Naming The SEC’s Rookie Coach Of The Year

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The regular season is over and it’s time to figure out which rookie SEC head coach did the best job.

That’s not an easy assignment.  All three have given their fanbases some reason to be positive about the future.

So let’s break it down in eight categories using more data than opinion (though we do include some of the latter, too):

* Recruiting
* Wins for the home fans
* SEC wins
* Toughest schedule
* Beating the rivals
* Bowl games
* Head-to-head

RECRUITING — Kiffin

The point in this category has to go to Lane Kiffin, but Gene Chizik is right on his tail.

Kiffin inked the nation’s #10 signing class last year (rankings by Rivals.com, by the way) and he’s got the Vols ranked #7 for the upcoming class.

Chizik scored a #19 class on The Plains in 2009 and he has the Tigers all the way up to #8 in this year’s rankings.  He’s also pulled a commitment from the nation’s top-ranked running back — Michael Dyer.

Dan Mullen landed a surprisingly solid #25 class last year, but this year the Bulldogs lag behind at #40.  I expect a strong finish from State, however.

WINS FOR HOME FANS — Chizik

In this day and age, coaches better win every game they coach if they want to be safe, but they darn sure better win their home games.  Boosters who pay exorbitant rates for tickets and luxury boxes don’t like watching the hometown team lose.

This category’s close, but we’ll give the advantage to Chizik.  Both he and Kiffin finished with identical 6-2 home records, but Chizik’s is a little better in style points.

Auburn’s losses came to Kentucky (very ugly) and to Alabama.  But the competitiveness of the Alabama game actually gave Tiger fans some hope for the future.  The Tigers’ win over 8-4 Ole Miss was also better than any win Tennessee scored at home.

The Vols’ two home losses came to UCLA (a very poor performance) and to Auburn (another reason to go with Chizik).  The Vols’ best home wins were blowouts over Georgia and South Carolina.  I don’t put much stock in their win over 9-3 Ohio.

Mullen went just 2-5 at home, but faced an absolutely brutal stretch of ranked opponents: LSU, Georgia Tech, Houston, Florida, Alabama and Ole Miss.  Beating the Rebels at home was big, but not big enough to overshadow a 2-5 record.

SEC WINS – Kiffin

Pretty straightforward on this one.  Kiffin’s Vols won five league games.  Chizik and Mullen led their squads to three wins apiece.  Point goes to Kiffin.

TOUGHEST SCHEDULE — Chizik and Mullen

We showed you yesterday the in-conference strength of schedule for each SEC team.  Using those numbers, Chizik and Mullen will each get a point in this category.

Auburn and Mississippi State both faced SEC West opponents who went 23-17, SEC East opponents who went 11-13 and, therefore, league opponents who finished the season 34-30 in conference play.

Tennessee’s SEC East opponents went 18-22, their SEC West opponents went 15-9, and their opponents’ overall league record was 33-31.  Close, but not close enough to earn a point.

BEATING THE RIVALS — Mullen

The Egg Bowl is THE rivalry in the state of Mississippi.  Mullen knocked off a superior Ole Miss squad in his first season… spoiling the Rebels’ national ranking and Capital One Bowl hopes.  No contest, Mullen takes the point in this category.

At Tennessee, the two main rivals are Florida and Alabama.  The Vols played tight with the nation’s top two teams — losing on a blocked field goal attempt at Bama — but close doesn’t cut it.

The same goes for Chizik at Auburn.  The Tigers put on a good show in the Iron Bowl, but Bama still came back to win.  Auburn also lost to their oldest rival, Georgia.

BOWL GAMES — Chizik and Kiffin

Mullen almost got his Bulldogs bowl eligible, but in the end, Chizik and Kiffin will be coaching all month long while Mullen will not.  A point each for Chizik and Kiffin.

HEAD-TO-HEAD — Chizik

Again, this one is pretty simple.  Kiffin and Mullen didn’t face one another.  Chizik faced both.  And he beat both.  He beat Mississippi State badly and he beat Tennessee on the road.  Yes, both wins came early in the season, but them’s the breaks.

FINAL VERDICT

Chizik got four points.  Kiffin got three.  Mullen got two.

So, breaking it down in that fashion, Chizik would get our rookie coach of the year nod.

But it was an awfully close race.

You could make a good case that Chizik’s 2-5 finish should count against him.

You could make a good case that Mullen faced the greatest degree of difficulty having to build up Mississippi State.

And you could easily make the case — pro or con — that Kiffin was the SEC’s most buzzworthy coach of the year.

But in the end, all three coaches gave their fans more reasons for hope than for worry.  At least in Year One of their tenures.  And Chizik’s Year One was just a hair better than Kiffin’s and Mullen’s.