The Zeitgeist List · coaching

Jim Criner

Followed Donnie Duncan. Jim Criner slid Iowa State from National Program III to Regional Program I in 4 seasons.

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1983–1986 · 1 stint
Iowa 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 careerIOWA STATENational Programrespectable, streakyRegional Programthe building-block levelIowa State, 1983: 4-7, Regional Program I1983Iowa State, 1984: 2-7, Regional Program II1984Iowa State, 1985: 5-6, Regional Program III1985Iowa State, 1986: 5-4, Regional Program III1986-11.5One 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).

Iowa State, 4 seasons
−11.5
Regional Program I → Regional Program III.

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.

0–3 against his rivals. Winless in 3 tries against Barry Switzer.

Rivalry record
0–3
0.0% · 1 rival
One-score games
7–7–2
43.8% · margin ≤8
vs. Blue Blood or better
0–3
0.0%
Rivalry ledger
Iowa0–30%
The toughest matchup
vs. Barry Switzer0–3
3 meetings, 1983–1985
’83 L’84 L’85 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
0–3 0.0%
Power Program
0–5 0.0%
National Program
1–6 14.3%
Regional Program
8–6 57.1%

Coaching career

1983–1986
Iowa Statecaretaker
National Program III → Regional Program I
Jim Criner slid Iowa State from National Program III to Regional Program I in 4 seasons.

6th-best Iowa State tenure of 19 by the numbers.

Followed Donnie Duncan (1979–1982) · succeeded by Jim Walden (1987–1994).

3 NFL Draft picks: Karl Nelson (1983), Chris Washington (1984), Tracy Henderson (1985)

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