Roy Williams and Mack Brown are two of the older coaches in college athletics, but one outlet says that the duo makes up the best coaching combo in the nation.

Sporting News ranked the top football and men’s basketball coaching duos in college sports, taking into account past success and future upsides.

Among the top combos were Oklahoma’s Lincoln Riley and Lon Kruger, Duke’s David Cutcliffe and Mike Krzyzewski, and Michigan State’s Mark Dantonio and Tom Izzo.

Here’s what Sporting News had to say about Williams and Brown, who have a combined record of 1,109-351-1:

Roy is 68. Mack is 67. That’s 135 years combined to give us the other double natty combination on this list. Brown led Texas to ultimate glory in 2005 before returning to the Tar Heels. Williams has three titles and nine Final Fours at his alma mater. They are two venerable Southern gentlemen worthy of unparalleled respect – the kings of Chapel Hill.

Williams starting his college coaching career as an assistant under the legendary Dean Smith. He left for his first head coaching job at Kansas before returning to UNC in 2003. As the Tar Heels’ head coach, Williams won national titles in 2005, 2009, and 2017 and most recently saw three UNC players drafted in the first round of the 2019 NBA Draft.

On the other hand, Brown is mostly known for his success while at Texas. The Longhorns’ 2006 Rose Bowl win over USC is widely considered one of the greatest college football games of all time and gave Texas its first national championship since 1970.

Before Texas, Brown was the head coach at UNC and turned the Tar Heels into a Top 25 program. Brown’s first tenure in Chapel Hill was the first time that football had equal popularity to the school’s basketball team.

With Williams under contract until 2028 and Brown signed to a five-year deal, there is reason that football and men’s basketball success will continue in Chapel Hill.

Featured image via UNC Health Care

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