SEC Basketball: Top 10 head coaches of the century (2000-20)
By Joey Loose
7. Kevin Stallings – Vanderbilt (2000-2016)
Long before he became Vanderbilt’s winningest head coach, there was plenty of reason to like what Stallings brought to the table when he was hired in 1999. He was a former assistant under Gene Keady at Purdue and Roy Williams at Kansas, and he’s still responsible for Illinois State’s most recent NCAA Tournament appearance as their head coach in 1998. However, the SEC is an entirely different animal from the MVC.
Across seventeen years, Stallings brought success and consistency to the Vanderbilt program. They never dominated the SEC, winning only one conference tournament, but they did make seven NCAA Tournaments across his tenure. He led the Commodores to Sweet Sixteen runs in 2004 and 2007, though that success couldn’t quite carry into further advancement.
Vanderbilt still hunts for their first Final Four, while Stallings hunts for resurrection, following his departure from the Commodores. He spent two seasons as head coach at Pittsburgh, ending in a winless run through the ACC. Regardless, you can’t deny the winning culture he established with the Commodores, especially as successor Bryce Drew faltered in just three seasons in control. They weren’t a dominant team by any means, but someday Vanderbilt might just return to this consistency.