The players on the field get most of the credit during championship wins. That said, the coach is right there, ensuring that the athletes are in the best position possible to impact the game.
A few coaches stand above the rest of the fray, making their mark on their respective games. These are the best coaches of all time.
John Wooden
The legendary UCLA head coach is not only one of the greatest coaches ever, and he may very well be the greatest college basketball coach of all time.
Wooden’s UCLA Bruins won a whopping 10 NCAA National Champions in 12 years, with seven of those coming in a row. That is a feat that is safely considered untouchable, cementing the place of “The Wizard of Westwood” in the history books.
Vince Lombardi
It’s a good indication of how great a coach is when they name the championship trophy after him. That is precisely what happened with Green Bay Packers head coach Vince Lombardi and the NFL championship trophy.
Though he only coached the Packers for seven years, he won five NFL championships, including the first two Super Bowls. Now, the Lombardi Trophy is handed to the NFL’s best each season. That is the kind of indelible mark that every coach hopes to leave on the game they love.
Scotty Bowman
Though they don’t get the recognition that basketball and football coaches have, the value of a great hockey coach cannot be overlooked. That is never more evident than it was with the legendary Scotty Bowman.
Bowman won a record nine Stanley Cups with the Montreal Canadiens, Pittsburgh Penguins, and Detroit Red Wings, helping bring the latter out of a decades-long slump. He is also the only coach in NHL history to win Stanley Cups championships while at the helm of three different franchises. That shows longevity and consistency of excellence that no other coach in NHL history can come close to matching during their time.