The Big 12 coaching landscape looks dramatically different than it did just one year ago. Last season, the conference was home to four of the 11 longest-tenured head coaches in the Power Four. Now, only one of those names remains. Entering 2026, the average tenure among the league's 16 head coaches is just 2.75 years, with four newcomers taking over.
The turnover has brought plenty of movement in the rankings. The top three coaches from last year's Big 12 rankings are all gone, guaranteeing a fifth different No. 1 coach in as many years. And the latest choice might surprise some. Meanwhile, the conference also produced the Power Four's biggest riser and biggest faller from last season.
So, here's how our expert team at CBS Sports ranked all 16 Big 12 coaches heading into 2026.
Complete Power Four coach rankings: 1-25 | 26-68
2026 Big 12 coach rankings
1. Kalani Sitake, BYU
National rank: No. 12
BYU has the fifth-best record in the entire FBS over the past two seasons. After struggling in their Big 12 debut back in 2023, the Cougars have emerged as one of the best programs in the country, with Sitake deserving more credit than he gets for the success. He enters 2026 atop the Big 12 coaching rankings after making a decent jump from last year. Last year: No. 6 in Big 12
2. Willie Fritz, Houston
National rank: No. 18
Posting a 10-win season is a good way to change the perception of a program, and Fritz did exactly that in his second year at Houston. The Cougars had the second-largest win improvement (+6) in the FBS from 2024 to 2025, further proving Fritz can win at any level. From back-to-back JUCO national championships at Blinn to three double-digit win seasons in the past four years, he remains one of the toughest coaches to prepare for, regardless of conference. Last year: No. 11 in Big 12
3. Joey McGuire, Texas Tech
National rank: No. 21
You might be asking how a coach who went 3-0 last season against the two Big 12 coaches ranked ahead of him lands third on this list. It's a fair question, but this ranking values sustained success over a single breakthrough season. McGuire took a heavily invested roster and turned Texas Tech into a Big 12 champion and College Football Playoff participant. If the Red Raiders back it up in 2026, he'll have a strong case for the top spot next year. Last year: No. 13 in Big 12
4. Kenny Dillingham, Arizona State
National rank: No. 22
Dillingham was the biggest riser in the Big 12 a year ago and holds steady entering 2026 after validating Arizona State's rapid turnaround. His next challenge is proving the Sun Devils can maintain that level without Sam Leavitt. Dillingham has built a reputation as one of the nation's top quarterback developers, and now that reputation will be tested with Cutter Boley taking over. Last year: No. 5 in Big 12
5. Sonny Dykes, TCU
National rank: No. 26
It's easy to dismiss TCU's run to CFP National Championship runner-up in 2022 as a one-off, but Dykes has kept the Horned Frogs competitive since then. They haven't returned to those heights since, yet they haven't slipped to irrelevance either. Since Dykes took over, no current Big 12 program has more wins than TCU (36). It may not have matched the magic of 2022, but sustained success is a big reason Dykes remains among the conference's top coaches. Last year: No. 9 in Big 12
6. Lance Leipold, Kansas
National rank: No. 34
This is the first time Leipold has slipped outside the top four in the Big 12 since 2022. His highest ranking came before the 2024 season when he was No. 2, but back-to-back losing seasons have cooled some of the excitement around the program. Still, the past four years remain the best stretch of Kansas football in 16 seasons; a reminder of just how difficult it is to win in Lawrence. Getting the Jayhawks back to a bowl game in 2026 could be critical if Leipold wants to avoid another drop in next year's rankings. Last year: No. 4 in Big 12
7. Brent Brennan, Arizona
National rank: No. 41
Brennan was dead last in the Big 12 coach rankings last year before leading Arizona to a 9-win season. Only two Power Four coaches had a larger jump in the national rankings than Brennan, who rose 25 spots. There was nowhere to go but up for the Wildcats after a disappointing 2024 campaign. The return of first-team All-Big 12 quarterback Noah Fifita gives Arizona a chance to build on that success. Last year: No. 16 in Big 12
8. Eric Morris, Oklahoma State
National rank: No. 46
There are four new coaches in the Big 12 this season, with Morris entering 2026 as the highest-ranked of the group. He inherits the difficult task of getting Oklahoma State back to relevance after one of the worst stretches in program history. The architect of the third-highest scoring offense in the FBS during his three seasons at North Texas, Morris arrives in Stillwater with a proven system and a trio of key players, including quarterback Drew Mestemaker. It's been more than 980 days since the Cowboys last won a conference game. Last year: n/a in Big 12
9. Dave Aranda, Baylor
National rank: No. 47
Aranda actually dropped nine spots in the national rankings but climbed in the Big 12 rankings, largely thanks to a changing of the guard among the coaches who ranked ahead of him last season. Few coaches have seen their stock fluctuate more in this ranking over the years. He was last in the conference in 2021, jumped to No. 2 after leading Baylor to a Big 12 title in 2021 and has settled into the middle tier over the past three seasons. With only two Big 12 teams posting a worse overall record than Baylor over the past four years, Aranda needs a bounce-back season to save his job. Last year: No. 10 in Big 12
10. Scott Satterfield, Cincinnati
National rank: No. 53
Satterfield moves to his highest ranking in the Big 12 after Cincinnati posted its first winning record under his watch. The progress was there until the Bearcats faded down the stretch, losing their final five games of the season. Since Satterfield took over, Cincinnati is just 1-12 (.077) in November, December and January. That's the second-worst win percentage in the entire FBS during that span. Last year: No. 14 in Big 12
11. Rich Rodriguez, West Virginia
National rank: No. 54
Rich Rod's return to West Virginia got off to a shaky start with a 4-8 finish in 2025. But some growing pains were to be expected with 70 newcomers on the roster. The roster overhaul continued this offseason, with 84 (!!) additions creating another challenge. Last season was just the second losing record Rodriguez had experienced over his past 11 years as a coach. Last year: No. 12 in Big 12
12. Jimmy Rogers, Iowa State
National rank: No. 59
Matt Campbell was No. 1 in the Big 12 last year, leaving Rogers with some of the biggest shoes to fill in the conference. The transition comes with a completely overhauled roster that returns no starters from last season. Still, Rogers' résumé speaks for itself. He won an FCS national championship in his first of two seasons at South Dakota State and followed that with a year at Washington State, where the Cougars nearly pulled off a pair of ranked wins, losing to No. 4 Ole Miss and No. 18 Virginia by a combined five points. Last year: n/a in Big 12
13. Deion Sanders, Colorado
National rank: No. 60
No Power Four coach saw his stock fall further after last season than Sanders. He dropped 27 spots in the national rankings and six in the Big 12, tied for the largest decline since Herm Edwards (-34) in 2022. The drop comes one year after Sanders was the biggest riser in the Power Four (+28), perfectly illustrating the up-and-down trajectory of his tenure in Boulder. Last year: No. 7 in Big 12
14. Scott Frost, UCF
National rank: No. 62
Frost admitted he felt more comfortable after returning to UCF last season. Although the Knights won only five games, it matched his highest single-season win total since leaving Orlando. Unfortunately for Frost, that also means the 2017 undefeated season remains the only winning campaign of his eight years as a coach. Last year: No. 15 in Big 12
15. Morgan Scalley, Utah
National rank: No. 65
Replacing a legend is one of the toughest jobs in college football, and that's exactly what awaits Scalley after Kyle Whittingham's remarkable 21-year run in Salt Lake City. The longtime assistant and head coach-in-waiting has spent years preparing for this opportunity, trying to make the transition as seamless as possible. Last year: n/a in Big 12
16. Collin Klein, Kansas State
National rank: No. 66
Klein is the only one of the Big 12's four new faces who has never served as a head coach in a game. (Morgan Scalley led Utah in the Las Vegas Bowl.) The last six Power Four coaches with no prior head coaching experience combined to go 37-42 in their debut seasons. The good news for Kansas State is that Klein won't have to learn the program from scratch. He starred at quarterback (2008-12) before spending seven seasons on the Wildcats' coaching staff (2018-23), including the final two as offensive coordinator. Last year: n/a in Big 12
