Oklahoma football coach Lincoln Riley is one of 13 college football coaches named to the 2020 Preseason Dodd Trophy watch list.
Also known as the Bobby Dodd Coach of the Year Award, the Dodd Trophy is presented every year to the head coach of a team that enjoys success on the field, while also emphasizing the importance of scholarship, leadership and integrity, the three pillars of legendary Georgia Tech coach Bobby Dodd, for whom the award is named.
The 13 candidates on the preseason watch list represent teams that have announced they will play football this fall. Dodd Trophy officials also published a separate list, recognizing nine head coaches from teams that will not be playing this fall.
Riley has produced a record of 36-6 in three seasons as the Oklahoma head coach, the best record of any Sooner football coach in his first three seasons in the job. In addition two Oklahoma quarterbacks have won the Heisman Trophy and been the No. 1 overall pick in the NFL Draft (Baker Mayfield in 2017 and Kyler Murray one year later in 2018) and a third Sooner signal-caller under Riley finished second in the Heisman voting (Jalen Hurts in 2019).
Riley also has taken three straight Oklahoma teams to the College Football Playoff.
Oklahoma heads into the 2020 season as the No. 5 team in the Associated Press Top 25 and No. 6 in the Coaches Poll.
The Bobby Dodd Coach of the Year Award was established in 1976. Two coaches have won the award twice (Bill Snyder of Kansas State in 1998 and 2012 and Joe Paterno of Penn State in 1981 and 2005), and six schools have had two different coaches win the annual award.
Bob Stoops is the only Sooner head coach to win the award. Stoops was voted Coach of the Year in 2003.