Coach of the Year Runners-up

Tommy Bowden TulaneLiberty Bowl Champions11-0 Regular SeasonConference USA ChampionsAsk 1,000 coaches to give you the names of their colleagues who did the best jobs in 1998, and it is a sure bet that Tommy Bowden's name would appear on every list. In his two years at Tulane, Bowden was 18-4, at a school not exactly known for its football prowess. To best appreciate the job that he did, it is important to look at the school's pre-Bowden futility. In the 15 years before he took over, Tulane was a woeful 45-123 (.260). In 1997, his first year, the Wave went 7-4, its best record since 1980 (7-5). Everything came together in 1998, as the Wave averaged over 45 points per game, and the Green Wave finished the season as one of only two teams in Division I-A to go undefeated (joining Tennessee). It was one of college football's worst-kept secrets that every big-time program would begin its