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The American Heart Association (AHA) Paul "Bear" Bryant Awards are an annual awards banquet that is hosted each year in January, in Houston, Texas, by the AHA.[1][2][3] There are two awards. One of them—the Paul "Bear" Bryant Coach of the Year Award—has been given annually since 1986 to NCAA college football's national coach of the year.[4] The Award was named in honor of longtime Alabama coach Bear Bryant after he died of a heart attack in 1983, just four weeks after he retired as the Alabama Crimson Tide coach.[1] The award is voted on by the National Sports Media Association (formerly the National Sportscasters and Sportswriters Association)[5][6] and proceeds from the awards ceremony benefit the Houston chapter of the American Heart Association, which is the organizing sponsor—since 1986, at the request of the Bryant family[1]—and which obtains a "presenting sponsor" (currently Marathon Oil Corporation).[6][5][7] The College Football Coach of the Year Award began in 1957 and was renamed for Bryant in 1986.[1] Bryant himself won the AFCA Coach of the Year award in 1961, 1971, and 1973.[8][1]
 |
| Awarded for | NCAA college football's national coach of the year |
|---|---|
| Country | United States |
| Presented by | American Heart Association National Sports Media Association |
| History | |
| First award | 1986 |
| Most recent | Mike Norvell, Florida State (2023) |
| Website | https://bryantawards.org/ |
According to the official website:[7]
The Paul Bear Bryant College Football Coaching Awards is an exclusive event that honors a college football coach whose great accomplishments, both on and off the field, are legendary. The award recognizes the masters of coaching and allows them to take their deserved place in history beside other legends like Bear Bryant.
Unlike many college football head coaching awards, it is presented after each season's bowl games.
In 2000, the AHA began presenting a second award, the Paul "Bear" Bryant Lifetime Achievement Award.[6] A third award, the Paul "Bear" Bryant Newcomer Coach of the Year Award, was added in 2023, honoring the top coach in his first season as a head coach in Division I FBS.[9]
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- Note: The year indicates the season for which the award was presented. The award is presented in January of the following year.[4]
| Year | Winner[10] | School |
|---|---|---|
| 1986 | Joe Paterno | Penn State |
| 1987 | Dick MacPherson | Syracuse |
| 1988 | Lou Holtz | Notre Dame |
| 1989 | Bill McCartney | Colorado |
| 1990 | Bobby Ross | Georgia Tech |
| 1991 | Don James | Washington |
| 1992 | Gene Stallings | Alabama |
| 1993 | Terry Bowden | Auburn |
| 1994 | Rich Brooks | Oregon |
| 1995 | Gary Barnett | Northwestern |
| 1996 | Bruce Snyder | Arizona State |
| 1997 | Lloyd Carr | Michigan |
| 1998 | Bill Snyder | Kansas State |
| 1999 | Frank Beamer | Virginia Tech |
| 2000 | Bob Stoops | Oklahoma |
| 2001 | Larry Coker | Miami (FL) |
| 2002 | Jim Tressel | Ohio State |
| 2003 | Nick Saban | LSU |
| 2004 | Tommy Tuberville | Auburn |
| 2005 | Mack Brown | Texas |
| 2006 | Chris Petersen | Boise State |
| 2007 | Mark Mangino | Kansas |
| 2008 | Kyle Whittingham | Utah |
| 2009 | Chris Petersen (2) | Boise State |
| 2010 | Gene Chizik | Auburn |
| 2011 | Mike Gundy | Oklahoma State |
| 2012 | Bill O'Brien | Penn State |
| 2013 | Gus Malzahn | Auburn |
| 2014 | Gary Patterson | TCU |
| 2015 | Dabo Swinney | Clemson |
| 2016 | Dabo Swinney (2) | Clemson |
| 2017 | Scott Frost | UCF[11] |
| 2018 | Dabo Swinney (3) | Clemson |
| 2019 | Ed Orgeron | LSU[12] |
| 2020 | Nick Saban (2) | Alabama |
| 2021 | Luke Fickell | Cincinnati[13] |
| 2022 | Sonny Dykes | TCU[14] |
| 2023 | Mike Norvell | Florida State |
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2000 – Darrell Royal
2001 – Charles McClendon
2002 – Bill Yeoman
2003 – Frank Broyles
2004 – Gene Stallings
2005 – Lou Holtz
2006 – Jack Pardee
2007 – Bo Schembechler
2008 – Tom Osborne
2009 – Barry Switzer
2010 – Vince Dooley
2011 – Bobby Bowden
2012 – Hayden Fry
2013 – LaVell Edwards
2014 – R. C. Slocum
2015 – Jimmy Johnson
2016 – Mack Brown
2017 – Barry Alvarez
2018 – Steve Spurrier
2019 – Frank Beamer
2020 – Bill Snyder
2021 – Howard Schnellenberger
2022 - John Robinson
2023 - Lloyd Carr
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- Note: While the Newcomer Award is presented in January of the calendar year following the award season, it is announced in December.
| Year | Winner | School |
|---|---|---|
| 2023 | David Braun | Northwestern[9] |
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