Bo Pelini May Underperform to Fan Standards, But May Outperform His Peers

Zach Tegler of the Daily Nebraskan took a peek at Bo Pelini's record in his first six years as a head coach, and compared it to the records of other first-time head coaches.  The numbers jump out at you:

Of the 2,053 men who have ever coached major college football, 107 – about 5 percent – had winning percentages of .706 or better through five seasons.
Of those 107 coaches, 43 are in the College Football Hall of Fame. Sixty-two worked before World War II. And eight – much less than 1 percent – won nine games in each of their first five seasons as a head coach.

Of those eight, only one inherited a team with a losing record.

His name is Bo Pelini. CornNation's Paul Dalen did some other research that shows that it takes time and experience for most national championship coaches to reach that level.  Is that a case that Tom Osborne should not have hired Bo Pelini back in 2007?  You could definitely argue that, though that point is moot  now.

It reminds me of another coach out there that many argue is the new standard.  What were his records his first six seasons?  9-2, 6-5-1, 6-6, 7-5, 6-6, 9-2.  Grand total: 43-26-1.  "Four L" Pelini's record in comparison? 57-24.

Who is that other coach?  You may have heard of him.  He's Nick Saban.  And yes, Pelini's record far exceeds Saban's over the first six seasons.