The Zeitgeist List · coaching

Tad Wieman

Followed Fritz Crisler. Tad Wieman slid Princeton from National Program I to National Program II in 5 seasons.

20–18
1938–1942 · 1 stint
Princeton
← all coaches

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 careerPRINCETONNational Programrespectable, streakyRegional Programthe building-block levelPrinceton, 1938: 3-4, National Program II1938Princeton, 1939: 7-1, National Program II1939Princeton, 1940: 5-2, National Program II1940Princeton, 1941: 2-6, National Program III1941Princeton, 1942: 3-5, National Program III1942-9.9One 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).

Princeton, 5 seasons
−9.9
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.

Just 1–2 against George Munger.

One-score games
6–2–3
54.5% · margin ≤8
The toughest matchup
vs. George Munger1–2–1
4 meetings, 1938–1942
’38 W’40 L’41 L’42 T
25% win rate across a real, 4-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
National Program
9–11 45.0%
Regional Program
2–1 66.7%

Coaching career

1938–1942
Princetoncaretaker
National Program I → National Program II
Tad Wieman slid Princeton from National Program I to National Program II in 5 seasons.

4th-best Princeton tenure of 4 by the numbers.

Followed Fritz Crisler (1936–1937).

20–18