The Zeitgeist List · coaching

Ed Cavanaugh

Followed Lou Saban. Ed Cavanaugh held Army at Regional Program IV for 3 seasons.

10–21

1980–1982 · 1 stint

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.

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).

Army, 3 seasons

−1.1

Regional Program IV → Regional Program V.

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.

1–4 against his rivals. Winless in 3 tries against Frank Burns.

Rivalry record

1–4–1

16.7% · 2 rivals

One-score games

2–2–1

40.0% · margin ≤8

vs. Blue Blood or better

0–4

0.0%

Rivalry ledger

Air Force1–233%

Navy0–2–10%

The toughest matchup

vs. Frank Burns0–3

3 meetings, 1980–1982

’80 L’81 L’82 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

Blue Blood

0–4 0.0%

Power Program

0–3 0.0%

National Program

1–6 14.3%

Regional Program

4–6 40.0%

Coaching career

1980–1982

Armycaretaker

Regional Program IV → Regional Program IV

Ed Cavanaugh held Army at Regional Program IV for 3 seasons.

13th-best Army tenure of 17 by the numbers.

Followed Lou Saban (1979–1979) · succeeded by Jim Young (1983–1990).

10–21