The NCAA News - News Features

National contenders lead most-improved list

BY JOHN PAINTER
NCAA Statistics Coordinator

A pair of national-championship contenders -- including one that came back from a winless season a year ago to claim a Division I-AA championship berth -- headline the 1996 list of most-improved teams.

Arizona State, 11-0, tries for its first perfect season in 11 years after improving five games over last year's 6-5 mark. The Sun Devils are tied atop the Division I-A most-improved list with Houston and await a Rose Bowl clash against Ohio State that has national-championship implications. Coach Bruce Snyder is assured of his personal best-ever season, topping a 10-2 finish at California in 1991.

In Division I-AA, Nicholls State began the 1996 season by dropping its 14th consecutive game. But the Colonels made coach Darren Barbier's second year in Thibodaux a memorable one, completing the regular season 8-3 for an eight-game improvement over 1995.

Nicholls State's rise from 0-11 clinched the most-improved title in Division I-AA and qualified the Colonels for the 16-team championship field. Even if Nicholls State loses in the first round of the playoffs, it finishes 71/2 games better than last season. Should the team win all four playoff contests, the 10-game improvement would be a Division I-AA record -- topping Montana State's 91/2-game boost in 1984.

Houston, Rice improve

Houston perked up to 7-4 this season en route to the inaugural Conference USA title and a five-game improvement over 1995. The Cougars' upcoming visit to the Liberty Bowl is their first postseason appearance since 1988 and reverses a 4-28-1 stretch over the previous three years.

Another former Southwest Conference member, Rice, recorded its best record in 35 years by winning six of its last seven to finish 7-4. The 41/2-game improvement equaled the Rice season record of 1961, when the Owls last appeared in a bowl.

Four Division I-A teams improved by four games from a year ago.

Army's storied football history never has included a 10-win season, but the Cadets have a crack at that elusive plateau following an improvement to 9-1. The Commander in Chief's Trophy awaits the winner of Army's season finale against Navy, which at 8-2 also is up 31/2 games over 1995.

Brigham Young already sports a 12-1 record and will meet Wyoming, 10-1, in the first-ever Western Athletic Conference championship game.

A fourth WAC member among this year's most-improved leaders, Southern Methodist, survived a five-game losing streak in midseason to finish 5-6 for a four-game improvement. The Mustangs were 4-26-3 over the previous three seasons.

Colgate rebounds from 0-11

First-year coach Dick Biddle has Colgate second on Division I-AA's most-improved list. The Red Raiders were right alongside Nicholls State last season at 0-11, but a six-game jump to 6-5 nearly resulted in Colgate's first-ever Patriot League crown.

Six Division I-AA teams improved by five games this season, including three in the NCAA championship field.

East Tennessee State and Villanova, two of the playoff qualifiers with five-game improvements, meet in the first round. East Tennessee State's NCAA bid is its first-ever, and its 9-2 mark is the best for the Johnson City school since a 10-0-1 finish in 1969. Villanova went 11-22 during the three years since its last NCAA appearance, while another NCAA tournament team, Western Illinois, has had four winning seasons and three losing seasons in the 1990s. The Leathernecks improved this year to 9-2.

Buffalo's Craig Cirbus brought about a reversal in his second head-coaching campaign, flipping a 3-8 record to 8-3 by finishing the year with a trio of victories. Mississippi Valley carries a six-game winning streak into 1997 after posting its best mark, 7-4, in five years. And one of Division I-AA's most-victorious teams of the 1990s, Youngstown State, rallied from last season's 3-8 interruption to finish 8-3. The Penguins are 72-20-2 for the decade.

Other noteworthy years

Other performances of note in both divisions include first-year coach Steve Mariucci leading California back from 3-8 to a 6-5 mark and a berth in the Aloha Bowl. Also, Columbia posted its best record in 51 years by capturing its first six games en route to an 8-2 finish -- 41/2 games better than last year's 3-6-1 mark and the best since the 1945 club went 8-1.

Most-improved Division I-A teams

1996 Leaders: -- Reg Sea. Games Left -- 1996 -- 1995 -- Games Improved
Arizona St. (Bruce Snyder) -- 0 -- 11-0 -- 6-5 -- 5
Houston (Kim Helton) -- 0 -- 7-4 -- 2-9 -- 5
Rice (Ken Hatfield) -- 0 -- 7-4 -- 2-8-1 -- 41/2
Army (Bob Sutton) -- 1 -- 9-1 -- 5-5-1 -- 4
Brigham Young (LaVell Edwards) -- 1 -- 12-1 -- 7-4 -- 4
Southern Methodist (Tom Rossley) -- 0 -- 5-6 -- 1-10 -- 4
Wyoming (Joe Tiller) -- 1 -- 10-1 -- 6-5 -- 4
Navy (Charlie Weatherbie) -- 1 -- 8-2 -- 5-6 -- 31/2
California (#Steve Mariucci) -- 0 -- 6-5 -- 3-8 -- 3
North Texas (Matt Simon) -- 0 -- 5-6 -- 2-9 -- 3
Northeast La. (Ed Zaunbrecher) -- 0 -- 5-6 -- 2-9 -- 3
Ohio (Jim Grobe) -- 0 -- 6-6 -- 2-8-1 -- 3
West Va. (Don Nehlen) -- 0 -- 8-3 -- 5-6 -- 3
North Caro. (Mack Brown) -- 0 -- 9-2 -- 7-5 -- 21Ž2

All-Time Leaders: Year -- Record -- Pvs. Year -- Games Imp.
Purdue (Elmer Burnham) -- 1943 -- 9-0 -- 1-8 -- 8
Stanford (#Clark Shaughnessy) -- 1940 -- *10-0 -- 1-7-1 -- 8
San Jose St. (Claude Gilbert) -- 1986 -- *10-2 -- 2-8-1 -- 7
Florida (Charlie Pell) -- 1980 -- *8-4 -- 0-10-1 -- 7
Miami (Ohio) (Dick Crum) -- 1977 -- 10-1 -- 3-8 -- 7
Houston (Bill Yeoman) -- 1976 -- *10-2 -- 2-8 -- 7
Indiana (John Pont) -- 1967 -- +9-2 -- 1-8-1 -- 7
Texas Tech (DeWitt Weaver) -- 1953 -- *11-1 -- 3-7-1 -- 7
Miami (Fla.) (Jack Harding) -- 1945 -- *9-1-1 -- 1-7-1 -- 7

Annual Leaders Since 1991:
Tulsa (Dave Rader) -- 1991 -- *10-2 -- 3-8 -- 61/2
Hawaii (Bob Wagner) -- 1992 -- *11-2 -- 4-7-1 -- 6
Southwestern La. (Nelson Stokley) -- 1993 -- 8-3 -- 2-9 -- 6
Virginia Tech (Frank Beamer) -- 1993 -- *9-3 -- 2-8-1 -- 6
Colorado St. (Sonny Lubick) -- 1994 -- +10-2 -- 5-6 -- 41/2
Duke (#Fred Goldsmith) -- 1994 -- +8-4 -- 3-8 -- 41/2
East Caro. (Steve Logan) -- 1994 -- +7-5 -- 2-9 -- 41/2
Northwestern (Gary Barnett) -- 1995 -- +10-2 -- 3-7-1 -- 6

Note -- To determine games improved, add the difference in victories between the two seasons to the difference in losses, then divide by two; ties not counted. # First year on job. Includes bowl: * Win, + Loss, @ Tie.

Most-improved Division I-AA teams

1996 Leaders College Coch -- Reg. Sea. Gms. Left -- 1996 -- 1995 -- Gms. Imp.
Nicholls St. (Darren Barbier) -- 0+ -- 8-3 -- 0-11 -- 8
Colgate (#Dick Biddle) -- 0 -- 6-5 -- 0-11 -- 6
Buffalo (Craig Cirbus) -- 0 -- 8-3 -- 3-8 -- 5
East Tenn. St. (Mike Cavan) -- 0+ -- 9-2 -- 4-7 -- 5
Mississippi Val. (Larry Dorsey) -- 0 -- 7-4 -- 2-9 -- 5
Villanova (Andy Talley) -- 0+ -- 8-3 -- 3-8 -- 5
Western Ill. (Randy Ball) -- 0+ -- 9-2 -- 4-7 -- 5
Youngstown St. (Jim Tressel) -- 0 -- 8-3 -- 3-8 -- 5
Cal St. Northridge (David Baldwin) -- 0 -- 7-4 -- 2-8 -- 41/2
Columbia (Ray Tellier) -- 0 -- 8-2 -- 3-6-1 -- 41/2
Davidson (Tim Landis) -- 0 -- 6-4 -- 1-8-1 -- 41/2
Texas Southern (Bill Thomas) -- 0 -- 7-4 -- 2-8 -- 41/2
Western Ky. (Jack Harbaugh) -- 0 -- 7-4 -- 2-8 -- 41/2
Maine (Jack Cosgrove) -- 0 -- 7-4 -- 3-8 -- 4
Morehead St. (Matt Ballard) -- 0 -- 6-4 -- 2-8 -- 4
North Caro. A&T (Bill Hayes) -- 0 -- 8-3 -- 4-7 -- 4

All-Time Leaders: Year -- Record -- Pvs. Year -- Gms. Imp.
Montana St. (Dave Arnold) -- 1984 -- *@12-2 -- 1-10-1 -- 91/2
Boise St. ("Pokey" Allen) -- 1994 -- *13-2 -- 3-8 -- 8
Boston U. (Dan Allen) -- 1993 -- *12-1 -- 3-8 -- 8
Western Ky. (Jimmy Feix) -- 1978 -- 8-2 -- 1-8-1 -- 61/2
Weber St. (Mike Price) -- 1987 -- *10-3 -- 3-8 -- 6
Morehead St. (Bill Baldridge) -- 1986 -- 7-4 -- 1-10 -- 6
Pennsylvania (Jerry Berndt) -- 1982 -- 7-3 -- 1-9 -- 6
Idaho St. (#Dave Kragthorpe) -- 1980 -- 6-5 -- 0-11 -- 6

Annual Leaders Since 1991:
Alcorn St. (#Cardell Jones) -- 1991 -- 7-2-1 -- 2-7 -- 5
Austin Peay (#Roy Gregory) -- 1991 -- 5-6 -- 0-11 -- 5
Princeton (Steve Tosches) -- 1991 -- 8-2 -- 3-7 -- 5
Southern Ill. (Bob Smith) -- 1991 -- 7-4 -- 2-9 -- 5
Howard (Steve Wilson) -- 1992 -- 7-4 -- 2-9 -- 5
Pennsylvania (#Al Bagnoli) -- 1992 -- 7-3 -- 2-8 -- 5
Richmond (Jim Marshall) -- 1992 -- 7-4 -- 2-9 -- 5
Tennessee Tech (Jim Ragland) -- 1992 -- 7-4 -- 2-9 -- 5
Western Caro. (Steve Hodgin) -- 1992 -- 7-4 -- 2-9 -- 5
Boston U. (Dan Allen) -- 1993 -- *12-1 -- 3-8 -- 8
Boise St. ("Pokey" Allen) -- 1994 -- *13-2 -- 3-8 -- 8
Murray St. (Houston Nutt) -- 1995 -- *11-1 -- 5-6 -- 51/2

Note -- To determine games improved, add the difference in victories between the two seasons to the difference in losses, then divide by two; ties not counted. # First year on job. + 1996 I-AA playoff participant. * I-AA playoff included. @ I-AA champion.