Danny Ford
Danny Ford went 121–60–5 on the field as a head coach, 1978–1997, at Clemson and Arkansas; 122–59–5 officially, with 1993 (6–4–1) after forfeits. His 1981 Clemson team claims the national title. Share
- Record
- 122–59–5 official; 121–60–5 on the field
- Seasons
- 17
- Schools
- 2
- National titles
- 1 claimed: 1981
- Hall of Fame
- 2017 inducted
- Best season
- 1981 12–0, No. 1
Season by season
| Season | School | Record | Conference finish | Bowl | AP final | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1978 | Clemson bowl game | 1–0 | Gator Bowl W | 6 | ||
| 1979 | Clemson | 8–4 | T–2nd | Peach Bowl L | ||
| 1980 | Clemson | 6–5 | T–4th | |||
| 1981 | Clemson | 12–0 | 1st | Orange Bowl W | 1 | |
| 1982 | Clemson | 9–1–1 | 1st | 8 | ||
| 1983 | Clemson | 9–1–1 | 1st | 11 | ||
| 1984 | Clemson | 7–4 | 2nd | |||
| 1985 | Clemson | 6–6 | 4th | Independence Bowl L | ||
| 1986 | Clemson | 8–2–2 | 1st | Gator Bowl W | 17 | |
| 1987 | Clemson | 10–2 | 1st | Citrus Bowl W | 12 | |
| 1988 | Clemson | 10–2 | 1st | Citrus Bowl W | 9 | |
| 1989 | Clemson | 10–2 | 3rd | Gator Bowl W | 12 | |
| 1990–92: not a college head coach | ||||||
| 1993 | Arkansas | 5–5–1 (6–4–1 official) | 3rd (Western) | |||
| 1994 | Arkansas | 4–7 | T–4th (Western) | |||
| 1995 | Arkansas | 8–5 | 1st (Western) | SEC Championship Game L; Carquest Bowl L | ||
| 1996 | Arkansas | 4–7 | T–5th (Western) | |||
| 1997 | Arkansas | 4–7 | T–5th (Western) | |||
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
Terry KinardConsensus All‑American, 1981 and 1982- Jim StuckeyConsensus All‑American, 1979
- Terrence FlaglerConsensus All‑American, 1986
- Jeff DavisConsensus All‑American, 1981
- Jerry ButlerNo. 5 pick, 1979
- David TreadwellConsensus All‑American, 1987
Henry FordNo. 26 pick, 1994- Perry TuttleNo. 19 pick, 1982
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 | 52 | 23–28–1 | 45% |
| Against top-10 teams | 17 | 5–12 | 29% |
| Against rivals | 52 | 26–23–3 | 53% |
| Conference games | 113 | 71–40–2 | 64% |
| Bowls and playoffs | 10 | 6–4 | 60% |
| Decided by 8 points or fewer | 72 | 41–26–5 | 60% |
| At home | 99 | 70–25–4 | 73% |
| On the road | 73 | 42–30–1 | 58% |
| At neutral sites | 14 | 9–5 | 64% |
| As our Elo’s favorite | 125 | 95–27–3 | 77% |
| As our Elo’s underdog | 61 | 26–33–2 | 44% |
His own 186 games on file, 1978–1997, 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 | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Dick Crum 1979–1987 | 7–2 | North Carolina | 9 | |
| Vince Dooley 1979–1987 | 4–4–1 | Georgia | 9 | |
| George Welsh 1982–1989 | 8–0 | Virginia | 8 | |
| Bill Dooley 1979–1989 | 7–1 | Virginia Tech, Wake Forest | 8 | |
| Bobby Ross 1982–1989 | 4–3–1 | Maryland, Georgia Tech | 8 | |
| Al Groh 1981–1986 | 6–0 | Wake Forest | 6 | |
| Joe Morrison 1983–1988 | 3–2–1 | South Carolina | 6 | |
| Steve Spurrier 1987–1997 | 2–4 | Duke, Florida | 6 | |
| Jackie Sherrill 1993–1997 | 3–1–1 | Mississippi State | 5 | |
| Dick Sheridan 1979–1989 | 2–3 | Furman, NC State | 5 |
Danny Ford’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 |
|---|---|---|
| South Carolinaseries | 16 | 9–6–1 |
| North Carolinaseries | 12 | 9–3 |
| Wake Forestseries | 11 | 11–0 |
| Virginiaseries | 11 | 11–0 |
| Dukeseries | 11 | 9–2 |
| Marylandseries | 11 | 6–4–1 |
| NC Stateseries | 11 | 6–5 |
| Georgiaseries | 10 | 5–4–1 |
National coaching awards
The awards- 1981 Clemson: Eddie Robinson
Other roles
- Team captain, Alabama 1969
From each season’s Wikipedia article.
Career
| Years | Team | Job | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1973 | Alabama | Offensive line coach | |
| 1974–76 | Virginia Tech | Offensive line coach | |
| 1977–78 | Clemson | Offensive line coach | |
| 1978–89 | Clemson | Head coach | |
| 1993–97 | Arkansas | Head coach |
Every job as the infobox of his Wikipedia article lists it (CC BY-SA), assistant jobs included.
Coaching tree
Worked under
- Bear BryantAlabama
- Jimmy SharpeVirginia Tech
- Charley PellClemson
Assistants who became head coaches
- Chuck ReedyBaylor
- Jimmye LaycockWilliam & Mary
- Joe KinesArkansas, Alabama
- Mickey AndrewsWest Alabama, North Alabama
- Curley HallmanSouthern Miss, LSU
- Nelson StokleyLouisiana
- Tom HarperWake Forest
- Tommy WestClemson, Memphis, Chattanooga
- Ruffin McNeillTexas Tech, East Carolina
- Bill OliverChattanooga
- Jack CroweArkansas, West Alabama, Jacksonville State
- Gene ChizikIowa State, Auburn
- and 7 more
Worked under (3)
| Head coach | Team | Years | His job | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Bear Bryant | Alabama | 1973 | Offensive line coach | |
| Jimmy Sharpe | Virginia Tech | 1974–76 | Offensive line coach | |
| Charley Pell | Clemson | 1977–78 | Offensive line coach |
Coached under him, later head coaches (19)
| Coach | With him | Head coach at | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Chuck Reedy | Clemson, 1978–85: running backs coach; 1986–89: offensive coordinator | Baylor | |
| Jimmye Laycock | Clemson, 1978–79: offensive coordinator and quarterbacks coach | William & Mary | |
| Joe Kines | Clemson, 1978: linebackers coach; Arkansas, 1993–94: assistant head coach and defensive coordinator | Arkansas, Alabama | |
| Mickey Andrews | Clemson, 1978–80: defensive coordinator | West Alabama, North Alabama | |
| Curley Hallman | Clemson, 1979–80: linebackers coach; 1981: defensive backs coach | Southern Miss, LSU | |
| Nelson Stokley | Clemson, 1980–85: offensive coordinator and quarterbacks coach | Louisiana | |
| Tom Harper | Clemson, 1981–88: assistant head coach and defensive line coach | Wake Forest | |
| Tommy West | Clemson, 1982: wide receivers coach; 1983–89: linebackers coach | Clemson, Memphis, Chattanooga | |
| Ruffin McNeill | Clemson, 1985–86: graduate assistant and linebackers coach | Texas Tech, East Carolina | |
| Bill Oliver | Clemson, 1986–88: defensive backs coach; 1989: defensive coordinator and defensive backs coach | Chattanooga | |
| Jack Crowe | Clemson, 1986–88: offensive coordinator | Arkansas, West Alabama, Jacksonville State | |
| Gene Chizik | Clemson, 1988–89: graduate assistant and outside linebackers coach | Iowa State, Auburn | |
| Robert McFarland | Clemson, 1988–89: graduate assistant | Stephen F. Austin | |
| Rick Stockstill | Clemson, 1989: quarterbacks coach | Middle Tennessee | |
| Greg Davis | Arkansas, 1993: offensive coordinator and quarterbacks coach | Tulane | |
| Rockey Felker | Arkansas, 1993–96: offensive coordinator | Mississippi State | |
| Bradley Dale Peveto | Arkansas, 1994–95: linebackers and special teams coach | Northwestern State | |
| Joe Lee Dunn | Arkansas, 1995: defensive coordinator | New Mexico, Ole Miss | |
| Kay Stephenson | Arkansas, 1997: offensive coordinator and running backs coach | Buffalo Bills, Sacramento Surge, Sacramento Gold Miners, San Antonio Texans, Edmonton Eskimos |
Other assistants under him (3)
| Coach | With him | |
|---|---|---|
| Woody McCorvey | Clemson, 1983–85: tight ends coach; 1986–89: wide receivers coach | |
| Wayne Bolt | Clemson, 1986–89: tight ends coach | |
| Miles Aldridge | Arkansas, 1996–97: defensive coordinator |
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.
Books
Books: Open Library (CC0); most-reissued first, each linked to its page there.