ESPN College Football

Posted by ESPN.com's Adam Rittenberg

May is the perfect time for off-the-wall blog posts, and I say bring 'em on!

The Orlando Sentinel's Jeremy Fowler recently ranked the five fittest college football coaches in the country, a response to the recent weight loss by Maryland's Ralph "Fridge" Friedgen, who trimmed 86 pounds (very impressive).

Illinois head coach Ron Zook tops the list. The 55-year-old Zook, a water sports enthusiast, beat out L.A. icon Pete Carroll for the top spot. 

1. Ron Zook, Illinois: Look at those pipes. Zook is known to bench more than 300 pounds even at age 55, sporting more muscle than most coaches who are either fat or skinny. 

No surprise there, as Zook stays in excellent shape and does everything at a feverish pace, rarely stopping for meals. Did anyone catch Zook water skiing on the Big Ten Network last week? Pretty entertaining.

Penn State's Joe Paterno and Michigan's Rich Rodriguez were mentioned as coaches who "didn't sniff the list." I'm not so sure about Paterno. With a new hip, he's still going strong, and all of us would like to be that healthy at 82. 

Zook could have some competition in the Big Ten. Northwestern's Pat Fitzgerald looks like he can still play, and Iowa's Kirk Ferentz is in good shape and went to work out after our interview last month in Iowa City. Purdue's Danny Hope gets after it during practices, and Wisconsin's Bret Bielema trimmed up during the offseason.

Of course, I'm in no position to critique another man's physique. Let's hope the summer is better than the winter for my waistline.