The Zeitgeist List · coaching

Phil Krueger

Followed Chuck Mills. Phil Krueger held Utah State at National Program II for 3 seasons.

21–12
1973–1975 · 1 stint
Utah 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 careerUTAH STATENational Programrespectable, streakyRegional Programthe building-block levelUtah State, 1973: 7-4, National Program II1973Utah State, 1974: 8-3, National Program III1974Utah State, 1975: 6-5, National Program III1975-5.5One point per coached season, in career order; dashed segments are program changes — spacing is not proportional to calendar time

Reached National Program in his 1st career season — faster than 41% of the 675 FBS coaches who have ever reached National Program (rank #1 of 675 by seasons-to-arrival).

Utah State, 3 seasons
−5.5
National Program II → National 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.

2–1 against his rivals. Winless in 3 tries against Claude Gilbert.

Rivalry record
2–1
66.7% · 1 rival
One-score games
6–2
75.0% · margin ≤8
vs. Blue Blood or better
0–2
0.0%
Rivalry ledger
BYU2–167%
The toughest matchup
vs. Claude Gilbert0–3
3 meetings, 1973–1975
’73 L’74 L’75 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
0–2 0.0%
Power Program
0–1 0.0%
National Program
2–7 22.2%
Regional Program
10–2 83.3%

Coaching career

1973–1975
Utah Statecaretaker
National Program II → National Program II
Phil Krueger held Utah State at National Program II for 3 seasons.

4th-best Utah State tenure of 22 by the numbers.

Followed Chuck Mills (1967–1972) · succeeded by Bruce Snyder (1976–1982).

3 NFL Draft picks: Steve Maughan (1976), Scott Parrish (1976), Orlando Nelson (1976)

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