Three-Point Stance: Overrated coaches; Heisman hopefuls
Rivals.com National Recruiting Director Mike Farrell’s thought-provoking Three-Point Stance is here with the five most overrated coaches in the Power Five, some non-quarterback Heisman hopefuls for the upcoming season and the best quarterback/running back recruiting for 2019 so far.
MORE THREE-POINT STANCE: Biggest recent commits; underrated coaches; contenders for 2019 No. 1 | Coaching hot seats; rating the 2020 QB commits
1. MOST OVERRATED COACHES
On Tuesday, I listed my most underrated coaches in Power Five conferences and I found that to be quite easy. I have to follow that up, of course, with the most overrated coaches in Power Five conferences, because that’s only fair. This wasn’t as easy, but here’s my best shot …
1. Jim Harbaugh, Michigan – Harbaugh is the clear winner here. In fact, in an anonymous CBS Sports poll of college coaches asking who the most overrated was, Harbaugh was the clear No. 1 among his peers. Records of 28-11 and 18-8 in conference aren't bad at all in the Big Ten, but he hasn’t finished higher than third in his own division and he makes a boatload of money. I’m as guilty as anyone for overrating him, as I had him as the fifth-best coach in the country heading into last year. But I’m starting to scratch my head a bit.
2. Lane Kiffin, Florida Atlantic – OK, OK, FAU is not in a Power Five conference, but he’s been linked to so many Power Five jobs over the years and was such a failure at Tennessee and USC that I had to include him. I’m a Lane Kiffin fan as a person and personality, but as a coach, whoever gets him next could be sorry.
3. Kirk Ferentz, Iowa – Ferentz makes a ton of money and is one of the more overrated and overvalued coaches out there. He’s had one 10-win season since 2009, and his 86-68 conference record isn’t that great for a guy who has been employed for so long at the same school. Iowa is usually good for seven or eight wins most years, yet he’s still talked about as one of the top coaches in college football.
4. Mark Richt, Miami – Richt’s overall record is impressive. But in 17 seasons as a head coach, he has only finished first outright in his division four times. He has Miami back on the right track for sure, but he still has the tag of the man who can’t win the big one.
5. Tom Herman, Texas – Tom Herman is the right fit at Texas, and big things are coming. But a 7-6 overall record in the Power Five doesn’t seem to translate to the respect and hype he gets nationally. Yes, he did a good job in two seasons at Houston, but for a guy who has made some top 10 lists as a national coach, he’s a bit overrated right now. I do think that changes soon.
TOP HEISMAN HOPEFULS WHO AREN'T QUARTERBACKS
The quarterbacks get all the hype, right? You’ll see names like Will Grier, Khalil Tate, Tua Tagovailoa, Jake Fromm, Trace McSorley, Jarrett Stidham, Kyler Murray, Jake Browning, Shea Patterson and Justin Herbert, among others, on every preseason Heisman list. But what about the non-quarterbacks? Here are my top six ...
1. RB Jonathan Taylor, Wisconsin – Ahead of Bryce Love? Yep. He has a better year and is on a better team in a better situation to put up monster numbers, if he stays healthy.
2. RB Bryce Love, Stanford – Love should have another monster season and he leads the PAC 12 in rushing, but I don’t know if he can have the same year as last season.
3. WR Marquise Brown, Oklahoma – Wait, what? I have to put a receiver on here, and Brown is going to put up monster numbers for OU in its offense. He’s going to be the most dangerous receiver in the Big 12, and that can mean Heisman buzz.
4. RB J.K. Dobbins, Ohio State – Perhaps Dobbins should be higher than Brown on this list. But will Dobbins get enough touches to be the Heisman candidate we know he can be?
5. RB Damien Harris, Alabama – Choosing an Alabama running back is no stretch, but there’s a guy named Najee Harris who could take away some key carries.
6. RB D’Andre Swift, Georgia – With the two-headed monster of Nick Chubb and Sony Michel gone, watch for Swift to have a ridiculous year.
TOP 2019 OFFENSIVE BACKFIELDS
As we head into the college football season and the slower period for college football recruiting, I thought I’d start a series ranking the best teams at each position for the 2019 class. Instead of just doing quarterbacks, since most schools take just one, I’ll start with quarterbacks and running backs. Here are the best offensive backfields so far …
1. Alabama – Quarterback Taulia Tagovailoa has a cannon of an arm and Paul Tyson is no slouch at all, either, while running back Keilan Robinson is a home run hitter and great change-of-pace back.
2. Penn State – Dual-threat Ta’Quan Roberson can beat you with his arm and his feet, and five-star Devyn Ford could be the Big Ten’s next superstar running back.
3. Ohio State – After flipping Dwan Mathis at quarterback from Michigan State, he’s a great addition to running back Sampson James.
4. Clemson – Quarterback Taisun Phommachanh has a high ceiling, while running back Chez Melluisi can be dynamic in space.
5. Michigan – The combination of Cade McNamara at quarterback and Zach Charbonnet and Eric Gray at running back make for a loaded offensive backfield.
6. Washington – Dylan Morris is a heckuva quarterback, and Cameron Davis is a beast at running back. It’s a nice 1-2 punch.