Wheeler: Snyder, Mangino have similar coaching careers

Both coaches turned football programs around

By Bryan Wheeler

Monday, October 22, 2007

In 1989, Kansas State called upon Bill Snyder for the biggest task in college football: turning arguably the worst team in FBS into a winning program. Stan Parrish could not do it. The Wildcats had gone 27 games without a victory, with only a tie against a 1-7 Kansas team in 1987, in the infamous “toilet bowl.”

The first season with Snyder as a coach, Kansas State went 1-10, with an unimpressive 20-17 home victory against North Texas State. During the first four years, Snyder coached Kansas State to an 18-26 record. In his fifth season in 1993, the Wildcats finished 9-2-1, ranked No. 20 in the AP poll. The year was topped with a 52-17 victory against Wyoming in the Copper Bowl.

On Oct. 22, 1994, five and a half years into Snyder’s coaching career at Kansas State, the No. 19 (4-1) Wildcats lost to Colorado in Boulder, 35-21. Similarly, thirteen years later, on Oct. 22, 2007, Mark Mangino is five and a half years into his head-coaching career at Kansas. The only difference is Kansas came out on top against Colorado, improving to 7-0 and a No. 12 ranking in the AP poll. It should also be noted the Colorado team Snyder’s Wildcats faced in 1994 was the No. 2 team in the country at the time.

Bill Snyder’s legacy at Kansas State started in his fifth year coaching and lasted 17 years, with a 138-68-1 record. Bill Snyder not only transformed Kansas State into a great college football program, he also gave birth to the careers of many other coaches, including Mangino. Seventeen of his assistant coaches went on to become head coaches at Division I football programs. Most notably, Bob Stoops at Oklahoma, Jim Leavitt at South Florida, Phil Bennett at Southern Methodist University, Bret Bielema at Wisconsin-Madison and Mangino.

Before the season began, some may have questioned the improvement Mangino made over Terry Allen. In five seasons, their coaching records were fairly similar, Allen with 20-33 and Mangino with 25-35. Mangino, however, led Kansas football to two bowl games and will go to another this season, which is something Terry Allen did not do. Although the comparison between Allen and Mangino may have been similar at the start of the season, the comparison that should be made is between Mangino and Snyder.

Both of their first seasons were awful, Snyder 1-10, Mangino 2-10, mostly because of inheriting a bad team. Both coaches’ teams struggled on the road. Through the first five and a half years of Snyder’s career, Kansas State was 5-21 away from Manhattan. Through five and a half years, Kansas is 6-21 under Mangino away from Lawrence.

The formula Bill Snyder used for making Kansas State a national power is also similar to what Mangino did to gain national recognition. Both coaches have added wins to the schedule by playing soft opponents during the nonconference part of the season. Through five and a half seasons, Snyder’s nonconference record was 18-6. Mangino, through the first five and a half season’s of his career, has gone 18-6 in nonconference play.

For a team near the cellar of college football, recruiting can be tricky, and coaches have to find players that marquis schools overlook. Players that come from a junior college or players that are undersized for their position are what Snyder capitalized on and what Mangino is also doing.

On Oct. 22, 1994, the Kansas State Wildcats were 4-2 (1-2 Big 8) under Bill Snyder and went on to finish the season 9-3 (5-2 Big 8). They finished the season ranked No. 19 in the AP poll, and No. 16 in the CNN/USA Today Coaches’ Poll. They were nearly a permanent fixture in the rankings for the next ten years.

Today, Oct. 22, 2007, Kansas is ranked No. 12 in the AP poll, No. 10 in the USA Today Coaches Poll and No. 9 in the BCS poll. Kansas is undefeated at 7-0 under Mark Mangino. Though Bill Snyder was well on his way in establishing Kansas State as a national power five years into his coaching career, it was not until 1998 when Kansas State went 7-0.

Mark Mangino was an assistant coach at Kansas State from 1991-1998 and was around to witness Bill Snyder build a football team from a laughing stock to a national power. Through five and a half years of coaching, both coaches careers look similar. It was clear that Mangino learned a thing or two under Bill Snyder. It will not be surprising to see Kansas football enjoy success similar to that which Snyder brought to Kansas State.

— Edited by Kaitlyn Syring

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