Kirk Herbstreit names his top performing coaches for Week 1

Week 1 of the 2021 college football season is in the books and ESPN’s Kirk Herbstreit has named his top coaches for the first week. Who are they? Let’s take a look.

Dan Lanning–Defensive Coordinator–Georgia Bulldogs

For anyone who watched the Clemson-Georgia football game it’s no surprise to see Dan Lanning at the top of Herbie’s list. He’s one of the best defensive coordinators in college football and he proved why on Saturday night. Georgia’s front seven absolutely manhandled Clemson’s offensive line to the tune of seven sacks in one of the biggest matchups of the 2021 season. Nakobe Dean, Jordan Davis, and Adam Anderson are just a few of the names that had a party in the Clemson backfield on Saturday night and it was in large part to defensive coordinator Dan Lanning scheming and confusing the Clemson offense.

Chip Kelly–Head Coach–UCLA Bruins

Head Coach Chip Kelly got not only one of the biggest wins of his coaching career, but UCLA Bruin program history on Saturday night, with the win over LSU. It was the first time the Bruins had topped a AP top 16 opponent since 2015. The win also got the Bruins off to a 2-0 start, the first time since 2017 UCLA has won their first two games. Many college football fans respected Chip Kelly as a coach due to the incredible run he had at Oregon. Now, at UCLA, the Bruins’ patience with the former New Hampshire offensive coordinator may be paying off in a big way

Will Healy–Head Coach–UNC Charlotte 49ers

Healy was selected as the 2017 National FCS coach of the Year. This weekend, he made sure more college football fans nationwide knew his name, after the UNC Charlotte 49ers took down the Duke Blue Devils 31-28. It was the biggest win in school history for UNC Charlotte, their first win over a power five team. The 49ers’ coaching staff is full of talented minds, as they also have a defensive coordinator, Marcus West who is a rising star, according to On3’s Matt Zenitz.

Steve Sarkisian–Head Coach–Texas Longhorns

Sarkisian is receiving a lot of praise from the media for the Longhorns impressive 38-18 win over a very tough Louisiana-Lafayette team. Star tailback Bijan Robinson rushed for over 100 yards in their opener. Quarterbacks Hudson Card and Casey Thompson played well in the opener, too.

Justin Hamilton–Defensive Coordinator–Virginia Tech Hokies

The Virginia Tech defense destroyed UNC quarterback Sam Howell’s Heisman hopes last Thursday and a big part of that was due to the excellent play-calling from defensive coordinator Justin Hamilton. The Hokies upset the tenth ranked Tarheels in one of the biggest upsets of the college football season so far, 17-10. The Hokies racked up six sacks in the contest and picked off quarterback Sam Howell three times, easily the worst performance of his college football career. Hamilton clearly stated his case as a coach to watch for the rest of the college football season with this win.

Brent Pry–Defensive Coordinator–Penn State Nittany Lions

Pry’s Penn State defense made a massive improvement from last season in their 2021 season opener against Wisconsin. The Nittany Lions’ defense forced three turnovers in their big opening weekend win at 12th-ranked Wisconsin. None was bigger than the game-sealing interception by safety Jaquan Brisker. He’s one of the best safeties in college football and will be one of the first safeties selected in the 2022 NFL Draft.

Todd Orlando–Defensive Coordinator–University of Southern California Trojans

The Trojans’ defense only allowed seven points to San Jose State and that’s likely why their defensive coordinator is a coach on this list. The USC defense picked off San Jose State quarterback Nick Starkel twice in their 30-7 blowout victory.