ESPN Names Luke Fickell the Best CFB Coaching Hire Over Past Five Years

He was ranked higher than Ryan Day and Lincoln Riley.

CINCINNATI — There has been plenty of great college football coaching hires over the last five years, but Cincinnati's guy is the best one according to ESPN.

Adam Rittenberg rattled off his top-10 coaching hires over that stretch, and Luke Fickell took the top spot ahead of guys like Lincoln Riley and Ryan Day.

"Fickell had to wait a little longer for his first permanent head-coaching opportunity, after leading Ohio State on an interim basis during a tumultuous 2011 season," Rittenberg wrote. "When things went sideways for Cincinnati under Tommy Tuberville, Fickell was the fairly obvious choice for a program that needed someone better connected to the state of Ohio and its recruiting scene. Fickell, a Columbus native who played and coached at Ohio State, looked like a strong fit, but he has exceeded the initial expectations.

"After a 4-8 debut in 2017, Cincinnati has won 44 games since 2018, fourth-most nationally behind Alabama, Clemson, and Ohio State. Cincinnati has become the premier Group of 5 program and best in the highly competitive AAC, leapfrogging UCF to enter the national spotlight. The Bearcats nearly posted an undefeated season in 2020 before falling to Georgia in the Peach Bowl. Cincinnati then accomplished what many thought could never be done -- reaching the four-team CFP as a Group of 5 candidate. Fickell's team ended Notre Dame's 26-home win streak and posted its second consecutive perfect season in AAC play.

"Cincinnati had great teams before Fickell, especially during the final years of Brian Kelly's tenure. But the program has reached new heights, which helped when the Big 12 made an expansion push in September. Cincinnati is headed to a Power 5 league largely because of the improvements engineered by Fickell, who earned six national coaching honors in 2021 and will continue to lead the program."

The Bearcats leader is hard at work preparing for another season as UC rolls through spring camp. The spring scrimmage kicks off on April 9 at 1 p.m. ET.

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