The Zeitgeist List · coaching

Tim Beckman

Followed Ron Zook. Tim Beckman slid Illinois from National Program II to National Program III in 3 seasons.

The ascent
25–37
2009–2014 · 2 stints
ToledoIllinois
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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 careerTOLEDOILLINOISNational Programrespectable, streakyRegional Programthe building-block levelToledo, 2009: 5-7, Regional Program III2009Toledo, 2010: 8-5, Regional Program III2010-3.6Illinois, 2012: 2-10, National Program III2012Illinois, 2013: 4-8, National Program III2013Illinois, 2014: 6-7, Regional Program I2014-8.4One point per coached season, in career order; dashed segments are program changes — spacing is not proportional to calendar time

Reached National Program in his 3rd career season — faster than 25% of the 675 FBS coaches who have ever reached National Program (rank #454 of 675 by seasons-to-arrival).

Toledo, 2 seasons
−3.6
Regional Program III → Regional Program III.
Illinois, 3 seasons
−8.4
National Program III → Regional Program I.

Style position and drift

Where each stint’s offense sat between run-first and pass-first, and how far it moved from one season to the next. The band is that stint’s real season-to-season range, not a fixed-width box.

50%Illinois2012–2014– 0.0pt
Pass rate — share of offensive plays that were pass attemptsfirst covered seasonmost recent covered seasonfull season-to-season range (3+ covered seasons)

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.

3–4 against his rivals. Winless in 3 tries against Urban Meyer.

Rivalry record
3–4
42.9% · 3 rivals
One-score games
9–5
64.3% · margin ≤8
vs. Blue Blood or better
0–4
0.0%
Rivalry ledger
Northwestern1–233%
Northern Illinois1–150%
Bowling Green1–150%
The toughest matchup
vs. Urban Meyer0–3
3 meetings, 2012–2014
’12 L’13 L’14 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
1–9 10.0%
National Program
5–6 45.5%
Regional Program
15–14 51.7%

Coaching career

2012–2014
Illinoiscaretaker
National Program II → National Program III
Tim Beckman slid Illinois from National Program II to National Program III in 3 seasons.

11th-best Illinois tenure of 16 by the numbers.

Followed Ron Zook (2005–2011) · succeeded by Bill Cubit (2015–2015).

Season201220132014Trend
Record & result
Record2–104–86–7
Postseason——L bowl
Recruiting rank——#72
Style — pass rate
Pass rate——53.2
Coordinators
OC——Bill Cubit
DC——Tim Banks
Outcome — opponent-adjusted efficiency percentile
Offense——32
Defense——19
Tendencies — play-by-play, neutral script (2021+ only)
1st-down pass%——50.7
Red-zone pass%——48.4
4th-down go%opp. territory——22.2
Where the roster comes from, by position
Grows Edge from high school
100%
#191 of 208 stints
Grows Running back from high school
100%
#196 of 208 stints
Postseason detail2014: Lost to Louisiana Tech 18–35 Zaxby's Heart Of Dallas Bowl

8 NFL Draft picks: Whitney Mercilus (2012), A.J. Jenkins (2012), Jeff Allen (2012), Tavon Wilson (2012), Hugh Thornton (2013), Akeem Spence (2013), Terry Hawthorne (2013), Michael Buchanan (2013)

12–25
2009–2010
Toledocaretaker
Regional Program II → Regional Program III
Tim Beckman slid Toledo from Regional Program II to Regional Program III in 2 seasons.

13th-best Toledo tenure of 13 by the numbers.

Followed Tom Amstutz (2001–2008) · succeeded by Matt Campbell (2011–2015).

Where the roster comes from, by position
Grows Interior line from high school
100%
#198 of 224 stints
Grows Linebacker from high school
100%
#205 of 225 stints
13–12