With the news that the upcoming EA Sports College Football video game will feature current coaches for the first time this year, some across the football world are reminded of the coaches who once tore up the gridiron as players.
There’s a laundry list to choose from, featuring both well-known and lesser-known careers across the sport. Colorado’s Deion Sanders is an obvious pick, but some may not have known or forgotten about names such as Brian Kelly with Assumption University, Lane Kiffin at Fresno State, or even Butch Jones at Ferris State.
Josh Heupel, though, stands out near the top of the list.
ESPN’s Adam Rittenberg recently ranked all the current collegiate coaches who played college football, with Tennessee head coach and former Oklahoma quarterback Josh Heupel as the best former player currently head coaching in the SEC.
Heupel is ranked as the third-best former player in the coaching world right now, trailing only No. 1 Deion Sanders (Florida State) and No. 2 Eddie George (Ohio State). Heupel also lands one spot above Texas head coach Steve Sarkisian, who was a quarterback at BYU.
Heupel spent his first two seasons at Weber State in Ogden, Utah, before transferring to Snow College in Ephraim, Utah, in 1998. From there, Heupel transferred to Oklahoma and carved out an unforgettable legacy in Norman.
“He immediately made his presence known in 1999 with 3,850 passing yards and 33 touchdowns,” Rittenberg wrote of Heupel’s playing career. “Heupel then led the Sooners to a national title in 2000, recording 3,606 passing yards and 20 touchdowns. He was named AP Player of the Year, won the Walter Camp Award and consensus All-America honors, and was runner-up for the Heisman Trophy.”
On June 2, Heupel was announced as one of the players on the 2026 College Football Hall of Fame ballot from his playing days at OU, marking his sixth straight season in the race. Heupel, along with VFLs Deon Grant and Larry Seivers, made up three of the 79 FBS players on the 2026 ballot.
Despite being selected by the Dolphins in the sixth round of the 2001 NFL Draft, Heupel’s NFL career never truly got off the ground as a shoulder injury caused problems. Fortunately for Tennessee fans, that road led him to eventually become the head coach of the Volunteers as he enters his fifth season on Rocky Top in 2025.
Leading Tennessee to wins over Florida, Kentucky, and Alabama during his time in Knoxville, Heupel isn’t unfamiliar with the biggest of rivalry games. In 2000, he led Oklahoma to a 63-14 win over Texas with 275 passing yards, one passing touchdown, and 34 rushing yards.
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On Jan. 3, 2001, Heupel led the Sooners to a National Championship win over Florida State in a 13-2 victory. The now-Tennessee coach threw for 214 yards and one interception on 25-of-39 passing.
Heupel returned to Norman during the 2024 college football season as Tennessee and Oklahoma squared off in a massive SEC matchup in late September. With the game being broadcast on ESPN, College GameDay did a feature about Heupel’s return to his old stomping grounds. Tennessee won Heupel’s homecoming by a score of 25-15.
Check out Adam Rittenberg’s full list for ESPN here.
