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Mercer Basketball: Bob Hoffman out after 11 years as head coach

By Joey Loose

RALEIGH, NC - MARCH 23: Head coach Bob Hoffman of the Mercer Bears reacts on the sideline in the second half against the Tennessee Volunteers during the third round of the 2014 NCAA Men's Basketball Tournament at PNC Arena on March 23, 2014 in Raleigh, North Carolina. (Photo by Grant Halverson/Getty Images)
RALEIGH, NC - MARCH 23: Head coach Bob Hoffman of the Mercer Bears reacts on the sideline in the second half against the Tennessee Volunteers during the third round of the 2014 NCAA Men's Basketball Tournament at PNC Arena on March 23, 2014 in Raleigh, North Carolina. (Photo by Grant Halverson/Getty Images) /
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Let’s look at Bob Hoffman’s coaching career and what the Mercer Bears will look for in his replacement.

After struggling to an 11-20 finish, the Mercer Bears announced that they were parting ways with head coach Bob Hoffman after 11 years leading the program. Hoffman led the Bears as they transitioned from the Atlantic Sun to Southern Conference, but couldn’t get the job done in their new league. In our early season head coach rankings he came in at 158th, but this season’s struggles doomed him.

Hoffman’s coaching career has taken him all over the place. He won an NAIA women’s national championship with Southern Nazarene in 1989 and spent coaching at his alma mater Oklahoma Baptist. He’s a former ABA and D-League head coach who also served briefly as an assistant under Kelvin Sampson at Oklahoma. He served five years as head coach of Texas-Pan American (1999-2004) and was hired by Mercer back in 2008, giving him 16 total years as a D-1 head coach.

The highlight of Hoffman’s coaching career came in Mercer’s final season in the A-Sun. After being upset in the conference tournament the year prior (by future Sweet Sixteen darling FGCU), the Bears took care of business and gave Hoffman his lone NCAA Tournament appearance. A week later, his Bears upset 3-seed Duke in one of the greatest upsets of the decade.

As a D-1 coach, his coaching record sits at 277-242, with 209 of those wins in his time with Mercer. Before this year, the Bears had finished above .500 for seven straight years, but 2019 was a major struggle. They were swept by the top four teams in the SoCon and could never find their footing this season. They did play NC State and Florida close early on but lost eight of their last eleven games this year.

Junior Ross Cummings (17.4 ppg) was the Bears’ leading scorer this season and Hoffman’s replacement will likely inherit his offensive prowess. Mercer had just two seniors on the roster, but this team really struggled at grabbing rebounds and will need to bring in some new talent down low. Junior guard Ethan Stair (11.7 ppg, 5.2 rpg) should make another step forward next season, but this team needs more action in the paint from their big men.

He made just one NCAA Tournament, but Hoffman certainly found success with the Bears these last eleven years. The next head coach will need to push this program forward as they search for their first SoCon title. Hoffman will be a tough act to follow, but there are some talented options. There have yet to be any names publicly mentioned in connection with the opening, but there are a few talented assistants in the SEC and ACC who can definitely find success here.

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Hoffman might not nab another head coaching position, but he’s had an eventful and successful career to this point. Can any other coach say they’ve both won a national title with a women’s team and upset Mike Krzyzewski’s Duke team in the NCAA Tournament? His tenure with the Bears might not have ended as anyone liked, but Hoffman has left a great legacy behind. That 2014 Mercer upset will be remembered for decades and so will his contributions to this program.