After the 2025 SEC football season, 11 of the SEC's head coaches will have losing records against ranked teams. One of them is certainly not Kalen DeBoer, who goes into the 2025 season with the best career record against ranked teams. At Fresno State, Washington, and Alabama, DeBoer is 15-3 against AP-ranked teams. DeBoer's 83.3% career success tops all current Power Four head coaches.
Predicting there will be 11 SEC football coaches with a career losing record against ranked teams is only slightly bold. Ten SEC coaches go into the 2025 season so underwater against ranked teams, they have no chance to flip their results to more ranked wins than losses. The slightly bold part of the prediction is an 11th SEC coach will slip into a ranked-win deficit in the coming season.
SEC Football Coaches vs Ranked Teams
Note: The number of ranked opponents listed for each team is based on the preseason AP Poll.
- Steve Sarkisian- Texas Longhorns - In eleven head coaching seasons at Washington, USC, and Texas, Sark's record against ranked teams is 21-33 (38.8%). Texas plays five preseason-ranked teams in the 2025 regular season.
- Eli Drinkwitz - Missouri Tigers - In six head coaching seasons, including one at App State, Drink's record against ranked teams is 7-14 (33.3%). Missouri has four ranked teams on its schedule.
- Shane Beamer - South Carolina Gamecocks - Over four seasons as a head coach at South Carolina, Beamer's record against ranked teams is 7-15 (31.8%). The Gamecocks have games against six ranked teams in 2025.
- Lane Kiffin - Ole Miss Rebels - At Tennessee, USC, Florida Atlantic, and Ole Miss, Kiffin has 13 seasons as a head coach. His record against ranked teams is 11-24 (31.4%), which includes 0-6 at FAU. The Rebels face five ranked teams in 2025.
- Mark Stoops - Kentucky Wildcats - Heading into his 13th head coaching season, all at Kentucky, Stoops is 14-31 against ranked teams (31.1%). The Cats are scheduled for games against five ranked teams.
- Sam Pittman - Arkansas Razorbacks - In five seasons as a head coach, Pittman's record against ranked teams is 7-22 (24.1%). More are on the way with the Hogs having games against six ranked teams scheduled.
- Hugh Freeze - Auburn Tigers - In 12 seasons as a head coach, Freeze's ranked opponent record is 10-32 (23.8%). For those wanting to be fair to Freeze, five of the losses and just one win came during his stints at Arkansas State and Liberty. Freeze and the Tigers face just four ranked teams this season.
- Billy Napier - Florida Gators - In seven seasons of head coaching at Louisiana and Florida Napier is 5-18 against ranked teams (21.7%). The Gators are schedules for seven games against ranked teams.
- Clark Lea - Vanderbilt Commodores - Wins against ranked teams are not a fair way to measure a Vanderbilt coach. In Lea's four-season head coaching career, he is 2-15 (11.7%). One of the two was huge for Lea and Vandy; the Dores beat Alabama not only when the Crimson Tide was ranked, but ranked No. 1.
- Jeff Lebby - Mississippi State - Jeff Lebby might get a win against a ranked team this season, with seven opportunities. If so, it will be Lebby's first. His current record is 0-6, after one season in Starkville, per CBS, or 0-5, per Sports Reference.
Drumroll Please! The bold part is the 11th SEC football head coach to reach a losing record against ranked teams will be Tennessee's Josh Heupel. Huepel is currently 12-12 in seven head coaching seasons. The Vols are scheduled to play only four ranked teams in 2025. My prediction is Heupel will lose to three of the four; Georgia in Knoxville and Alabama and Florida on the road. That result would take Heupel to 13-15 against ranked teams.