Comparing the biggest achievements of Lincoln Riley and Kyle Whittingham
Kyle Whittingham has been the head coach at the University of Utah for almost two full decades after replacing Urban Meyer following the 2004 regular season. He has become a fixture in Salt Lake City and has gone through several stages of a complicated but successful career.
Lincoln Riley is just getting started. He isn’t even 40 years old. He is still learning a lot about how to run a program. He surely learned a lot from his final year at Oklahoma and the transition to USC. Yet, Riley already has a collection of achievements most coaches never reach in a full career.
Let’s look at significant career accomplishments for the wise veteran, Whittingham, and the brilliant young program architect named Lincoln Riley:
KYLE WHITTINGHAM ACHIEVEMENTS: WINNING THE 2009 SUGAR BOWL VS ALABAMA
January 2, 2009; New Orleans, LA, USA; Utah Utes head coach Kyle Whittingham is dried off by offensive linemen Viliamu Nau (75) during the second half of the 2009 Sugar Bowl at the Louisiana Superdome. Utah defeated Alabama 31-17. Mandatory Credit: Matt Stamey-USA TODAY Sports
WINNING 2021 PAC-12 TITLE
Dec 3, 2021; Las Vegas, NV, USA; Utah Utes head coach Kyle Whittingham poses with wife Jamie Whittingham after the 2021 Pac-12 Championship Game against the Oregon Ducks at Allegiant Stadium.Utah defeated Oregon 38-10. Mandatory Credit: Kirby Lee-USA TODAY Sports
MAKING THE ROSE BOWL
Sat., Jan. 1, 2022; Pasadena, California, USA; Utah Utes linebacker Karene Reid (32) react after missing an interception in the end zone during the third quarter of the 108th Rose Bowl Game between the Ohio State Buckeyes and the Utah Utes at the Rose Bowl.
Rose Bowl Game Ohio State Buckeyes Against Utah Utes
WINNING MULTIPLE PAC-12 SOUTH TITLES
Jul 29, 2022; Los Angeles, CA, USA; Utah Utes coach Kyle Whittingham speaks during Pac-12 Media Day at Novo Theater. Mandatory Credit: Kirby Lee-USA TODAY Sports
ALL-TIME LEADER IN WINS AT UTAH
Dec 3, 2021; Las Vegas, NV, USA; Utah Utes head coach Kyle Whittingham hoists the championship trophy after the 2021 Pac-12 Championship Game against the Oregon Ducks at Allegiant Stadium.Utah defeated Oregon 38-10. Mandatory Credit: Kirby Lee-USA TODAY Sports
LONGEST TENURED PAC-12 HEAD COACH
Sep 28, 2019; Salt Lake City, UT, USA; Utah Utes head coach Kyle Whittingham works the sideline in the first quarter against the Washington State Cougars at Rice-Eccles Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Jeff Swinger-USA TODAY Sports
SIX DOUBLE-DIGIT-WIN SEASONS
Nov 30, 2019; Salt Lake City, UT, USA; Utah Utes head coach Kyle Whittingham prepares to take the field against the Colorado Buffaloes at Rice-Eccles Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Jeff Swinger-USA TODAY Sports
LINCOLN RILEY ACHIEVEMENTS: 4 STRAIGHT BIG 12 TITLES AT OKLAHOMA AS HEAD COACH, 6 AS COACH OR COORDINATOR
Oklahoma coach Lincoln Riley before a college football game between the University of Oklahoma Sooners (OU) and the Texas Tech Red Raiders at Gaylord Family-Oklahoma Memorial Stadium in Norman, Okla., Saturday, Oct. 30, 2021.
Ou Vc Texas Tech
3 STRAIGHT COLLEGE FOOTBALL PLAYOFF TRIPS
It’s win-out-or-bust for coach Lincoln Riley and the Sooners. It’s hard to see a 12-1 Oklahoma making the playoff, without inordinate help.
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MOLDING MULTIPLE HEISMAN TROPHY QBs
FILE – This Dec. 9, 2017 file photo shows Oklahoma head football coach Lincoln Riley, left, standing with Oklahoma quarterback Baker Mayfield, winner of the Heisman Trophy, during a news conference in New York. Oklahoma won another Big 12 title and made it to the College Football Playoff again in its first season without coach Bob Stoops on the sidelines. The Sooners, who have won the last three Big 12 titles with Mayfield, will now be trying to do it again without the Heisman Trophy winner under center. Even with Mayfield now in the NFL, 11-time Big 12 champion Oklahoma goes into the league’s football media days as the preseason pick to win another title ahead of West Virginia. Riley, Oklahoma’s offensive coordinator for two years before succeeding Stoops last summer, will be the last of the five coaches who will take the main podium Monday for the first half of media days at the Dallas Cowboys’ headquarters in suburban Frisco north of downtown Dallas. (AP Photo/Craig Ruttle)
FOUR 10-WIN REGULAR SEASONS AT OKLAHOMA (PLUS BIG 12 CHAMPIONSHIP GAME WINS)
Oct 23, 2021; Lawrence, Kansas, USA; Oklahoma Sooners head coach Lincoln Riley celebrates after a touchdown against the Kansas Jayhawks during the second half at David Booth Kansas Memorial Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Jay Biggerstaff-USA TODAY Sports
NO SEASON WITH MORE THAN TWO LOSSES
Nov 20, 2021; Norman, Oklahoma, USA; Oklahoma Sooners head coach Lincoln Riley greets running back Marcus Major (24) before the game against the Iowa State Cyclones at Gaylord Family-Oklahoma Memorial Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Kevin Jairaj-USA TODAY Sports
2018 BIG 12 COACH OF THE YEAR
Dec 30, 2017; Los Angeles, CA, USA; Oklahoma Sooners head coach Lincoln Riley at media day for the 2018 Rose Bowl at LA Hotel Downtown. Mandatory Credit: Kirby Lee-USA TODAY Sports
2015 BROYLES AWARD WINNER (OFFENSIVE COORDINATOR)
Sep 9, 2017; Columbus, OH, USA; Oklahoma Sooners former head coach Bob Stoops congratulates current Sooner head coach Lincoln Riley following the game against the Ohio State Buckeyes at Ohio Stadium. The Oklahoma Sooners won the game 31-16. Mandatory Credit: Joe Maiorana-USA TODAY Sports
BOB STOOPS' KEY HIRE, CREATING THE REVIVAL OF OKLAHOMA AFTER 2014 STRUGGLES
Oct 1, 2016; Fort Worth, TX, USA; Oklahoma Sooners head coach Bob Stoops and quarterback Baker Mayfield (6) and offensive coordinator Lincoln Riley celebrate during the game against the TCU Horned Frogs at Amon G. Carter Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Kevin Jairaj-USA TODAY Sports
