AAC Basketball: Top 10 head coaches of the century (2000-20)

By Joey Loose | Jul 10, 2020

ARLINGTON, TX - APRIL 07: Phillip Nolan #0, Shabazz Napier #13, his mother Carmen Velasquez, and head coach Kevin Ollie of the Connecticut Huskies look on after defeating the Kentucky Wildcats 60-54 in the NCAA Men's Final Four Championship at AT&T Stadium on April 7, 2014 in Arlington, Texas. (Photo by Jamie Squire/Getty Images) /

3 of 11

HIGHLAND HEIGHTS, KY – FEBRUARY 25: Head coach Frank Haith of the Tulsa Golden Hurricane (Photo by Michael Reaves/Getty Images) /

9. Frank Haith – Tulsa (2014-2020)

As things started to fall apart after three seasons at Missouri, Haith took the Tulsa job in 2014. He’s already had a long eventful coaching career, including seven years as head coach at Miami before sliding over to Missouri. He took over a Tulsa program that Danny Manning had just led back to the NCAA Tournament, though making this program consistent in a new conference was certainly a challenge.

For the most part, Haith has been successful, and his Tulsa programs haven’t been impacted by any violations like his time in Missouri. He led the Golden Hurricanes to the NIT in 2015 and the NCAA Tournament in 2016. This past year’s team won 21 games and tied for their first AAC regular-season title and likely would have been in the NCAA Tournament had it been played. In all, Haith is 116-76 since taking the Tulsa job.

There’s clearly still work to be done, but Haith has done solid enough to this point. There was a rough stretch in the middle of his tenure, but this past season was evidence that the Golden Hurricane have bounced back. We’ll have to wait and see if Tulsa can become a power in this league on a yearly basis, but Haith is certainly capable of putting the pieces in place.