Neal Brown Tabbed as One of the Nation’s Best Young Coaches

At 40 years old, WVU head coach Neal Brown is on the younger end of division one college football coaches.

Dennis Dodd of CBS Sports took a look at the 39 FBS coaches under 45 years old and ranked his top 10. He had Brown just sneaking in at the final No. 10 spot.

That's our guy. Neal Brown named a Top 10 coach under 45 entering the 2020 season ⛰#TrustTheClimb #HailWV pic.twitter.com/GwhgD1GlVO

— West Virginia Football (@WVUfootball) April 1, 2020

There were some bumps in the road during Brown’s first season with the Mountaineers. The team finished 5-7 (3-6 in the Big 12) and missed a bowl game. That included a stretch from Oct. 5 through Nov. 9 when the team lost five straight games.

There was some positivity at the end of the season, however, as the Mountaineers won two of their final three contests, including a road upset of then-No. 22 Kansas State.

After the season, Brown had a successful recruiting period. His 20-recruit 2020 class was ranked in the top-40 in the nation by both rivals and 247Sports.

Before WVU, Brown had his first head coaching job at Troy. In four years with the Trojans Brown had a 35-16 record and won at least 10 games in each of the final three seasons.

Above Brown on Dodd’s list are fellow Big 12 coaches Lincoln Riley (Oklahoma) and Tom Herman (Texas). In three seasons, Riley has won three Big 12 Championships and made three College Football Playoff appearances. Dodd ranks him as the best coach under 45. Herman has been on a bit of a hot seat with the Longhorns for a few years with a 25-15 record at Texas. Dodd has him at No. 7.