ATLANTA (July 13, 2021) – The Bobby Dodd Coach of the Year Foundation and Peach Bowl, Inc. released the preseason watch list for the 2021 Dodd Trophy presented by PNC. This year’s list includes 17 of the nation’s top college football coaches representing all Power Five conferences, as well as the AAC, Sun Belt and an independent.
Two of the head coaches on the list are Clemson’s Dabo Swinney and Jamey Chadwell from Coastal Carolina.
Managed by Peach Bowl, Inc., The Dodd Trophy, college football’s most coveted national coaching award, celebrates the head coach of a team who enjoys success on the gridiron, while also stressing the importance of scholarship, leadership and integrity – the three pillars of legendary coach Bobby Dodd’s coaching philosophy.
The watch list was created through a selection process by the Bobby Dodd Coach of the Year Foundation and Peach Bowl, Inc., taking into consideration each program’s graduation rate, commitment to service and charity in the community, projected success for the 2021 season and Academic Progress Rate (APR).
Coaches in the first year with their current team are ineligible to receive The Dodd Trophy.
“The Dodd Trophy is the most coveted coach of the year award because it looks beyond just the results on the field and measures the overall impact these coaches have had on their players, universities and communities. This was never more pivotal than last season,” said Jim Terry, chairman of the Bobby Dodd Coach of the Year Foundation.
“Each of these coaches showed unwavering commitment to the award’s three pillars of scholarship, leadership and integrity, despite all of the obstacles and challenges they had to overcome this past year in the face of the pandemic.”
The 2021 Dodd Trophy Preseason Watch List presented by PNC:
Tom Allen, Indiana
Mack Brown, North Carolina
Matt Campbell, Iowa State
Jamey Chadwell, Coastal Carolina
Paul Chryst, Wisconsin
Ryan Day, Ohio State
Kirk Ferentz Iowa
Luke Fickell, Cincinnati
Jimbo Fisher, Texas A&M
James Franklin, Penn State
Brian Kelly, Notre Dame
Jimmy Lake, Washington
Dan Mullin, Florida
Lincoln Riley, Oklahoma
Nick Saban, Alabama
Kirby Smart, Georgia
Dabo Swinney, Clemson
Starting in September, the Dodd Coach of the Week Award will also honor coaches on a weekly basis whose program embodies the award’s three pillars of scholarship, leadership and integrity, while also having success on the playing field during the previous week.