The Zeitgeist List · coaching

Pie Vann

Pie Vann held Southern Miss at National Program II for 6 seasons.

34–21
1963–1968 · 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, 1963: 5-3, National Program II1963Southern Miss, 1964: 6-3, National Program III1964Southern Miss, 1965: 7-2, National Program III1965Southern Miss, 1966: 6-4, National Program III1966Southern Miss, 1967: 6-3, National Program II1967Southern Miss, 1968: 4-6, National Program III1968+0.0One point per coached season, in career order; dashed segments are program changes — spacing is not proportional to calendar time

Reached National Program in his 1st career season — faster than 41% of the 675 FBS coaches who have ever reached National Program (rank #1 of 675 by seasons-to-arrival).

Southern Miss, 6 seasons
+0.0
National Program II → National Program III.

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 3 tries against Bear Bryant.

One-score games
10–7–1
55.6% · margin ≤8
vs. Blue Blood or better
0–2
0.0%
The toughest matchup
vs. Bear Bryant0–3
3 meetings, 1966–1968
’66 L’67 L’68 L
0% win rate across a real, 3-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
Dynasty
0–2 0.0%
Blue Blood
0–1 0.0%
Power Program
1–4 20.0%
National Program
4–8 33.3%
Regional Program
9–2 81.8%

Coaching career

1963–1968
Southern Misscaretaker
National Program II
Pie Vann held Southern Miss at National Program II for 6 seasons.

5th-best Southern Miss tenure of 16 by the numbers.

Succeeded by P.W. Underwood (1969–1974).

2 NFL Draft picks: Tom Roussel (1968), Bobby Webb (1968)

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