Kirk Herbstreit ranks top 7 coaches of college football Week 13

As the college football season hits later stages, games are beginning to mean a little more. Plenty of upsets took place in Week 13 and conference races have become a whole lot clearer heading into the final weekend of November.

To celebrate, ESPN’s Kirk Herbstreit decided to recognize a few coaches for their displays over the weekend. He named nine top-performing coaches from seven programs after Week 13 of the 2024 season, all of which came from power conferences.

You can check out the full list of seven from Herbstreit down below, beginning with a magical night from Norman to send shockwaves across the SEC.

1. Oklahoma HC Brent Venables + OL coach Bill Bedenbaugh

Venables has always been known as an elite defensive coach and proved as such again on Saturday night. Alabama got virtually nothing going as Oklahoma completely shut down the Crimson Tide.

On the flip, Bedenbaugh had his front ready to play after a difficult season. Quarterback Jackson Arnold ran behind them all night, controlling the game, and securing a massive upset victory for the program.

2. Florida HC Billy Napier + co-DC Ron Roberts

Nobody in college football has faced more criticism this season than Napier. His seat was getting increasingly hot but wins have begun to stack up for them since Florida committed to Napier moving forward.

The Ole Miss performance was another great example, especially on the defensive end. Roberts’ unit had two interceptions in the final two drives to send Ben Hill Griffin Stadium into a frenzy.

3. Auburn HC Hugh Freeze

Speaking of a frenzy, Auburn fans likely joined Freeze in letting out a huge sigh of relief. Finally, an SEC win in front of the home fans as the party carried over to the field after four overtimes.

Freeze is thought to be building something at Auburn, especially through the recruiting ranks. Wins have not exactly piled up but maybe some demons were excorized against a ranked Texas A&M team. Next up, the Iron Bowl.

4. Ohio State DC Jim Knowles

Indiana‘s opening drive was an impressive one, going down the field and scoring. Ohio State did not give up much from there, locking down Kurtis Rourke and the Hoosier offense.

Knowles quickly began to dial up pressure and saw his players constantly wind up in IU’s backfield. Five sacks and eight tackles for a loss just showed how dominated they were.

5. Arizona State HC Kenny Dillingham

Arizona State needed a win against BYU to keep their Big 12 Championship hopes alive. Kenny Dillingham delivered on the big stage, putting the program in position to make a historic run.

Fending off a late fourth quarter comeback was enough to secure the victory. Once the clock finally hit zero, the party from Tempe was on and Herbstreit appeared to love every second of it.

6. Kansas DC Brian Borland

Colorado rolled into Arrowhead Stadium considered the Big 12’s favorites. Before they could blink, Kansas was up 17-0 as the Buffaloes found no answer on offense.

Borland saw some tough results early in conference play, resulting in losses. But his squad has given up just 21 points in their four wins. Colorado was right on that average Saturday afternoon.

7. Notre Dame DC Al Golden

Defending a triple option is not easy for any team, let alone twice. Notre Dame has taken down Navy and now Army this season to get wins against then-ranked opponents.

Army rushed for just over 200 yards, over 120 under their season average. A disciplined gameplan from Golden puts Notre Dame one win away from the College Football Playoff.