The Zeitgeist List · coaching

P.W. Underwood

Followed Pie Vann. P.W. Underwood held Southern Miss at National Program III for 6 seasons.

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1969–1974 · 1 stint
Southern Miss
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Career arc

His real stature score, season by season, across every program he’s coached — so a stretch that stays in one tier the whole way can still climb or sink on the line, not just flatten out. Node color marks the tier reached. Which program a stretch belongs to is carried by the shaded lane behind it.

Stature score reached, by season of his head-coaching careerSOUTHERN MISSNational Programrespectable, streakyRegional Programthe building-block levelSouthern Miss, 1969: 5-5, Regional Program I1969Southern Miss, 1970: 5-6, Regional Program II1970Southern Miss, 1971: 6-5, Regional Program II1971Southern Miss, 1972: 3-7, Regional Program I1972Southern Miss, 1973: 6-4, National Program III1973Southern Miss, 1974: 6-5, Regional Program I1974-4.7One point per coached season, in career order; dashed segments are program changes — spacing is not proportional to calendar time

Reached National Program in his 5th career season — faster than 14% of the 675 FBS coaches who have ever reached National Program (rank #547 of 675 by seasons-to-arrival).

Southern Miss, 6 seasons
−4.7
Regional Program I → Regional Program I.

The big-game ledger

How he does in the games that matter most — rivalry record, performance broken out by real opponent tier, one-score games, and his toughest historical matchup.

Winless in 4 tries against Bear Bryant.

One-score games
5–5–2
41.7% · margin ≤8
vs. Blue Blood or better
0–4
0.0%
The toughest matchup
vs. Bear Bryant0–4
4 meetings, 1969–1974
’69 L’71 L’72 L’74 L
0% win rate across a real, 4-meeting series — short of the bar this site uses before badging a series “Nemesis.” Shown here as the toughest matchup on record, not an algorithmic crown.
Performance by opponent class
Blue Blood
0–4 0.0%
Power Program
1–7 12.5%
National Program
6–10 37.5%
Regional Program
4–4 50.0%

Coaching career

1969–1974
Southern Misscaretaker
National Program III → National Program III
P.W. Underwood held Southern Miss at National Program III for 6 seasons.

8th-best Southern Miss tenure of 16 by the numbers.

Followed Pie Vann (1963–1968) · succeeded by Bobby Collins (1975–1981).

3 NFL Draft picks: Ray Guy (1973), Fred Cook (1974), Doyle Orange (1974)

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