The Zeitgeist List · coaching

Jim Donnan

Followed Ray Goff. Jim Donnan held Georgia at Power Program II for 5 seasons.

40–19
1996–2000 · 1 stint
Georgia
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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 careerGEORGIAPower Programperennial contenderNational Programrespectable, streakyGeorgia, 1996: 5-6, Power Program III1996Georgia, 1997: 10-2, Power Program II1997Georgia, 1998: 9-3, Power Program II1998Georgia, 1999: 8-4, Power Program II1999Georgia, 2000: 8-4, Power Program II2000+1.5One point per coached season, in career order; dashed segments are program changes — spacing is not proportional to calendar time

Reached Power Program in his 1st career season — faster than 57% of the 395 FBS coaches who have ever reached Power Program (rank #1 of 395 by seasons-to-arrival).

Georgia, 5 seasons
+1.5
Power Program III → Power Program II.

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.

8–12 against his rivals. Just 1–4 against Phillip Fulmer.

Rivalry record
8–12
40.0% · 4 rivals
One-score games
13–6
68.4% · margin ≤8
vs. Blue Blood or better
2–6
25.0%
Rivalry ledger
South Carolina3–260%
Florida1–420%
Auburn2–340%
Georgia Tech2–340%
The toughest matchup
vs. Phillip Fulmer1–4
5 meetings, 1996–2000
’96 L’97 L’98 L’99 L’00 W
20% win rate across a real, 5-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
2–6 25.0%
Power Program
5–5 50.0%
National Program
16–7 69.6%
Regional Program
15–1 93.8%

Coaching career

1996–2000
Georgiacaretaker
Power Program II → Power Program II
Jim Donnan held Georgia at Power Program II for 5 seasons.

6th-best Georgia tenure of 9 by the numbers.

Followed Ray Goff (1989–1995) · succeeded by Mark Richt (2001–2015).

22 NFL Draft picks: Adam Meadows (1997), Jermaine Smith (1997), Jason Ferguson (1997), Robert Edwards (1998), Hines Ward (1998), Brandon ToLBert (1998), Antonio Fleming (1998), Champ Bailey (1999) + 14 more

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