The Zeitgeist List · coaching

Rick Minter

Followed Tim Murphy. Rick Minter raised Cincinnati from Regional Program V to Regional Program I.

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1994–2003 · 1 stint
Cincinnati
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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 careerCINCINNATINational Programrespectable, streakyRegional Programthe building-block levelCincinnati, 1994: 2-8, Regional Program V1994Cincinnati, 1995: 6-5, Regional Program IV1995Cincinnati, 1996: 6-5, Regional Program III1996Cincinnati, 1997: 8-4, Regional Program II1997Cincinnati, 1998: 2-9, Regional Program II1998Cincinnati, 1999: 3-8, Regional Program II1999Cincinnati, 2000: 7-5, Regional Program II2000Cincinnati, 2001: 7-5, Regional Program II2001Cincinnati, 2002: 7-7, Regional Program I2002Cincinnati, 2003: 5-7, Regional Program I2003+14.2One point per coached season, in career order; dashed segments are program changes — spacing is not proportional to calendar time

Reached Regional Program in his 1st career season — faster than 20% of the 925 FBS coaches who have ever reached Regional Program (rank #1 of 925 by seasons-to-arrival).

Cincinnati, 10 seasons
+14.2
Regional Program V → 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.

7–10 against his rivals. Just 2–5 against Jeff Bower.

Rivalry record
7–10–1
38.9% · 2 rivals
One-score games
20–31–1
38.5% · margin ≤8
vs. Blue Blood or better
0–2
0.0%
Rivalry ledger
Miami (OH)4–5–140%
Louisville3–538%
The toughest matchup
vs. Jeff Bower2–5
7 meetings, 1995–2003
’95 W’96 L’97 L’99 L’00 W’02 L’03 L
29% win rate across a real, 7-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
0–2 0.0%
Power Program
2–5 28.6%
National Program
12–25 32.4%
Regional Program
36–30 54.5%

Coaching career

1994–2003
Cincinnatibuilder
Regional Program V → Regional Program I
Rick Minter raised Cincinnati from Regional Program V to Regional Program I.

13th-best Cincinnati tenure of 19 by the numbers.

Followed Tim Murphy (1989–1993) · succeeded by Mark Dantonio (2004–2006).

15 NFL Draft picks: Michael Davis (1994), Jocelyn Borgella (1994), Sam Garnes (1997), Robert Tate (1997), Artrell Hawkins (1998), Brad Jackson (1998), Jason Fabini (1998), Derrick Ransom (1998) + 7 more

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