In an ESPN The Magazine poll of college football coaches across the nation, TCU's Gary Patterson has been voted the best coach in the country.

Patterson received 23.1 percent of the votes. Alabama's Nick Saban was second at 19.4 percent.

 

During the same week the Horned Frogs' coach was also named "Best Coach" by Sports Illustrated magazine

 

Over the last two seasons, in which he has led TCU to back-to-back BCS appearances, including the 2011 Rose Bowl championship, Patterson has received 10 National Coach of the Year awards.

Patterson is also the architect of a TCU defense that has led the nation in total defense each of the last three seasons. Since the NCAA began tracking statistics in 1937, no other school has finished first in total defense as many times (five) as TCU. All five of those No. 1 rankings (2000, 2002, 2008, 2009, 2010) have come in the last 11 seasons under Patterson.

The Horned Frogs are the only team in the nation to be ranked in the season-ending top 10 in both the Associated Press and USA Today polls over the last three years. TCU has finished in the top 10 four times in the past six years. TCU's average final ranking of No. 5 over the last three seasons ranks first nationally.

Patterson's .778 winning percentage (98-28) is third among active coaches nationally with a minimum of five years experience.

With 98 wins, Patterson is just 12 victories shy of becoming TCU football's all-time winningest coach. The current mark of 109 is held by Dutch Meyer, who led the Horned Frogs to their national championships in 1935 and 1938.

Patterson's success on the gridiron is also mirrored in the classroom for his players. In each of the last three seasons, TCU has been recognized by the American Football Coaches Association (AFCA) as one of the nation's leaders in its graduation rate for student-athletes.

TCU is also one of just four programs to finish in the top 25 in the final 2010 polls and in the Academic Progress Rate (APR).

Patterson has led TCU to at least 10 wins seven times in the last nine years, including six seasons of 11 or more wins since 2003.

TCU is 25-1 over the last two seasons and 36-3 since 2008. The Horned Frogs are 16-3 in their last 19 games against teams from leagues with automatic BCS bids.

The Horned Frogs have won six conference titles with Patterson on staff in addition to posting eight of the school's 12 10-win seasons. He was TCU's defensive coordinator from 1998-00.

As TCU's head coach, Patterson has had 29 players drafted with a total of 62 in NFL camps.