Rating a list of coaches as possible candidates to replace Jeff Tedford as Cal’s football coach:

The first five

These likely won’t be the only candidates Cal athletic director Sandy Barbour considers, but you figure they’re on her list:

SONNY DYKES, Louisiana Tech

In his third season as head coach, Dykes, 43, is a spread offense specialist whose Bulldogs lead the nation at 52.3 points per game. They are 9-2, and have scored at least 50 points six times. He is 22-14 overall at Louisiana Tech. Dykes got a two-year contract extension last season through 2017 and earns about $750,000 per year. He was a finalist for the Houston job a year ago. He coached under Mike Leach at Texas Tech, and spent three seasons as offensive coordinator at Arizona. Cal won’t be the only school to make a call.

HUE JACKSON, Cincinnati Bengals

Jackson, 47, is an intriguing possibility. The Raiders head coach in 2011, Jackson is coaching defensive backs and special teams for the Bengals. But he’s an offensive coach and will return to his specialty soon. He has coached in the NFL since 2001 — serving as an offensive coordinator for the Redskins and the Falcons. The one-time University of Pacific quarterback was OC at Cal in ’96 and for the next three seasons at USC.

RON RIVERA, Carolina Panthers

A former All-America linebacker for Cal, Rivera, 50, is on the hot seat in his second season as head coach of the NFL’s Carolina Panthers. His two-year record entering play Sunday: 8-17. He was defensive coordinator with the Chicago Bears and San Diego Chargers. The timing could be complicated because the NFL regular season doesn’t end until Dec. 30. But Rivera is popular with Cal folks, and may see this as a great landing spot if Carolina isn’t working out.

GARY ANDERSEN, Utah State

Andersen, 48, has turned things around for the Aggies, posting a 16-8 record the past two seasons, including 9-2 this fall. A year ago, he promised his players he’d get a tattoo of the team’s logo if they reached a bowl game. The Aggies made it for the first time in 14 years, and Andersen followed though (it’s on the back of his shoulder). He was defensive coordinator for five years at Utah, including on Urban Meyer’s unbeaten 2008 team.

MIKE MACINTYRE, San Jose State

MacIntyre, 47, has engineered an amazing turnaround in just three seasons with the Spartans. SJSU won one game in his debut season of 2010 and faced massive academic obstacles. But MacIntyre has changed the culture of the program on and off the field, and the Spartans are bowl eligible at 9-2. His resume includes stops at Georgia and Duke, and in the NFL with the Cowboys and Jets. The core question: Does he have enough sizzle to inspire Cal fans to buy those ESP long-term season tickets?

The next tier

Any of these could be in the mix if Barbour can’t hook one of her favorites:

JAMES FRANKLIN, Vanderbilt

In his second season at the SEC’s most challenging academic school, Franklin, 40, has coached the Commodores to a 7-4 record. A year ago, he became the school’s first rookie coach to get the team to a bowl game. Franklin is considered a good recruiter with a dynamic personality.

WILLIE TAGGART, Western Kentucky

A former Stanford assistant under Jim Harbaugh, Taggart is the nation’s youngest FBS head coach at age 36. He is credited with helping develop running back Toby Gerhart at Stanford, and previously spent eight years as quarterbacks coach, then offensive coordinator at Western Kentucky. Now head coach at his alma mater, Taggart has the Hilltoppers at 6-5 this season, 13-10 the past two years.

TIM DeRUYTER, Fresno State

The first-year coach of the Bulldogs, DeRuyter, 49, has directed FSU to an 8-3 record, including early losses to Oregon and Boise State. He was defensive coordinator at Air Force, Texas A&M and Nevada, but the Bulldogs can play offense, too, with six games this season of at least 42 points.

GREG ROMAN, 49ers

In his second season as offensive coordinator for the 49ers, Roman followed Jim Harbaugh to the NFL from Stanford, where he coached Andrew Luck in 2010. Regarded as something of an offensive mad scientist, Roman, 40, already has 15 years coaching experience in the NFL, having worked for the Panthers, Texans and Ravens. The hole in his resume: He has never been a head coach.

Long shots

Another time and place, maybe. But these seem far-fetched:

CHRIS PETERSEN, Boise State

Petersen, 48, is atop every athletic director’s wish list, but no one has gotten him to budge yet. He reportedly turned down Stanford two years ago, and last December said no thanks to UCLA for the second time, despite a reported contract offer of $4 million per season. The UC Davis graduate is 82-8 in seven seasons at Boise State and apparently happy with a $2 million salary. Think Gonzaga basketball coach Mark Few. With both, you make the call, but you already know the answer.

STEVE MARIUCCI, NFL Network

Mariucci is 57, hasn’t coached (or recruited) in college since his one season as head coach at Cal in 1996, and hasn’t coached anywhere in seven years. He made his reputation as Brett Favre’s quarterback coach in Green Bay, and he was 57-39 in seven seasons as coach of the 49ers. In between, he was hugely popular with Cal fans. Mariucci has been mentioned in recent years as a possible candidate at Michigan State, UCLA, USC and Arkansas. He didn’t bite on any of those. Could Berkeley tempt him?

JACK DEL RIO, Denver Broncos

The former Hayward High three-sport legend is defensive coordinator for the Broncos after compiling a 68-71 record in eight seasons as head coach of the Jacksonville Jaguars. Del Rio, 49, was a star linebacker at USC, then played 11 seasons in the NFL.

MIKE RILEY, Oregon State

One of the most respected coaches in the Pac-12, Riley is 66-31 at OSU after a 62-14 rout of Cal on Saturday. He was head coach of the Chargers for three years, won two Grey Cup titles in the CFL and played defensive back at Alabama under Paul “Bear” Bryant. His first coaching job: A grad assistant to Mike White at Cal in 1975. But Riley will be 60 before next season and he grew up in Corvallis. There is no reason to believe he’d seriously consider Cal.

GARY PATTERSON, TCU

Patterson, 52, has been where every Cal fan dreams of, directing his Horned Frogs to the 2011 Rose Bowl (a win over Wisconsin), following back-to-back unbeaten regular seasons in ’09 and ’10. In 12 seasons at TCU, Patterson is 115-34, with five conference titles and seven bowl victories. This has been perhaps his roughest season — TCU moved into the Big 12 and is 3-4 in conference play. Patterson turned down a reported $2 million from Minnesota in 2007. Then again, the Bay Area rarely dips to minus-20 degrees.

MIKE BELLOTTI, ESPN

A native of Concord, Bellotti coached Oregon for 14 seasons through 2008, becoming the school’s winningest all-time coach with 116 victories. He became athletic director in 2009, but has done TV analyst work for ESPN and ABC since 2010. A month shy of 62 and out of coaching for nearly five years, Bellotti would be a tough sell.

The college assistants

All talented aides, but Cal likely needs a higher-profile name to run its football operation and wow its ticket buyers:

MARK HELFRICH, Oregon

A hot property at age 38, Helfrich is offensive coordinator for the nation’s highest-scoring team. An Oregon native, he was the youngest offensive coordinator at a BCS school when hired by Colorado at age 32 in 2006. In his fourth season at Eugene, Helfrich is considered the heir to the top job at Oregon if Chip Kelly exits for the NFL head coaching position he is believed to covet.

BOB DIACO, Notre Dame

You figure Barbour will return to her administrative roots in South Bend to make a run at someone on the Irish staff. The hottest name is the 39-year-old Diaco, third-year coordinator of Notre Dame’s stellar defense. He was a two-time all-Big Ten linebacker under Hayden Fry at Iowa. Diaco will be a head coach somewhere soon, but most of his football life has been spent in the Midwest.

NOEL MAZZONE, UCLA

The 55-year-old offensive coordinator has helped lead the Bruins’ resurrection this season under new head coach Jim Mora Jr. His resume includes stops in the Southeastern Conference, Big Ten, ACC and Pac-12, where he previously was offensive coordinator at Arizona State in 2010 and ’11, and worked under Dennis Erickson at Oregon State in 2002. He has no head-coaching experience.

JUSTIN WILCOX, Washington

Finishing his first season as defensive coordinator at Washington, Wilcox, 36, spent three years at Cal (2003-05) as linebackers coach, contributing to a 26-12 record and three bowl appearances. Between Cal and UW, he spent two seasons as defensive coordinator at Tennessee then four in the same role at Boise State. The Oregon grad is the son of former 49ers linebacker and Pro Football Hall of Famer Dave Wilcox.

NICK ALIOTTI, Oregon

The Ducks’ defensive coordinator the past 14 seasons has ties throughout Northern California. He grew up in Walnut Creek, graduated from Pittsburg High and played at UC Davis. Now 58, he also has coached at UCLA and Oregon State, as well as a stint in the NFL — always as an assistant. For all his success and connections, he doesn’t figure to be in the mix.

No chance

Wouldn’t want him to feel forgotten:

BOBBY PETRINO

The guy wins football games, but the attraction will stop there for most schools, as it should for Cal. Petrino, 51, was fired from his $3.6 million job by Arkansas last spring after lying to his bosses about hiring his mistress to work in the football office. He’s 75-26 as a college head coach, including his stint with the Razorbacks, a job he took after ditching the Atlanta Falcons in the middle of night and leaving his players a note. He seems to be constantly on the prowl for the next job. Whoever hires this guy next will know what they’re getting.