As social media in sports becomes ever more present and popular across the Twitter platform, Division-I college football head coaches are taking a more active role as well. According to a recent survey, half of all FBS head coaches have a Twitter account. While some coaches like Florida State’s Jimbo Fisher have banned Twitter outright, other coaches like Notre Dame’s Brian Kelly have thoroughly embraced the social media network.
At Sports Networker, we’ve done our research and compiled a list of some of the best college football head coaches who utilize Twitter to engage with their followers and school fanbase. Our criteria for the compilation includes number of followers, consistent tweets, and fan/follower engagement. Enjoy.
Some Of College Football’s Best Twitter Users, Coaches Edition
Brian Kelly — Notre Dame — 59,130 Followers
With just under 60,000 Twitters followers, Notre Dame’s third-year headman, Brian Kelly, has a fairly large following in South Bend, Ind. He ranks second in our list in number of followers behind LSU’s Les Miles.
The Everett, Mass. native does a nice job of balancing his Twitter presence between original posts and retweets regarding Notre Dame ticket sales, interviews with fellow Irish personnel, and promotional messages to the Irish faithful.
This Saturday will be the 40th meeting between @125ndfb and Michigan.First meeting was in 1887. College football at its best.#GoIrish
— Brian Kelly (@CoachBrianKelly) September 19, 2012
Kevin Wilson — Indiana University — 13,360 Followers
In his first collegiate head coaching gig, Hoosier coach Kevin Wilson knows the importance of trying to connect a fanbase — who hasn’t seen much success in recent memory — to a football program that wants to gain a greater following at a basketball-dominated university.
Still, that isn’t getting in the way of Wilson’s gameplan on Twitter. With consistent tweets using the hashtag #iufb and updates from practice as well as game-day photos, Wilson is utilziing social media in sports to promote the Indiana brand.
#iufb – Sending Prayers & Thoughts to One of the Gr8 Coaches in College Athletics – Get Well Soon Coach Roy Williams – See you Here Nov 27!!
— Kevin Wilson (@IUCoachWilson) September 21, 2012
Steve Sarkisian — University of Washington — 40,838 Followers
University of Washington head coach Steve Sarkisian is a huge proponent of social media. Just take a look at his Twitter timeline and you’ll see pictures from game-day walk throughs, 9/11 remembrance photos, and other notable pictures for Husky fans to get an inside look at the football program.
In addition, the fourth-year head coach consistently links to his blog on a daily basis, where fans can find Monday reactions from Sarkisian about the previous weekend’s game and other up-to-date news surrounding the team.
CoachSark.com: A Day in Remembrance: September 11 dlvr.it/27vY26
— Steve Sarkisian (@CoachSark) September 11, 2012
Les Miles — LSU — 79,578 Followers
Nicknamed “The Madd Hatter,” LSU’s head coach Les Miles is among the more animated coaches in college football. Though he doesn’t tweet as frequently as other coaches on the list, he makes Sports Networker’s list because of his number of followers along with his engagement with fans.
He’s been absent from Twitter since late August, but we’ll chalk that up to him being a tad busy in Baton Rouge contending for another BCS National Title.
Congratulations to our guys who were drafted or signed as free agents! I’m proud of all of you!
— Les Miles (@LSUCoachMiles) April 30, 2012
Charlie Strong — University of Louisville — 19,906 Followers
Shortly after Charlie Strong accepted the offer to be the head coach at the University of Louisville, Strong and his family purchased a house in Lake Forest, Ky., a well-to-do suburb of Louisville. It was his way of showing Cardinal fans his commitment to rebuilding the football program.
Today, Strong shows that same mentality on Twitter, where he’s gained close to 20,000 followers. Strong combines original posts along with retweets that pertain to the Louisville football program and University as a whole.
Good to be 4-0. Have to play better and execute. Big week of preparation for southern miss. #beatUS
— Charlie Strong (@CharlieStrong10) September 23, 2012
Mark Richt — University of Georgia — 42,660 Followers
Georgia’s headman Mark Richt has been a part of Twitter since early 2009, but only recently has he been consistently updating his 42,000-plus followers. The ex-Miami (Fla.) quarterback doesn’t tweet near as much as some of the others on our list, but he still offers insightful information to Bulldog Nation.
Whether he’s posting pictures driving an athletic field marker or relaying news to his followers regarding his team’s preparation for its next opponent, Richt is an informative tweeter to say the least.
Walked on the practice field today to check out the grass and got more than I bargained for.Kenny Pauley put me to work twitter.com/MarkRicht/stat…
— Mark Richt (@MarkRicht) July 30, 2012
Jim McElwain — Colorado State University — 6,283 Followers
In his first year at Colorado State, head coach Jim McElwain has already established himself on Twitter. With just over 6,000 followers, McElwain’s tweets consist of words of wisdom to Ram Nation as well as messages he’s delivered to his team during the season.
The former Eastern Washington quarterback tweets regularly, with posts featuring a visit to Colorado State by President Barack Obama, McElwain throwing out the first pitch at a Colorado Rockies game, and other highlights from Fort Collins, Colorado, home of the Rams.
Determination. That one word will make our season what it is. How much do we want it? How much will we work for it? That word will define us
— Jim McElwain(@CoachMcElwain) September 20, 2012
Photo Credit: PistolsFiringBlog.com
Did we leave off a Division-I college football head coach that is especially creative with utilizing Twitter? Who do you follow on the social media network? Sound off below in the comments or tweet us @sportsnetworker.com.
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