Big East Basketball: Ranking all 10 head coaches for 2019-20 season
By Joey Loose
2. Greg McDermott (Creighton)
After spending decades in the MVC, this most recent round of conference realignment saw Creighton take a step up and join this Big East. Current Oregon coach Dana Altman brought success to the Blue Jays and McDermott has done more than enough to keep the ball rolling. This program hasn’t made a Sweet Sixteen since 1974, but perhaps that’s the next step for McDermott?
McDermott is an Iowa native who played center at Northern Iowa in the 1980s. He was tall, but his playing career ended at graduation and he began his coaching career soon after. After a stint as an assistant at North Dakota, his head coaching career began at Wayne State. He would spend time at North Dakota State, Northern Iowa, and Iowa State as head coach, though his time with Cyclones did not end well. In all, he won a lot of games at Wayne State, instilled progress at NDSU and led Northern Iowa to a trio of NCAA Tournaments.
In 2010, he left Iowa State to take the head coaching job at Creighton, agreeing to a lucrative deal. His son Doug would become an All-American that would help lead this program to the Big East in 2013. McDermott has led the Blue Jays to five NCAA Tournaments, though still searches for a trip to the second weekend. Aside from a rebuilding effort in 2015, his Blue Jays have been consistent postseason contenders, though that stretch with Doug on the roster has yet to be topped.
Whether it be his 487 career wins or his success at a variety of schools, McDermott has asserted himself as one of the Big East’s best coaches. He achieved great success in the MVC and has steadied Creighton in the Big East. He’s nowhere near the top spot, but nobody in this conference is particularly close to Jay Wright.