
Ranking the five oldest college football coaches still active seems like a very straightforward task. However, there are still far more things than just the age of the coaches on this list--as you will soon see.
Don't be surprised if most (if not all) of the coaches in this list are also among the most successful in the sport. It's simply because they've been around the game far longer than almost anyone has. And with all that experience does come success to an extent.
That said, here are the oldest head coaches still active as we head into the 2023 CFB season.
#5. Rick Stockstill, Middle Tennessee (66 years)
Rick Stockstill has been at the helm of the Middle Tennessee Blue Raiders since 2006. His overall record there is OK, all things considered. As per HeroSports, Stockstill has a 109-104 win-loss record for Middle Tennessee. But the Blue Raiders are far from the only team he ever coached, which is why he's on this list of the five oldest college football coaches.
Stockstill started coaching in 1983-84 as the quarterbacks coach and offensive coordinator for Bethune-Cookman. After that, he went to UCF from 1985 to 1988. Stockstill also spent a total of five seasons at Clemson and had stops at East Carolina and South Carolina. He's been around, as one may say.
#4. Terry Bowden, University of Louisiana-Monroe (67 years)
Warhawks coach Terry Bowden has been coaching since 1983. He began his career as a head coach for Salem College that year, where he won a couple of West Virginia Intercollegiate Athletic Conference championships. And he's been at the helm of Louisiana-Monroe since 2021.
Terry Bowden is the son of the legendary Bobby Bowden, so it's safe to say that coaching college football runs in the family. The (relatively) younger Bowden also spent time in Samford, Auburn, North Alabama and Akron. He has an overall record of 175-114-2.
#3. Kirk Ferentz, Iowa (68 years)
At 68 years old, Kirk Ferentz is the third-oldest active HC on our list of the oldest CFB coaches. Currently coaching at Iowa, he also spent time in Maine. Ferentz is presently the longest-tenured HC in Division 1 FBS, having been at the helm of the Hawkeyes since 1999.
He has amassed a 187-115 record for Iowa since arriving there, good enough for a respectable .619 winning percentage.
#2. Nick Saban, Alabama (71 years)
Perhaps the most famous out of the oldest college football coaches on this list, Alabama's Nick Saban has been coaching since 1973. He is often said to be the greatest HC ever in college football, and if his time in Tuscaloosa is any indication, that is quite true.
Saban has won a total of seven national titles in college football. His last win in 2020 finally put him ahead of his 'Bama predecessor, the iconic Bear Bryant. So, when it comes to overall experience and championship pedigree, almost no one else is held in higher regard.
#1. Mack Brown, UNC (72 years)
Since Ohio's Frank Solich retired in 2020, his mantle of the oldest college football coach passed on to UNC's Mack Brown. The current head man of the Tar Heels is a College Football Hall of Famer, and his resume speaks for itself.
Brown started his coaching career as a QB coach at LSU in 1982. He then moved on to coach Appalachian State, Tulane, North Carolina (the first time, from 1988-1997) and Texas. Mack Brown returned to Chapel Hill in 2018 and has been there since. At 72 years old, he tops our list of the oldest CFB coaches.