Bob Neyland
Bob Neyland went 173–31–12 as a head coach, 1926–1952, at Tennessee. His teams claim four national titles: Tennessee in 1938, 1940, 1950 and 1951. Share
- Record
- 173–31–12 career
- Seasons
- 21
- Schools
- 1
- National titles
- 4 claimed
- Hall of Fame
- 1956 inducted
- Best season
- 1951 10–1, No. 1
Season by season
| Season | School | Record | Conference finish | Bowl | AP final | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1926 | Tennessee | 8–1 | 2nd | |||
| 1927 | Tennessee | 8–0–1 | T–1st | |||
| 1928 | Tennessee | 9–0–1 | 2nd | |||
| 1929 | Tennessee | 9–0–1 | 2nd | |||
| 1930 | Tennessee | 9–1 | 3rd | |||
| 1931 | Tennessee | 9–0–1 | 2nd | |||
| 1932 | Tennessee | 9–0–1 | T–1st | |||
| 1933 | Tennessee | 7–3 | 4th | |||
| 1934 | Tennessee | 8–2 | 3rd | |||
| 1935: not a college head coach | ||||||
| 1936 | Tennessee | 6–2–2 | 4th | 17 | ||
| 1937 | Tennessee | 6–3–1 | 7th | |||
| 1938 | Tennessee | 11–0 | 1st | Orange Bowl W | 2 | |
| 1939 | Tennessee | 10–1 | T–1st | Rose Bowl L | 2 | |
| 1940 | Tennessee | 10–1 | 1st | Sugar Bowl L | 4 | |
| 1941–45: not a college head coach | ||||||
| 1946 | Tennessee | 9–2 | T–1st | Orange Bowl L | 7 | |
| 1947 | Tennessee | 5–5 | T–9th | |||
| 1948 | Tennessee | 4–4–2 | 8th | |||
| 1949 | Tennessee | 7–2–1 | 3rd | 17 | ||
| 1950 | Tennessee | 11–1 | 2nd | Cotton Bowl W | 4 | |
| 1951 | Tennessee | 10–1 | T–1st | Sugar Bowl L | 1 | |
| 1952 | Tennessee | 8–2–1 | 2nd | Cotton Bowl L | 8 | |
Each season links to the team’s season page; bowls and playoff games link to the game. Conference finishes from the Wikipedia article’s record table.
Players he coached
Hank LauricellaSecond in the 1951 Heisman vote- George CafegoFourth in the 1939 Heisman vote
- Ed MolinskiConsensus All‑American, 1939
- Bob SuffridgeConsensus All‑American, 1940
- Bowden WyattConsensus All‑American, 1938
- John MichelsConsensus All‑American, 1952
Every player from his seasons with a Heisman top-five finish, a national award, consensus All-America honors or a first-round pick. Photos: Wikimedia Commons, free licenses; credits on each player’s page.
How his teams did
| Kind of game | Games | Record | Won |
|---|---|---|---|
| Against ranked teams | 24 | 16–8 | 67% |
| Against top-10 teams | 15 | 9–6 | 60% |
| Against rivals | 78 | 57–12–9 | 79% |
| Conference games | 130 | 103–17–10 | 83% |
| Bowls and playoffs | 7 | 2–5 | 29% |
| Decided by 8 points or fewer | 68 | 41–15–12 | 69% |
| At home | 141 | 124–10–7 | 90% |
| On the road | 68 | 47–16–5 | 73% |
| At neutral sites | 7 | 2–5 | 29% |
| As our Elo’s favorite | 181 | 154–18–9 | 88% |
| As our Elo’s underdog | 35 | 19–13–3 | 59% |
His own 216 games on file, 1926–1952, as played (vacated wins counted, ties as half a win). Ranks are the AP poll going into the game; rivals are the ones either program’s Wikipedia article names; favorite and underdog by our own Elo rating, which reads only scores.
Against other head coaches
| Coach | Record | Their schools | Games | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Wallace Wade 1928–1950 | 9–4–2 | Alabama, Duke | 15 | |
| Frank Thomas 1931–1946 | 6–3–1 | Alabama | 10 | |
| Dan McGugin 1926–1934 | 6–1–2 | Vanderbilt | 9 | |
| Carl Snavely 1934–1952 | 6–2 | North Carolina | 8 | |
| Ed Walker 1930–1937 | 6–0–1 | Ole Miss | 7 | |
| Bear Bryant 1946–1952 | 5–0–2 | Kentucky | 7 | |
| Red Drew 1946–1952 | 5–1–1 | Ole Miss, Alabama | 7 | |
| Harry Gamage 1927–1933 | 4–0–3 | Kentucky | 7 | |
| Chuck Collins 1926–1932 | 5–0 | North Carolina | 5 | |
| John Vaught 1947–1951 | 3–2 | Ole Miss | 5 |
Bob Neyland’s record against the head coaches he met three or more times, from the games on file, as played.
Most-faced opponents
| Opponent | Games | Record |
|---|---|---|
| Kentuckyseries | 21 | 16–0–5 |
| Vanderbiltseries | 21 | 16–3–2 |
| Alabamaseries | 19 | 12–5–2 |
| Ole Missseries | 17 | 14–2–1 |
| North Carolinaseries | 14 | 11–3 |
| Dukeseries | 14 | 8–4–2 |
| Chattanoogaseries | 13 | 13–0 |
| Mississippi Stateseries | 9 | 7–2 |
Career
| Years | Team | Job | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1919–24 | Army | Assistant coach | |
| 1925 | Tennessee | Assistant coach | |
| 1926–34 | Tennessee | Head coach | |
| 1936–40 | Tennessee | Head coach | |
| 1946–52 | Tennessee | Head coach |
Every job as the infobox of his Wikipedia article lists it (CC BY-SA), assistant jobs included.
Coaching tree
Worked under
- Charles DalyArmy
- John McEwanArmy
- Mark BanksTennessee
Assistants who became head coaches
- W.H. BrittonTennessee, Hawai’i
- Doc NewtonDavidson, NC State, South Carolina, Guilford
- John BarnhillTennessee, Arkansas
- Murray WarmathMississippi State, Minnesota
- Bob WoodruffBaylor, Florida
- Harvey RobinsonTennessee
- Billy HildebrandWake Forest, Whitworth
- Charles ShiraMississippi State
Worked under (3)
| Head coach | Team | Years | His job | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Charles Daly | Army | 1919–22 | Assistant coach | |
| John McEwan | Army | 1923–24 | Assistant coach | |
| Mark Banks | Tennessee | 1925 | Assistant coach |
Coached under him, later head coaches (8)
| Coach | With him | Head coach at | |
|---|---|---|---|
| W.H. Britton | Tennessee, 1926–34, 1936–40, 1946: ends coach | Tennessee, Hawai’i | |
| Doc Newton | Tennessee, 1931: assistant coach | Davidson, NC State, South Carolina, Guilford | |
| John Barnhill | Tennessee, 1931–34: freshman coach; 1936–40: line coach | Tennessee, Arkansas | |
| Murray Warmath | Tennessee, 1936–38: line and ends coach; 1946–48: line coach | Mississippi State, Minnesota | |
| Bob Woodruff | Tennessee, 1939–40: assistant coach | Baylor, Florida | |
| Harvey Robinson | Tennessee, 1946–48: freshman coach; 1949–52: backfield coach | Tennessee | |
| Billy Hildebrand | Tennessee, 1950: assistant freshmen | Wake Forest, Whitworth | |
| Charles Shira | Tennessee, 1951: assistant coach | Mississippi State |
From coaches’ Wikipedia infoboxes (CC BY-SA) and each season’s article for its coordinators: an assistant’s seasons at a school count under its head coach in our records; jobs in the NFL and elsewhere, under the head coach whose own article lists the job that year. Names without a page here link to their Wikipedia articles.
Statues
Statues: Wikidata (CC0) and Wikimedia Commons; links only.