2. LHC Bill Snyder, Kansas State Wildcats
159 wins, one conference championship in 20 seasons
Just who you were expecting at No. 2, right? Maybe not, but there's no shortage of praise for Snyder's body of work in an extremely difficult place to win.
Snyder intermittently makes a team in Manhattan, Kan., relevant in a top-flight league. The Wildcats twice were in the mix for a national championship before late fades. How many coaches could pull that off, really? "I have no idea how he has done it -- twice," one Big 12 coach said this summer. "He's a magician, as far as I can tell."
Imagine if he had more resources, a bigger budget, scenery. Do you really think Snyder couldn't win pretty much anywhere?
In some ways, he already does. Just consider his influence. Bob Stoops, Bret Bielema, Jim Leavitt, Mike Stoops and Brent Venables are among the names who've coached under him, and Urban Meyer has been influenced by his approach to offense.
The fact that, after a three-year hiatus, he is doing it again is what nails down his status high on this list. He cobbled together a roster of juco guys and castoffs last season, got them to play together in a no-frills system -- and got 10 wins out of them. The Wildcats are not Big 12 favorites this year, but they're not that far off the pace. Nothing Snyder teams do surprises anyone, really. Is it magic?
