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http://www.sportingnews.com/blog/expert40/157232 I am not sure that many of y'all realize this, but it is exactly 10 weeks, from today, until the beginning of College Football Season, when teams such at NC State and South Carolina kick it off underneath the Thursday Night Lights on ESPN. Who am I kidding? Plenty of y'all know about that. And to celebrate our 10 week countdown until the beginning of the sport that we all love so much, I thought I'd do a reverse "Top" list, starting today with the Top-10 Coaches in college football. Next week I'll do another list, but as this is a countdown, the list will be a "Top-9" list. What the heck! I'll go ahead and give y'all a schedule to whet y'all's appetite so you know what's coming. College Football Countdown Top-10 Coaches Top-9 Defenses Top-8 Offenses Top-7 Quarterbacks Top-6 Conferences Top-5 Running Backs Top-4 Bowl Games Top-3 Heisman Candidates Top-2 Teams in College Football Top-1 Game of the Year Alright, now that y'all know what's coming in the weeks ahead as we make our way towards August 28th, let's get on with the first list. This list of Top-10 Coaches in college football is something I've put a lot of effort into in so much as Mythical National Titles won is not the only barometer of what makes one coach better than another. Winning percentage is something that should be taken into consideration. Where the coach has coached in his career is something that should be taken into consideration. How stable a winner is his program? Are their scandals and skeletons in this coach's closet? If there is, that has to be taken into consideration. Do they fluctuate from year to year, or does the team "reload," as it were, and prepare for another year of success? If the coach has won, has he done so with "his" players, or the players the "other guy" left him? Mythical National Titles do not make the coach. But they certainly don't hurt. Before we get to naming the names, here are a few names who aren't on the list: Bobby Bowden, Joe Paterno, Charlie Weis, Les Miles, Dennis Erikson, Greg Schiano, Steve Spurrier, "Fat" Phil Fulmer "The Great Pumpkin," Jeff Tedford, Jim Grobe, Mike Leach, Bret Bielema, and Sly Croom. All of whom are great coaches, just not the Top-10. Bowden and JoePa? Bowden hasn't been any good since Richt left, and JoePa stopped coaching circa 1988. Charlie Weis? What the hell has he done but win with He Who Shall Not Be Named's guys against a ridiculously easy schedule that's built for ten wins a year if Notre Lame is just mediocre and then gets blown out in BCS Games he doesn't even belong in? Argue against that logic, Tarnished Domers. Erikson just missed the list, but I don't buy ASU until they knock off USC and win the Pac-1 outright. That's my same argument against Tedford. That and his QBs just suck once they hit the NFL. It's science. Schiano? Call me when you win your conference. Same with Leach and Bielema. Jim Grobe is a good coach in a difficult situation and just missed the list, but I need some consistency in the program before he's Top-10 material. Sly Croom, same thing. As for Darth Visor, yeah, he beat us last year, but without Florida's athletes, the shine has rubbed off his ego, just a bit, hasn't it? Fat Phil also just missed the list. He had a mini-resurgence last year, but again, I don't know if I buy it. His squad has been mediocre against the decade so far. And they don't win many bowl games under The Great Pumpkin. Okay, for those fans of schools that employ the above coaches who are cursing my name right this very second, feel free to leave your remarks. But please, unlike Charlie Weis does, I would ask you to watch your mouths and be respectful in your disagreements. There may be children reading. sportingnews 6/26/08