There are a great number of coaching changes each year as programs look to rebuild or reload for the future. Let’s take a close look at the best performances by NCAA Basketball first year head coaches.
As another college basketball ends, a great number of programs are engaging in hunts for their next head coach. The coaching carousel can be one of the most volatile times in college basketball, a time that can throw doubt towards nearly every program. Not only will underperforming coaches be at risk, but smaller programs are at a major risk of losing their coaches to better programs.
With this season finished, we’re going to take a look back on last year’s coaching carousel. There were 54 programs led by a new head coach this year, meaning there was a change at 15% of the D-1 schools in the nation. There were coaches getting their first chance to run a program, while others took new jobs at other schools. There were also a few former head coaches given another chance at head coach at new programs.
We’re not going to run through all 54 head coaches, but we are going to take some time to analyze the ten most successful first year head coaches. Success can be defined in many ways, but this is how we’re going to look at it. Coaches who elevated their programs will stand out; this isn’t just based on wins, but also how a team compared to preseason expectations. A new coach at a consistent program that wins 20 games every year is less likely to be on this list than someone who greatly exceeds expectations at a smaller school.
Remember, these are first year head coaches at these schools, not just those who are in their first year leading any program. Some of these coaches walked into some rough situations and are already producing results at this school, while other simply built success at their programs far quicker than expected.
Without further ado, let’s dive into the analysis of the ten greatest first year head coaches of 2018-19.