The 247Sports All-Assistant Team: College football's 12 best coaches for the 2023 season (2024)

Kotelnicki worked wonders at Kansas, particularly this season. Despite juggling three different starters at quarterback, Kansas finished with one of the nation's most explosive offenses while also dominating defenses on the ground.

The Jayhawks hit explosive plays (20-plus yards) on more than 9% of their snaps this fall to rank No. 9 in the country while also ranking in the top 10 in both yards per pass and rush attempt, and No. 8 in yards per play (seven).

The Jayhawks played most of the season without starter Jalon Daniels and turned to backup Jason Bean, who also missed a handful of games due to injury. Kansas was forced to play walk-on freshman Cole Ballard in two Big 12 games — both losses — but the Jayhawks still finished 16th nationally in passing efficiency (158.6). Kansas won eight games for the first time in 16 seasons and Kotelnicki picked up 247Sports' Offensive Coordinator of the Year Award as he also accepted a new job in December calling plays at Penn State.

All Parker does is develop top-tier defenses at Iowa, and in 2023 he may have coached his best yet. The Hawkeyes' top-five defense was the program's best since 2008, and it earned him honors with the Broyles Award and 247Sports' Defensive Coordinator of the Year. His defense carried one of the nation's worst offenses to transform Iowa into a 10-win team despite ranking 130th nationally in scoring.

Iowa's defense allowed only 15 touchdowns in 13 games while holding opponents to 13.2 points per game (No. 4 nationally). Despite the Hawkeyes' offense struggling to score points and stay on the field, Parker's defense allowed only 18 plays of 20-plus yards on 896 snaps, the best mark in the country.

Iowa replaced seven defensive starters, including All-American linebacker Jack Campbell, but didn't miss a beat and actually improved statistically while remaining in the top five nationally in several major categories. Cornerback Cooper DeJean developed into one of the nation's best players and was a finalist for the Nagurski Award and Thorpe Award.

Parker has coordinated the Hawkeyes' defense the past 12 seasons, leading them to top-20 finishes in scoring in 10 seasons. Five times, Iowa finished in the top 10 — including four of the past five seasons.

Not many coaches had as good of a year as Miami's Bronowski. The RedHawks special teams coach was responsible for the Lou Groza Award winner and also put together the nation's best punt coverage team — ranking No. 1 in net punting (44.1 yards) — to go along with a top-15 ranking in punt returns (12.5 yards) and a No. 2 ranking with six blocked kicks and punts.

Graham Nicholson is the first player in school history to win a national award (Lou Groza Award) after connecting on 26 of 27 field goals, including three kicks in the RedHawks' 23-14 victory against No. 23 Toledo to win the MAC Championship Game. Punter Alec Bevelhimer ranked 12th with a punt average of 46.1 yards. Cade McDonald averaged 12.7 yards per pun return to rank No. 11 in the country. Austin Ertl and Caiden Woullard each blocked two kicks or punts to rank tied for No. 3 nationally.

You know you're having a good year when your quarterback wins the Heisman Trophy. Sloan took a great quarterback and developed Jayden Daniels into an elite player over the last two seasons.

The results this fall were jaw-dropping. The second-year transfer from Arizona State transfer threw 40 touchdowns against only four interceptions, and he rushed for 1,134 yards, the best mark by a quarterback. His efforts combined for 4,946 yards and 50 touchdowns — and he led the nation with an FBS-record 11.7 yards per pass attempt.

LSU had the nation's fourth-best passing offense at 334.3 yards per game and no team averaged more yards through the air than the Tigers (11 yards per attempt) thanks to the efforts of Daniels.

Luper coached a former walk-on to a record season at Mizzou, where Cody Schrader led the nation in rushing (124.9 yards per game) and was No. 1 overall in the SEC with 1,499 rushing yards while also scoring 13 touchdowns. He was a finalist for the Doak Walker Award as the nation's most outstanding running back.

The second-year transfer from Division II was magnificent this fall and became the first player in SEC history to record a 200-yard rushing and 100-yard receiving performance in the same game. He also won the Burlsworth Trophy, which recognizes the nation's best player who began their career as a walk-on.

Three teams finished with two 1,000-yard receivers, but only one won a conference championship and had its receivers step up in crunch time for clutch victories in championship environments. Quarterback Michael Penix Jr. led Washington's explosive offense, but receivers Rome Odunze and Ja'Lynn Polk — who, time and time again, stepped up down the stretch in tight games (and wins) against Oregon (twice), Arizona State, Washington State, Oregon State, Utah and Arizona — propelled it.

One possession decided each of Washington's past four games. Odunze had two plays for 33 yards on the game-winning drive against Washington State. He also had the game-clinching, 19-yard catch to secure a first down that allowed the Huskies to kneel on the clock in a 22-20 win against Oregon State. Odunze and Polk combined for three catches on a crucial final drive against Arizona State.

No two receivers put it all on the line more often than Washington's duo coached by Shephard, and for that championship grit their coach deserves a lot of credit.

Brock Bowers can make anyone look good as a coach, but Hartley deserves extra credit for what he did at Georgia when Bowers missed several games with an injury. Bowers won the John Mackey Award as the nation's top tight end for a second straight season and led the Bulldogs in receiving (714 yards and six touchdowns on 56 catches) despite missing three games with an ankle injury. Oscar Delp stepped in and caught a pair of passes after Bowers went down against Georgia, and then caught five more over the next two games.

Michigan's offensive line will not win the Joe Moore Award for a third-straight year, but its unit still paved the way to an undefeated season and a third-straight College Football Playoff appearance — and the Wolverines' position group did so with the OL coach leading the program as acting head coach in four games.

Moore led the team with Jim Harbaugh sitting at home serving a Big Ten punishment in the wake of a sign-stealing scandal, including victories against No. 10 Penn State and in The Game showdown against then-No. 2 Ohio State.

Meanwhile, guard Zak Zinter earned All-America honors despite missing the Big Ten Championship Game with a broken leg.

"It's one of the toughest and most important jobs of a coach — a leader," Harbaugh said this season. "Maybe the toughest part of the job — having order, discipline, while still having great relationships comes from trust. I trust him because he's one of the most trustworthy guys I know. Like a brother. And he believes in the players."

Look no further than Kuntz when attempting to identify what made James Madison's season so magical. The Dukes' defensive line was incredible, helping the defense to lead the entire nation in tackles for loss (9.1 per game) while finishing No. 2 in sacks (3.8 per game) and No. 10 in forced fumbles (1.1 per game).

Defensive lineman Jalen Green led the nation with 1.7 sacks per game (he set the school record with five sacks against Marshall) and Jamree Kromah was in the top 12 with 0.8 per game. Unsurprisingly, Green and Kromah were first-team selections on the All-Sun Belt roster. Two more defensive linemen picked up honors on the second team.

Gibson, a veteran assistant, has always been among the nation's best. But his development of linebacker Payton Wilson might be the feather in his cap.

Wilson won the Butkus Award and the Bednarik Award after recording an insane 138 tackles (No. 5 nationally), including 17.5 for losses and six sacks. He also intercepted three passes (one returned for a touchdown), forced one fumble and recovered two more. The sixth-year senior was named the ACC's Defensive Player of the Year.

Notre Dame might have finished the season under the radar with three losses, but the defense stepped up in big-time situations and finished No. 1 nationally in pass efficiency. For that, Mickens earns a spot coaching cornerbacks on 247Sports' All-Assistant Team.

Safety Xavier Watts stole the spotlight with a nation-leading seven interceptions, but the corners deserve praise, too. The Irish allowed only seven touchdown passes to tie for the best mark in the country while allowing 154.2 yards per game (No. 4).

Cornerback Benjamin Morrison broke up 10 passes to go along with two picks to rank in the top 16 nationally, and he didn't allow a touchdown in coverage, according to Pro Football Focus.

Brown didn't need long to get his first big break. Georgia's defensive backs coach was hired earlier this month to lead Syracuse after leaving a huge recruiting and coaching imprint on the Bulldogs' safeties.

Unsurprisingly, Georgia led all teams with three defensive backs on the All-SEC team, including first-teamer Malaki Starks, a finalist for the Jim Thorpe Award and the Nagurski Trophy. Despite replacing Chris Smith at safety, Javion Bullard moved over well from cornerback and had 55 tackles and two picks.