Here's how Chat GPT ranked the top five coaches for every SEC school.

Alabama-

1. Saban
2. Bear
3. Wallace Wade
4. Frank Thomas
5. Gene Stallings

Pretty solid list. No real arguments. Wade and Thomas are kind of interchangeable. But I prefer Wade.

Arkansas

1. Frank Broyles
2. Lou Holtz
3. Ken Hatfield
4. Bobby Petrino
5. Fred Thomsen

Don't really know much about Thomsen, but his record doesn't look that great. Would think Nutt was just as good or better.

Auburn-

1. Shug Jordan
2. Pat Dye
3. Tommy Tuberville
4. Gene Chizik
5. Gus Malzahn

Mike Donahue would be the only guy IMO that you could argue should be on here above others. Chizik's other years were so poor aside from the one year with Cam, I'd probably toss him off before Tuberville or Malzahn if I were to put Donahue on there.

Florida

1. Spurrier
2. Meyer
3. Charlie Pell
4. Galen Hall
5. Jim McElwain

Crazy. I was alive when every one of these coaches was hired.
Pell shouldn't be here. Graves should probably be three. You can take your pick how to finish it off between Hall, Dickey and Mullen.

Georgia

1. Kirby
2. Vince Dooley
3. Mark Richt
4. Wally Butts
5. Jim Donnan

Really can't argue with this one.

Kentucky

1. Bear Bryant
2. Mark Stoops
3. Fran Curci
4. Jerry Claiborne
5. Rich Brooks

Top two are pretty obvious. I agree with Curci because he has an SEC title that is recognized. But the last three are all near, but not quite .500 coaches. Brooks took over a bad program and seemed to do what Stoops did after him. Just retired. I'd put him over Claiborne.






LSU

1. Les Miles
2. Nick Saban
3. Ed Orgeron
4. Charles McClendon
5. Paul Dietzel

I guess it depends on whether you like longevity or higher peaks with the last three. Kind of doesn't make sense to favor Orgeron over McClendon, but McClendon over Dietzel doesn't make sense since Dietzel and Orgeron are very similar. And Dietzel has an extra SEC title over Orgeron and McClendon.

Mississippi State

1. Dan Mullen
2. Allyn McKeen
3. Jackie Sherrill
4. Sylvester Croom

5. Mike Leach


Croom just makes no sense except for the non performance related historical impact. Bellard ended Bama's longest winning streak in history. Bob Tyler had some good seasons before him.

Mizzou

1. Gary Pinkel
2. Dan Devine
3. Don Faurot
4. Warren Powers
5. Eli Drinkwitz

You could make an argument for Devine as his best season was arguably the best, but pretty happy with Pinkel atop here. Drinkwitz looks as good as anyone else after the top four.


Oklahoma

1. Bud Wilkinson
2. Barry Switzer
3. Bob Stoops
4. Lincoln Riley
5. Bennie Owen

Pretty decent list. I'm sure some Sooner would want Owen over Riley just because. Switzer is really close to Wilkinson. Almost 1a and 1b.

Ole Miss

1. John Vaught
2. Lane Kiffin
3. Billy Brewer
4. Harry Mehre
5. David Cutcliffe

Don't know enough about Ole Miss past my lifetime except for Vaught. But since I've been alive, Kiffin has definitely had the best run.

South Carolina

1. Spurrier
2. Joe Morrison
3. Lou Holtz
4. Jim Carlen
5. Shane Beamer

Spurrier is easily their best coach and still accomplished so much less here than he did at UF. If Morrison hadn't died suddenly, may have been able to build something at S. Carolina that was more permanent. Sad story. Holtz has a losing record, but only because he inherited an abysmal program from Brad Scott. Beamer could end up near the top of this list when he's done if he can build on last year.

Tennessee

1. Robert Neyland
2. Phil Fulmer
3. Johnny Majors (If Majors were alive, I bet he'd tell you if he has to be behind Fulmer, he'd rather be four or five so he didn't have to be next to him.)
4. Doug Dickey
5. Josh Heupel

Don't know about Heupel here. It's arguable. I favor Bowden Wyatt.


Texas

1. Darrell Royal
2. Mack Brown
3. Fred Akers
4. Dana X. Bible
5. Sark

Pretty easy 1, 2 and 3. Could argue pretty strongly that Sark is over Bible.



Texas A&M

1. RC Slocum
2. Dana Bible
3. Jackie Sherrill
4. Homer Norton
5. Bear Bryant

Fair list

I will say that the guys just outside their top five have really good w/l records compared to most of the other teams.




Vandy

1. Dan McGugin
2. James Franklin
3. Red Sanders
4. George MacIntyre
5. Art Guepe

MacIntyre didn't even win a third of his games, Was named SEC COTY once, but that looks ridiculous with that record. Realize there's not much to choose from, but I'd definitely have Guepe in front of him and at this point I'd take Lea over MacIntyre.