The Zeitgeist List · coaching

Steve Fairchild

Followed Sonny Lubick. Steve Fairchild held Colorado State at Regional Program I for 4 seasons.

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2008–2011 · 1 stint
Colorado State
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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 careerCOLORADO STATENational Programrespectable, streakyRegional Programthe building-block levelColorado State, 2008: 7-6, Regional Program I2008Colorado State, 2009: 3-9, Regional Program II2009Colorado State, 2010: 3-9, Regional Program III2010Colorado State, 2011: 3-9, Regional Program IV2011-8.6One 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).

Colorado State, 4 seasons
−8.6
Regional Program I → Regional Program IV.

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.

2–6 against his rivals. Winless in 4 tries against Gary Patterson.

Rivalry record
2–6
25.0% · 2 rivals
One-score games
5–10
33.3% · margin ≤8
Rivalry ledger
Colorado1–325%
Wyoming1–325%
The toughest matchup
vs. Gary Patterson0–4
4 meetings, 2008–2011
’08 L’09 L’10 L’11 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
Power Program
0–12 0.0%
National Program
2–6 25.0%
Regional Program
9–13 40.9%

Coaching career

2008–2011
Colorado Statecaretaker
Regional Program I → Regional Program I
Steve Fairchild held Colorado State at Regional Program I for 4 seasons.

3rd-best Colorado State tenure of 18 by the numbers.

Followed Sonny Lubick (1993–2007) · succeeded by Jim McElwain (2012–2014).

Where the roster comes from, by position
Grows Tight end from high school
100%
#164 of 188 stints
Grows Edge from high school
100%
#191 of 208 stints

2 NFL Draft picks: Gartrell Johnson (2009), Shelley Smith (2010)

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